I remember the freshman 15 hitting me last year like a slap in the face.
It's easy, really. Falling quickly into bad habits, especially at college. Classes and homework take up a good portion of your time, and when you're not hustling to get all of that done well, you're hanging out with your friends and doing something fun.
I guess it was easy to pick up bad habits, and I did so without ever realizing what I was doing. That is until I went home for the summer.
I wrote an article recently about losing the weight I gained during my freshman year, which I did, and I'm in a place right now where I feel pretty great about how I look.
I think that was the scariest part about coming back to school this semester; I look and feel great now, but I know how easy it is to fall back into old habits.
Lucky enough for me, my dorm building sits right next to the dream. Over the summer, I imagined myself there pretty much every night, determined not to fall back into the position I was in last year.
And then the semester actually started, and, with the full intention of using the same metaphor I started with, it hit me like a slap in the face. Between classes and work and extra activities, I was trying to find time to get a good night's sleep, let alone spend a good hour at the gym.
I found myself going to the gym, however, when my mind was so preoccupied that I could barely sit still. It wasn't for very long: just a quick workout with a good playlist, but afterward, my head felt so clear that it actually helped me focus better on all of my work.
I think it's fair to say I was approaching a workout schedule with the wrong outlook. Of course, I'd like to maintain the way I look now and continue to exercise a healthy amount, but I've been neglecting the fact that I feel so much better altogether after I come back from the gym.
I'd like to believe that self-confidence stems from more than just looking good, and if going to the gym is going to clear my head and never fail to make me feel better than I think it's a great place to start building my own confidence.
And that kind of mentality definitely deserves a place in my schedule, no matter how busy it may be.
