Health and Working Out in College

It is very hard for me to eat healthy and make healthy foods when I am constantly on the go and just want to grab a bag of chips or cookies to snack on during the day. Also, I'm on an extremely tight budget (maybe $200 for a MONTH of groceries or more) so it's not that easy to buy all fruits and vegetables when they are way more expensive and gone super quickly. I also have a pretty long standing addiction with sugar and salt. Put me infront of a bag of goldfish or a can of pringles and it'll be gone in an hour, tops. I always say I'm going to start being healthy but then it gets harder and harder and my craving for not so great food kicks in and I'm done. I also have a lot of trouble with healthy lunches (I get sick of lunchmeat really quickly) so I usually just bring chips or something else not so great. Any advice for that would be fantastic!

So yes, I am on a very strict budget yet I'm also trying to lose weight (I'd say my goal is about 20 pounds by summer). I don't like working out but I've slowly began walking/jogging at night when I can and doing daily 5-10 minute work outs from an app on my phone (don't hate, they actually do work!) It's just hard for me to find the motivation to get up and start the work out when I'd rather lay down and read or watch something on the computer.

I'm going to be doing a weekly weigh-in on this blog every Monday. I HATE weighing myself but I feel like if I actually keep it up every week and put my mind to it and know I have to write my weight for the world to see it might actually help me stay motivated to actually lose a pound or two a week.

Currently, I weigh 162.4. My short term goal weight is 150 and my long term goal weight is anywhere between 140 and 145. Keep in mind I'm 5'8" so I'm still in a healthy BMI for my height/weight ratio. But for my own sake I know I could slim down and definitely tone up. Next week I hope to at least be down by a pound. I'm going to write down what I'm eating every day and cut back on the bad stuff tremendously. Today after I get home from my research assistant position (which I'm actually going to make a post about later) I'm going to do a 10 minute cardio work out, and then a 5 minute leg and a 5 minute butt work out. HOLD ME TO IT!

Let me introduce my Leading Man

Here is the mister, the one guy that I can count on for anything and everything, my ultimate best friend and the love of my (very young) life. I cannot picture my life without him and the past four years have been twenty times more amazing because he has been around.

And this is not to say we've been without our fair share of problems, because we have certainly had them. I have hurt him and he has hurt me but we learn to work through them and make ourselves a stronger unit because of that. I think we get along so well because no matter what we fight about we have the ability to look at each other a couple of minutes later and just laugh about it. And I am probably one of the most stubborn people I know but he is so laid back (thank the Lord) and somehow it just always works out.

I just am really excited for what our lives have in store for us. I can't wait to live with him, to travel around the world with him, to be married to him and have his beautiful babies. Everytime I think of my life I think of him right there beside me through it all.

So everyone, that is my mister. The best man in the whole entire world and I say that VERY objectively. He is kind-hearted, generous, self-less, and just all-around perfect.

The life of an Undergrad

From the beginning, college seemed incredibly overwhelming to me. I've always been a homebody, content to stay in my room on the computer. Not that I didn't have a social life, just that I never cared to go to parties, get drunk, or do any crazy reckless things most teenagers do. I had my group of friends and we would just hang out, have board game parties, go out to eat, and just relax.

           (one said board game party, minus my boyfriend)

Anyway, so senior year rolls around and we're all graduating and going our separate ways. Two of my close friends stayed in town, one went two hours north, and the other went about 5 hours north. While I'm only an hour south and able to come home whenever I want (and believe me, I do), I knew I'd miss the friendships and being able to see them every day. In life it's hard to come by friends who just completely understand and get you and it's definitely hard making new friends and starting from scratch.

 

(three of my best girl friends, I miss them every day)

(and my beautiful best friend since freshman year)

Not only did I know I'd miss these four women every single day and how easy and amazing our friendships are, I'd be missing the love of my life who was still at home working full time and finishing up his AA.

           (the mister and i, four years and going strong)


Fast forward a year and I'm already a Junior (yes, I would advise going into college with credits already under your belt) and the pressure is on to succeed. I'm majoring in psychology and minoring in criminology and trying to find a graduate program that I can beat out hundreds of other applicants and get into and a career that will suit me and make me happy for the rest of my life. My mind changes every day. Sometimes the stress of three research positions, an 18 credit semester, being far from my best friends, and dealing with roommates really takes a toll on the body.

So here I am, writing and recording every step so when I look back I'll know it was all worth it.