Let's Get Healthy, Shall We? A Beginners Guide To Health And Fitness
Getting on a good health and fitness kick can be so difficult and daunting. I’ve spent the past couple of years exploring different health and fitness trends, and have learned so much in doing so.
So, here’s my starters guide to health and fitness — from eating right and working out, to all of the do’s and don’ts I’ve learned along the way.
Let’s get into it.
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Find The Right Workout For You
Finding the right workout routine for you is so important. No two bodies are the same, and what works for one person might not work for you. I used to be the girl who would go to the gym five days a week, run to the point of exhaustion, and then call it a day. While this works for some people, for me this was not sustainable. As someone who has always dealt with back and joint pain, running is actually one of the worst workouts for me. Yoga and Pilates, on the other hand, are two forms of exercise that I’ve really gotten into over the course of this year. Both Yoga and Pilates focus largely on strengthening, lenghthening and toning, and I’ve noticed a huge change in the pain that I experience on a day-to-day basis since starting.
Recently I’ve been obsessed with Hot Pilates. If you live in LA and are into heated workouts, you definitely need to try it out. All of the instructors are really focused on form which again, I’m all about. If I can make it to even three classes in week I automatically feel 10x better.
My favorite Yoga Studio is Modo Yoga. I’ve been doing yoga for a little bit over a year, and it’s been great not only for my physical health, but my mental health too. Modo has a wonderful heated vinyasa flow class that is both gentle and challenging. On days that I’m feeling really stressed out, or am just tired, I’ll opt for a heated yoga class.
For me personally, the higher impact workouts don’t really give me the results that I’m looking for, and I’ve found that I do best in more targeted, heated classes that focus on toning and strengthening. But so many people are the complete opposite and do better with more high intensity workouts. I recommend dropping into a few different classes and seeing what works and what makes you feel good.
If you live in a city that has it, try signing up for ClassPass. I’ve been a member for over a year now, and it’s really helped me branch out and try different classes that I probably wouldn’t have gone to otherwise (that’s how I found the Modo and Hot Pilates). It’s super easy to sign up, and charges you monthly. If you’re wanting to try out multiple different studios, this is definitly the cheapest way to do so.
Sign up for ClassPass with this link for a discount on your first month!
At Home Workouts
Don’t sleep on at home workouts. With Youtube, IG, blogs, etc., it has become so easy to make high quality at home workout videos available to everyone. I work during the week, and sometimes my personal schedule doesn’t align with the class schedule at the studios that I go to. On days where I can’t make it to a class, I’ll resort to at home workouts.
Here are a few of my fav at home workouts:
10 Minute Ab Workout | Alexis Ren
10 Minute Beach Butt Workout | Alexis Ren
20 Minute Beach Body Sculpt | Shanon Nadj
At Home Lean Body Workout Ab Workout | Fit With Cambrie
At Home Lean Body Cardio Workout | Fit With Cambrie
Eat More & Eat Well
One of the most common mistakes that people make, and one that I definitely made along the way, is restricting your eating. As humans, we tend to want quick, visible results. But when it comes to health and fitness, there really is no shortcut; you just have to be patient with your body. It’s so easy to just jump the gun and eat less, rather than to take a look at what you’re actually eating and make permanant healthy lifestyle changes. In my experience, coming around to healthy eating patterns came with years of trial and error. I’ve done just about every “trendy” diet you can think of (vegetarian, pescetarian, vegan, keto, paleo… you name it). But what I found was that the best thing for me was to scrap the dietary restrictions, and eat intuitively. Learn to listen to your body, and eat foods that make you feel good.
Again, this was not an easy thing to master, and something that I’m still working on to this day. I eat mostly plant based because that’s what makes my body feel the most energized and fueled, but if I ever crave something that’s not plant based, I’ll have it. As a general rule of thumb, I go by an 80-20 rule (80% healthy & nutricious food, 20% indulgence), and I place a huge value on the quality of my food. I try to buy all organic, non GMO foods when possible. If I’m going to indulge (which I totally do), I make sure that it’s good quality — essentially if I have a sweet tooth, I’m going to go for homemmade cookie that is made with quality ingredients, not the twix bar.
Lastly, if I’m having a “craving”, I don’t ignore it. My cravings usually mean something, and I’ve learned to recognize them. For example, when I my blood sugar gets low, I tend to get a little bit shaky and crave sweet foods. When I’m dehydrated, I crave salty foods, and if I haven’t eaten enough during the day, I almost always crave carbs. While your cravings might look a little bit different than mine, as soon as you start to recognize them, you can start to connect the dots and see what patterns might be leading to those cravings.
Ultimately, the goal is to get to a point where you eat nutricious foods when you’re hungry, and stop eating when you’re satisfied, not stuffed. One of the most significant things that I’ve learned over the course of my health journey is that food is not the enemy; it’s fuel. Unless you have actual dietary restrictions because of a medical condition, I’d honestly ditch any strict “diet”, and focus on replacing the junk food with real, non processed food. As soon as you start eating intuitively and listening to your body, you will see and feel the results.
Stay Hydrated
Drink more water. Seems simple, right? Wrong. I constantly forget to drink water. In fact, unless I have a waterbottle right in front of me, I’ll go hours without a sip of water (even with the water bottle I still somehow forget)! Staying hydrated is crucial to a healthy lifestyle, and plays a huge role on how you look and feel throughout the day. Often times we mistake thirst for hunger. And ever try working out when you’re dehydrated? Forget about it! Whatever it takes, find ways to get around 8 glasses (or 3-4 bottles) or water in each day.
*side note: soda, coffee, juice, etc. don’t count, you’re body needs plain water*
Don’t Overdo It
Last but definitely not least, don’t overdo it. The goal here is to make permanant adjustments, and strive for a healthy, balanced life. Give yourself a few rest days during the week, and a "cheat meal” here and there if that’s what’s going to help you sustain this lifestlye. In all aspects of life (but especially health and fitness), it’s so important to maintain balance and work towards your goal. Forget about the crash diets and workout plans, and focus on making smaller, more sustainable adjustments in your life. It’s easy to get discouraged when you don’t see immediate results, but give yourself a few weeks and I promise you will start to notice a difference not only in how you look, but also how you feel.
A healthy lifestlye is all about finding and maintaing balance in all aspects of your life, so allow yourself to enjoy the process. Skip the gym and watch a movie on those days that you’re exhausted, and enjoy a meal out and drinks with friends on Friday after work… Just incorporate the healthy habits into your life more often.
Life is precious, and you owe it to yourself to be your best, healthiest self.
How do you stay healthy? As always, let me know in the comment section.
xx,
seb.
