I'm currently a second-semester freshman, and, man, first semester was a whirlwind. It was fun, but the transition from a high school with 34 girls in my graduating class and 400 in the school Pre-K to 12th, to a school of over 40,000 was a tough one. I had never lived on my own before, and I wasn't prepared to start handling my own schedule and managing my own time. My lack of that skill was transparent in my first semester.

I was disorganized, I didn't have a set daily schedule except for my classes, and I was super stressed all the time. Don't get me wrong, I did have fun meeting new friends, going to swaps, etc., but I didn't have a grasp on college life yet.

I decided to take a much-needed stay-cation at my house over the break to put the pieces of what I want to achieve at Bama back together. One of those pieces was to stay active and eventually run a half-marathon. First semester I had given up on that idea because I couldn't find time to run. I would always put it off for social interactions or school.

As soon as I could after got back, I went on a run. It was a short, three-mile run around the quad, but it was a start. The next day, the day classes started, my friends talked about going to the gym every day for the rest of the month. Later that day, after our classes got out, I hopped in the back of my friend's car on my first, and far from last, trip to the Old Rec. The next day, I drove. We kept encouraging each other, and, because of that, I only took five days off in January.

The goal wasn't to lose weight. While the freshman fifteen is a real thing, I had a few other goals in mind. I wanted to be healthier, happier, and get a grasp of my old life back.

I've gotten better sleep and started to think healthier since I've gone to the gym. My body feels healthier, as moving around and getting a workout in obviously has good effects on the body — I mean, at least the Health Hut at the Rec said so of cardio workouts. And, I feel as if I've been eating better, too; I'm not saying I eat salad all day every day, but I'm eating in more moderation and making sure I get enough water during the day so when I go to the gym, I can get through a hard workout or a good run.

I've noticed that I'm in a happy mood every time I leave the gym. A runner's high, as it's called. I can come to the Rec tired, unhappy, angry, startled, and leave with a smile on my face because getting active naturally puts my body in a happier mood. I've also gotten a new grasp on my schedule, so because of that, it puts me in a better mood because I have control of when I do what.

I've also started to gain my love of running back. This is the most important thing today because I loved running my last two years of high school, and I was sad that I lost that passion last semester. I'm actually planning on running a 5k next month, which I'm super excited about. One of the highlights was when I finally ran a three-mile workout in under 24 minutes, which was exciting because, while I used to be able to run three miles in 21 minutes, and I'm starting to work my way down again.

So, yes, while the gym has helped me tone my body a little bit, it's also helped me get more in touch with my life again, which is something I lost last semester which caused me to get lost in the sea of freshman. I get to hang out with my friends, become healthier, happier, and gain my love of running back all at once.

And with that, I'm ending this article so I can go to a spin class with my friend Alexis.