New Years Resolutions: Just Start

Its that time of the year where everyone is bloated, has a food baby that's 4 months old and feels dissatisfied with their body. Then the 1st of January hits and we have those over enthusiastic, goal oriented gym goers that absolutely kill it on the 1st of January but then a week later fizzle and are, again, back to sitting on the couch with chips and soda. 

I am here, as a fitness instructor and just your ordinary friend, to tell you not to fizzle, feel unmotivated and give up after killing it for a week and not seeing any results. Hey, it took you a lot of courage to sign up for the gym or for group fitness classes and just going is a victory in itself. But continuing from that starting point is where the challenge lies. After a couple of weeks, spice it up. Maybe take that Zumba or Kickboxing class that you've always wanted to try but at first felt too weak or not fit enough to do so. Working out can get monotonous but if you change up your routine, it becomes more fun and interactive. Once the weather gets warmer, start going on hikes with your friends, take your pet with you and now your multi-tasking; walking your dog and spending quality time with people you care about. You also get a great view of nature in all its beautiful glory and get to appreciate it more. Hiking is great cardio as well because you're not thinking about how hard you're technically working out. 

Okay. How to get started with your fitness journey. Here are some steps to get started as well as tips and tricks. First step: write out your realistic goals for yourself. I promise you, you can't lose 120 pounds in 2 weeks and look like a Victoria's Secret angel with legs for days if you are 5 foot 2. But you can definitely have goals like benching 40 pounds to start out. Step two: Take before pictures and measurements of yourself so you can have references for your journey later on. Step three: It's not just about working out for 2 hours at the gym for 5 days straight and then downing a liter of Coke and a Big Mac. Its also about what you eat. Start a diet (but I don't mean dieting) plan where you plan out healthy, wholesome meals for each meal and day of the week. I always tell this to my clients, but have a support system around you that give you positive and helpful feed back. If you do not have a healthy support system around you, if people close to you are being negative about you changing your life for the better then find a support system online. There's always me, if you have any questions, need advice or just want to talk, I'm always an email away (styleandbell@gmail.com). But there are communities all over the internet just waiting for you to join and one you start going to the gym and classes, you will start making friends there as well, I promise. 

It's going to be a great year, 2016. You've got this. 

Sports bra: New Balance

Gloves: Nike

Sandals: Adidas

Cap: Lululemon

Bag: Lululemon

Coin Purse: Loft 

Lifestyle Review: Calia by Carrie Underwood

I am apart of the fit fam as we would say. I am a yoga instructor, dancer and gym bunny. I am also a girl who likes to dress up and look her best. So when combining the two to go to a yoga or dance studio or even the gym, I have to look cute, yet practical. I want to work my hardest to get the results I want, but I also want to look my best because (weirdly enough and I hope that other fashion gym bunnies will understand) it motivates me to train even harder. I know it may sound a little weird to some as to why I want to look nice when I'm going to sweat buckets, but to me it makes me feel a little more confident in myself. 

A fitness apparel brand that I have just discovered literally 2 days ago is Calia by Carrie Underwood. I was perusing in Dick's Sporting Goods and literally was stopped in my footsteps because everything caught my eye to my extreme delight. Her brand is all about being stylish to and from and in the gym, studio or class. It has little details that a fashion blogger and detail oriented person would love. For example, the stylist paired an open back sweater with a strappy detailed sports bra in the Calia shoot; there are so many layering options with Carrie's line that it makes it fun to get dressed to go to the gym. There is a level of design to her clothing that is well thought out, such as her moto leggings. They look both stylish like regular moto pants with the ribbed detail in the knee, but they perform like performance leggings that you can train in. The price for her clothing (for the fit, quality and design) is reasonable. It is not Lululemon or Sweaty Betty prices, but it is definitely not Target prices either. My tip is spot the sales because they are usually very good and a bargain. 

Her accessories are also great, such as her blanket scarf. It is not only soft and comfortable, but it is not thing and dinky so that it will make you look stylist, yet make you freeze your little bottom off. It is thick, warm and looks great. Her gym bags are stylist and not to mention have rose gold hardware, which many a girl will delight in. 

I give Calia by Carrie Underwood a thumbs up for their effort in design and attention to detail. Look forward to going and purchasing a couple of pieces soon.

Fit Inspiration: New Year, New You

If you have been following me from the beginning, which isn't too long ago, you will know that I am very much into the whole health and fitness lifestyle. I actually am a certified yoga instructor and can actually teach classes. As the year comes to an end, we start thinking about the how the next is going to be greater and grander than the one that has passed. We make goals for ourselves to become a better version of who we are so that we fit into the "greater and grander" ideal we have for the new year.

If we are to make that a possibility, we must start with ourselves. If our goal is to lose weight and become stronger, then we have to persevere and be tenacious. There will be days that we do not see the results we want and have very negative thoughts, but we must always remind ourselves to keep moving forward because the world is not waiting for us. We must seize the day and take it to the fullest. 

Fitness is about the journey and not the destination is what I say to all my students. We are so focused on our goal body type or weight, we forget that the path that makes us stronger is what defines us. If we are to focus on just the end result, we will not enjoy the journey that gets us there. Take it little by little, each pound we lose and strength we gain are little victories in themselves. I was so proud of myself once I could shadow box with 5 pounds in each had. When I put the weights down, I was lighting fast. If you want to run a marathon, take it one mile at a time. Your fit body is not going to be sculpted in a day or even week. It takes time. Stick with it and definitely have people supporting you through the whole journey. I wish you luck and welcome you to the fitness family. 

Soul

You know how there are things you want to try but never have the guts to try them? Yes, I know that feeling. I've always wanted to try Soulcycle. And I've always made excuses to why I can't do it; it being too hard, too expensive or too lonely (since I would probably be going by myself). So until now, I've never been to a Soulcycle class. I've heard so many people say amazing things about it and how life changing it can be. I've just always been too scared to take the plunge. But that, my friends, is going to all change. When I get back to the states, first things first is that I will need some time to rest and then I'm back in the fitness game. I will be signing up for my first Soulcycle class and not chickening out. As Neal Donald Walsch said, "life begins at the end of your comfort zone."