Ever since this past fall during cross country season, I have gotten suuuuper into running. I’ve always run cross country and enjoyed it, but I’ve almost always had bad shin problems so it was super painful to run. This season I was able to run almost pain free, so I ran so much more than my other seasons and really fell in love with it. While I ran a lot, I didn’t actually do many other workouts/strength training. We did some in cross country season, but I realized that October was the last time I did regular plyometrics! A few days ago I got a sudden burst of motivation to start doing daily workouts and get into a regular workout routine. Hopefully I can keep up the motivation and stick with my health goals, especially with summer fast approaching!
One of the main things I want to focus on is adding muscle building to my cardio routine. I still love to run and want to continue doing it a few times a week, but I want to add strength training to my runs. I’m definitely going to have to start out slow since I haven’t done it in so long, which will probably mean focusing on body weight workouts like squats, lunges, etc. But in the months to come I want to also start going to the gym more and lifting weights. I want to focus on building muscle and a strong core. I’ve done 300 crunches almost every day of 2019, but I want to add more ab workouts like planks and Russian twists to work all parts of my abs.
Another thing I want to work on this upcoming month is the food I eat. I usually eat pretty healthy, but now I really want to focus on what all foods I’m putting into my body and what nutrients are in my meals. Yes, I’m going to eat ice cream or have a cookie now and then, but instead of focusing on all the foods I can’t eat or that are “bad for me”, I want to shift my focus to all the healthy, nutritious foods out there that will fuel my body. And not only fuel it for my runs and exercise, but just to fuel it to go about my day with a clear mind and energized spirit. I want to start having more smoothies, salads, and healthy fats every day. I love smoothies but don’t drink them enough, and I want to start adding spinach to my smoothies to get extra greens in. I also don’t eat salads near as often as I should, just because I always thought they were boring and bland. But recently I’ve been finding lots of salad combo ideas that I’m excited to try! I had a shrimp-avocado salad with feta cheese and raspberry vinaigrette the other night and it was soooo good. I also want to try a arugula and citrus salad, a grilled chicken greek salad, and a mexican inspired salad.
Lastly, I really want focus on drinking WATER. I don’t drink enough throughout my day. I usually start out strong and drink a liter or two before lunch, but as soon as I get home from school I forget to keep drinking it the rest of the afternoon. I want to try and drink 4 liters a day and see if I notice results. I’ve heard it helps with clearing your skin, aids in digestion, and increases your energy. I love adding crystal light flavor drops or squeezing a lemon slice into my bottle so it’s not completely plain.
Typing this all out is actually making me so motivated. I’m getting so excited to start this new health routine and fuel my body properly. I can just imagine summer now: waking up late, going on sunny runs at whirlpool trails, ice cold smoothies for breakfast, going to the pool, yummy salads on the back deck, and drinking fresh lemon water. Of course, I’ll probably get to summer and lose some motivation, but I really hope if I start my healthy routine now it will carry over into the next few months.
Only a few more weeks until summer! Let’s get healthy!
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