And I am Back!

My one and a half month hiatus of being a lazy bum and spending hours studying for finals and not paying attention to my blog is officially over! Some exciting things are a-brewing here on 'Masha's Mumbles'. On Monday, I am leaving for Spain and will not be back until 2014. I will be taking an excessive amount of photos on my trip and will also be on the hunt for some new beauty items that are exclusive to Spain (any suggestions?!).

I am getting back on track with getting fit so my fitness posts will be reappearing and will hopefully help all of you who are making the New Year's resolution to be a bit more healthy. Furthermore, get ready for too many makeup posts because while I was stressed with school work I may have relieved that stress by adding to my makeup collection... Happy holidays everyone! Thank you for sticking around while I was buried under textbooks.

Let's Talk Fitness // 2: Motivation

The main reason why I'm not a professional athlete (minus the fact that I just don't have the talent) is that I often lack the motivation to get out and train. However, I do have a couple tips and tricks have helped me go to the gym more often and for a longer period of time.

My number one problem is that I get bored while running on the elliptical or treadmill. I have noticed that some people tend to cover up the screen of the machine with a towel to avoid seeing the time they have spent running/the amount of calories they have burnt. This is supposed to make you lose track of time and spend more time exercising. That does not work for me. Nor does listening to music. The only thing that will keep me distracted is watching YouTube videos. In particular, videos about fitness and health. Here are a couple of YouTubers that keep me going:

1. Lauren Elizabeth: Lauren has 3-4 videos about her fitness routine and eating habits
2. Ayydubs: Alyx talks about her weight loss story and how she stays in shape. She is a BIG fan of Zumba.
3. ARose186: Fitness aside, Arden is hilarious and the most charming person I've ever watched. She talks about staying healthy and her fitness routine. 

Another solution for the monotony that can be working out is to mix it up! Not only will this keep you more engaged, it is actually more beneficial to your workout. If every time you go to the gym you only run or you only go on the elliptical, your body will get used to the exercise and it will not benefit you in the long run. For example, one day of the week I like to run a couple miles on the treadmill and do abs and legs and then the next time I go to the gym I will spin and focus more on lifting. This gives certain muscles time to heal before you strain them again and make them bigger and tighter. Also, a good idea is to try to take some classes like yoga, zumba, or kickboxing. During past school year I experimented with boxing and actually became an avoid yoga-goer. Since I'm very competitive, having an instructor and other people around me makes me work harder and as a result, burn more calories.

My final little tip is probably a bit more obvious than the previous ones: keep your goal in mind. When I'm exercising, different scenarios run through my head where I bump into people I haven't seen in awhile or I picture how amazing I will look at some big event wearing a dress I had not previously been able to pull off. A bit narcissistic but it helps.

Don't forget that a relaxed workout is better than nothing. Hope this made you at least the tiniest bit more motivated!

Let's Talk Fitness // 1: Introduction

This post has been without a doubt been inspired by the fact that I had my first session with a personal trainer yesterday. I have always been interested in health and fitness and the nutritional science overall. Since being healthy and happy both mentally and physically is a large portion of being confident and beautiful, I thought that my blog would be the perfect place to share my exercise routine and some healthy recipes. Now keep in mind that I am just a college student attempting to stay fit and not a professional.

Okay, let's start off with a bit of history. I was always involved in many athletic activities as a child: I danced for six years, I swam, I played tennis, did karate, and ran track. Unfortunately when high school came around, I became less active. I would go to the gym now and then and try out diets that I was curious about (nothing too drastic). I was never overweight but I wouldn't classify myself as skinny by any means. I have long muscular legs, broad swimmer shoulders, and then I got myself a big bootie and boobs. Also, I am almost 5'7". I guess some would classify me as curvy but I don't believe I fall into that category because I do not have very wide hips. I've maintained pretty much the same weight all throughout high school until senior year when I lost about twelve pounds. I must admit I'm not all sure as to how I managed to accomplish that because I wasn't try to lose any weight at that point. I assume it was because of extreme stress.

Me in January 2013

I'm sure all of you know about the infamous 'Freshman 15'. Luckily, I don't fancy beer so I did not gain that much weight, but I did gain weight from poor eating habits. The major problem was that my schedule was all off and I would end up eating dinner very late at night. Even though I began going to the gym regularly and began going to boxing and yoga, that late night Jimmy John's was making an appearance on my body. Also, I come from a pretty healthy household where we rarely have juice (too much sugar) and mostly eat whole grains. The transition from that to college definitely influenced my eating habits. When I came back home in the beginning of March for a weekend visit, my mom informed me that I had visibly gotten bigger.

I must admit that this upset me and I did get a bit obsessed with losing all that I had gained during the second semester. I ended up going to the gym almost every night for an hour to two hours and I started a food journal. I would burn anywhere from 500 to 800 calories a night. I know that isn't the healthiest mentality to have but it's been four months and I lost the weight and I kept it off. My next goal is to get more toned and get down to the weight I had at the end of my senior year. I don't want to be skinny, I want to be fit and healthy.

I know that this is more of an introductory post but I promise I will post more about food and specific exercises. Let me know if you guys enjoy this series! xx