Why You Should Start Living Healthy

The decision to start living a healthier lifestyle is quite easy to make, however, the actual act of pursuing healthy living is far more difficult to achieve. We are all human and we all deserve to have a few lazy and cheat days –I know that I love having them because without them it would be very difficult for me to remain motivated. It is okay to have them once in a while, but making sure that we do not give up and continue to maintain the routine of getting into a healthier lifestyle is very important.

But, there has to be a fair balance between your healthy routine days and your free days, because to want to start something new, like daily exercise, and maintain it is difficult when you also choose to cut a regular habit, like eating greasy foods, out of your life.

Maybe you’re thinking, ‘why should I change my current lifestyle, how will it benefit me’?

Choosing to live healthily is one of the best decisions a student can make because not only does it help to decrease the number of health risks an individual may face in the future, but it also helps to increase one’s lifespan. Academically, it will help to increase your brain health and memory, as well as make you feel more energized throughout the day. This means that you will have an easier time studying for exams and you won’t feel as tired when you are attending classes. If you want to know more about this and read about more benefits, check out the The Top 10 Benefits of Regular Exercise blog.

But what exactly defines healthy living?

Healthy living can be defined by eating more healthy foods, such as fruits and vegetables or cooking with less salt and it can also be defined by committing yourselves to exercise daily, whether it be walking, running, or going to the gym. The two go hand-in-hand because in order to achieve the highest sense of satisfaction in one you have to also work on the other.

The main focus of this piece is to help give you some tips in order to start pushing yourselves towards pursuing daily physical activity. You have to stay focused and motivated to achieve this. There are ways for you to commit yourselves to your own workout routines at home, however, it is hard as a beginner who is just starting their healthy journey to remain motivated towards their goal.

How exactly do you stay motivated?

Believe me, I know how hard it is to remain motivated, I can’t even count how many times I’ve given up in the past. I think it is all about remaining positive and always keeping the end goal in mind. Today, things that keep me motivated are the thoughts of gaining a more toned body, being able to do more activities that I may not have been able to do as well in the past because I wasn’t as in shape, as well as becoming happier and more comfortable in my own skin. I think it is also beneficial to track your progress so that you are able to see the differences in your body from when you first started. Keep in mind that every body type is different and that it may take you more time to get toned than it would for other people. Just remember that you can’t end up with a body similar to Zac Efron without hard work!

For those of you who decide to pursue a workout routine at home, I would suggest following fitness YouTubers who share their own tutorials online. These workouts are free and because there are so many different fitness YouTubers, you will be able to explore and discover whose routine and teaching style works best for you. A few fitness YouTubers that I enjoy following are Chloe Ting and blogilates (Cassey Ho).

You must be thinking, ‘when will I ever have the time to squeeze in some daily exercise?’

If you are a student, I know certain times of the year can be very stressful –finals time happens to be the worst! It is always such a stressful time juggling different classes where you must study, read textbooks, write essays, do presentations and complete projects and perhaps even schedule in a part-time job on the side.

It can be hard to squeeze in time, but it is worth it in the end because exercise can help . If you want to learn more about this, please visit the Benefits of A Healthy Lifestyle: Importance of Diet and Exercise blog.

Maybe you’re wondering, ‘where do I even start?’

Well, as members of the Carleton University community, there are so many opportunities available to help individuals start living healthier lifestyles. The Athletics Building offers many different facilities for individuals to use in order to exercise. There are 76 fitness classes offered for those who are both old and young, 50 aquatics programs to help individuals with their swimming skills, 12 league sports for students to join throughout their academic careers and 30 kids camps for children.

I know that for some people, the idea of going to the gym can feel intimidating. If it makes you feel more comfortable, there are also Personal Training packages that are available for those who prefer to pursue that route of physical fitness. For aquatics, female students who may not feel completely comfortable sharing the pool with guys are also accommodated as there are certain pool days designated for women only –I’ve gone on these days a couple of times and they are really fun!

As a Carleton student, the Athletics fee is already included within your tuition. This means that you don’t need to go out and buy a gym pass to get started, make use of all the facilities in Athletics and find what you like best.

It is so important to start achieving a new and healthy lifestyle to help better yourselves for the future. If you want to learn more about the Athletic facilities Carleton offers, visit the Athletics website! I hope you all decide to take advantage of the resources offered at Carleton and wish you good luck on your journeys towards living healthy!