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Motivating Yourself

All throughout high school, I was never one to exercise daily. I was lazy, a procrastinator, and overall a person who thought exercise was worthless and a waste of my time. My senior year of high school I started going on runs after I got home from school, and I stayed hydrated by drinking cucumber or fruit infused water. However, that phase didn't last long. After I graduated, I abandoned exercising at all; I had a summer job, was hanging out with friends, and was busy all the time. I was also eating very unhealthily, which when accompanied with no exercise, is not healthy for my body. However, I knew that I was making a mistake by not exercising, so when I went to college, I made a vow to make a change.

My college has a wonderful gym and track that both offer stunning views of the city and ocean. There is also a large swimming pool, which I have not utilized yet, but definitely will soon. Despite the vow I made to myself before going off to school, my fall quarter at college I didn't exercise. I was too busy trying to adjust to the college life, make friends, and do well in my classes. However, winter quarter was the quarter where I started exercising. I went on runs early in the morning on the weekends, and the one day during the week when I didn't have class at 8 am I was dedicating to waking up early to go to the gym. I consistently worked out for a month or so, then completely abandoned it. Spring quarter I exercised a decent amount, but not as much as winter quarter. And, I found I had to force myself to put on running shorts, a sports bra, a tank top, and my running shoes, and get myself out the door. Spring quarter I exercised a lot with one of my friends, but I wasn't motivated at all.

This summer of 2016 has really changed my mindset on exercising. This summer I worked at a health, fitness, and nutrition retail center at a local shopping plaza near my home, and it completely changed my outlook on exercising. Working at a fitness store like this one led me to be constantly surrounded by a variety of protein powders, multivitamins, herbal supplements, vegan/nature based/plant based protein powders, diet/cleanses, and so on. While working at this store I got to talk to a lot of customers who were hardcore fitness junkies, athletes, and people who were just starting to work out, and it motivated me to start working out and taking supplements. Now I work out 5 days a week, am taking protein powder and drinking protein shakes and smoothies, and am taking a multivitamin alongside my fish oil supplements.

Although working at a health, fitness, and nutrition store encouraged and pushed me to start working out, not everyone should be forced to be surrounded by health and fitness to be motivated to exercise. I believe everyone should incorporate exercise into their daily routines in order to live a healthier lifestyle. Whether you work out 30 minutes 3 times a week, have a personal trainer, or go to the gym religiously, making sure you spend time getting your heart pumping and your body sweating is going to lead you to living a healthier life. Pairing exercise with eating healthy and balanced meals as well as taking multivitamins and other supplements will also ensure your body is at its healthiest.

Everyone exercises differently. I exercise 5 days a week, switching between cardio, pilates, strength training, ab work, leg work, arm work, and so on. Other people only do cardio, yoga, strengh training, etc. You should always try to find what types of exercise work best for you, but just encouraging and motivating yourself to get out there and start exercising will definitely put you on the pathway to becoming a healthier you.


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