When I first started college, I felt like I was in great shape and that nothing could change the way my body looked and I was very wrong. The way I ate, the way I acted, and my sleeping patterns all affected the way the way my body was changing. At the time, I felt like I looked fine and I didn't see myself gaining the weight. One day I was going through pictures from high school and realized that I had gained a significant amount of weight in a short period of time. After I realized this, whenever I put clothes on, I realized they were getting little tighter or a little smaller. Whenever I got new clothes, I had to get bigger sizes that what I would usually get. I didn't like how I looked and I wanted to change.
When I was in high school, I felt like I was in the best shape I have ever been in (as pictured above). I always felt like I was fat in high school. I always told people I was fat and I wanted to be skinny. I was constantly active in high school, but I compared myself to everyone. People told me that I was skinny and that I didn't need to worry about my weight and I should've listened. I regret that I didn't listen to them when I should've.
The picture above is from January of 2016. I didn't look anything like I did in high school and I truly hated my body, so I decided it was time to get back into going to the gym, but I was never constant with it. There were a lot of other things that I would rather have done than go to the gym. I would have rather taken a nap or watched Netflix instead of going to the gym. Plus, the gym where I live off-campus, wasn't the best place to go. Every time I went and there were other people in there, I felt like people were talking about me. A few times I overheard people talking about me and making fun of me and my weight. This made me feel extremely discouraged. Why would I want to go to the gym when people were talking about me and I could hear them? So, I ultimately stopped going for a few months. I got back into going around the middle of March.
When I got back into going to the gym, I went consistently, but I wasn't eating right. I started losing a little bit of weight every so often, but I ultimately just gained it back whenever I ate. I was using my FitBit to track when I exercised and for how long, along with using the app to track what I was eating and how many calories I could eat per day depending on how much I exercised. I realized that wasn't working as well as I wanted it to either. I needed to do something, but I just got into the groove of being lazy again. I was lazy and didn't do much over the summer and I didn't eat well over the summer at all. When I came back to my apartment after the summer, I got back into working out, but I still wasn't losing any weight. So, I have decided to make some changes.
Recently, I have gotten a membership to Planet Fitness. I love Planet Fitness. I never feel judged. The people there are always courteous and I have never once felt out of place while being there. My workout schedule has been consistent and I don't have to go to the gym alone. My boyfriend and I have been working out together for a few weeks now and I love going to the gym. One thing that I still need to work on is my eating habits. I have been trying to eat healthier. Working out has been making my appetite become smaller. I drink protein after every workout and take vitamins.
I have already noticed a lot of changes in my mood, my sleep, and how I feel through out the day. I have noticed that I am a lot happier and I am happier more often since I have been working out. Being happy has made my days go a lot better. My sleep has been a lot more peaceful. I used to be very restless through the night, but I have been sleeping more and getting more rest. I feel more alert throughout the day and I feel like I don't need to take a nap, so I can get more done. I have been getting a lot of things done through the week and having the weekend to relax since I'm not as tired. I still sit and watch TV and I still do homework, but I can get a lot more accomplished since I have been more awake and alert.
Having someone to motivate you to go to the gym and be there with you is big part of being excited to go to the gym and getting things done while being there. Seeing results also makes me want to go the gym more. I have been very pleased since getting a membership and going constantly.
I have one big piece of advice to anyone wanting to get into exercising, lifting weights, and going to the gym. My advice would be to stick with it. I would do things and give up over and over again. I have now been going to the gym constantly and I'm already seeing results. It takes time. You can't expect to change how you look over night, but you will see results if you work.
