Sleep! Getting enough sleep (between ~7-9 hours) every night is the key to keeping yourself well. It doesn't just restore your energy, it's essential in keeping your immune system strong, which is particularly important this time of year. This coupled with regular exercise gives your immune system a huge boost. Today's workout will do you much better than that vitamin C supplement...

Today's workout is a brutal one. You see me struggle, you see me sweat, but what you don't see is me giving up. I dug deep and got through it; you can too. Come try it with me...

I was kind of dreading doing this workout, but once I started I quickly got into it and it ended up being really fun. At the end I felt so energized, and not tired or worn out like I feared I might. This is the beauty of short, high intensity workouts. When you put effort forth for a short period of time, you gain a huge burst of energy as a reward. If you work really hard, you don't have to work out for as long as is often necessary at lower intensities. Short and sweet is the key. Try this fun new workout with me...

But the more you put into it, the more you'll get out of it. It's just like anything in life, the more effort you put into something, the better the results; whether that be with studying for a test, working on a project, or in this case pushing yourself as much as you can every day in your workouts. Strive to do your best and be proud of your efforts as well as your achievements.

​Today's workout is...

I had such a difficult time getting myself to do my workout yesterday. It took me 2 hours to finally start it, and I really struggled throughout. I was upset with myself for having trouble with some of the more challenging poses and having to go slower and take breaks so I didn't hurt myself. I wasn't having fun, and I was so relieved when it was over. This is a rare feeling for me, but we all have those days where it just feels impossible to do something and you have to just push yourself through it anyway. It likely won't feel this bad again even the very next day. So I got through it. And I was grateful that I did, even as much as I struggled. I know I have room for improvement, but this challenge was important. I know that I will improve because I took on this challenge and that is a good feeling. Always strive to be better today than you were yesterday, and better tomorrow than you were today. 

Today's workout I felt ready and excited for and it was a welcome start to my day. This was a great improvement from yesterday; but even if I hadn't felt better, I know I just have to keep going, have to keep moving forward. Can't let minor setbacks have you lose sight of how far you've come and all the progress you've made and will continue to make. Consistency is key. If you maintain healthy habits each day, they become just that, habits. Exercise for me has become as essential and habitual to my mornings as brushing my teeth, truly. It's part of my basic self-care and health management. Even when I feel too tired or like I just don't want to do it, I do it anyway, it's necessary for me. Because for me, exercise is as powerful as medicine and I need it. 

I struggled with depression from a very young age, something chemically doesn't work properly in my brain, and the only thing I've found that truly helps manage my symptoms is exercise. This is not to say that getting to this point was easy or is easy for most, because it wasn't and often isn't. I was overweight and sedentary for a long time, and I couldn't even fathom purposely being active. Depression can be paralyzing, and even on a good day the hardest part of anything is mustering up the energy to start something, just to begin. But one day, and I'm still not sure how, but, I managed to get myself up and out of the house, and it just clicked for me: this is how I want to feel, and this is the way I need to do it. And I've never looked back. I'll discuss this further in a later post but the takeaway message is: Fitness is a journey, and sometimes it takes a long time and a lot of missteps before we can find it and begin, but once you do and you commit, you'll never want to stop.