Work Out Woes: How to Motivate Yourself

I recently devised a plan to motivate myself to achieve two goals: get in better shape, and acquire the new iPad Mini (so cute!) before graduation (May 4th).

As an economics major, the idea of incentives is always hammered into my brain. I'm shocked that it took this long for me to actually apply the concept to my own life!

Here's the agreement that I made with myself:
1) For every mile run, I award myself $10
2) For every mile ran after the first mile, I get 1.25 x 10 x # of miles ran.
3) For every pound lost, I get $50.

The numbers may seem large, but since I'm going out of town for two weekends,  I really only have 22 days to earn as much money as possible. I chose the numbers based off of the cost of an iPad Mini, the amount of days I have before graduation, and the amount of money I have to put aside. If you're planning on doing a similar workout agreement with yourself, I'd advise coming up with your own numbers based off of the length of the challenge and the amount of money you are are able to give yourself.

I'll upload my progress photos when the challenge is complete! Wish me luck and please let me know if you've tried something similar and if it worked for you!

Journey to a 6-Pack

So many women spend multiple hours a week at the gym, but never see results. That's because there's more to the equation than just working out. You need cardio, strength training, and a healthy diet. One without the other will not get you to that sexy beach bod, I promise (unless you run a ridiculous amount or something). Okay, so in general, you need all three. The first one I always suggest is diet. Changing up your diet without stepping foot in a gym can produce amazing results. Here's what I suggest, but first, you should download an app compatible with your phone that allows you to take photos and give descriptions of your food -- I use "foodsnap." This will hold you accountable to what you're eating. Second, in addition to taking photos of your food, take photos of yourself. You may not feel like your diet is working, but if you follow it 100% (with a little room for cheat days, of course!), looking back at your day 1 photo will provide you with that extra motivation.


So here it goes:

A few things to get rid of right away: 

• white bread
• sodas and sugary drinks (including those Starbucks Frappuccinos!) 
• fast food (even if it's supposedly "healthy" fast food, it's not)
• fried foods

Foods to wean yourself off of:

• bread in general (it's really hard to do, but try to avoid it at all costs)
• wheat in general (same as above)
• all fast food (I know I put that in the "right away" section, but it more realistically belongs here)
• anything in the aisles of the grocery store

As a general rule of thumb, if you can't find it on the parameters of the grocery store, you probably shouldn't be eating it. 

So what can I eat?!

My eating schedule usually looks like this: 2 eggs with spinach in the morning with a cup of tea, a big salad with plenty of vegetables and leftover meat (sometimes I'll do tuna) for lunch, and some kind of meat with veggies for dinner. For a snack I'll eat almonds and greek yogurt, and after a workout I'll either make a smoothie or a protein shake. But basically, here's what I suggest:

• Meats/fish! Chicken, salmon, tilapia, turkey, etc
• Good fats - avocados, coconut butter instead of vegetable oil, meats
• Nuts, in moderation - almonds (switch from peanut butter to almond butter, too!), walnuts, pecans
• Veggies of all kinds, lots of them - cooked or raw, just eat lots of them!
• Fruits, in moderation
• Healthy snacks - greek yogurt, Luna bars, veggies, nuts
• Eggs! If you don't have time to make eggs in the morning, try making a frittata at the beginning of the week

How much should I eat?
If you're going out to dinner, eat half. Ask for the other half to be put in a to-go bag before it even comes to your table. If you're out to dinner, order a small salad before your meal gets there to suppress your appetite - this way you'll eat less once it comes. Some people like to eat smaller meals 4-5 times a day to keep their metabolism up. If that works for you and you have the time to plan ahead, go for it. I eat 3 meals a day, with a few snacks here and there. Sometimes I'll do intermittent fasting to shrink my stomach and eat less during my next meal. Learn more about fasting here.



There's so much more to add, but I've hit on the most important foods to get you started. Stay away from fast food places, shop the parameters, and plan ahead. A couple great websites to continue your diet education are marksdailyapple.com (my favorite!) and eatingwell.com. 

It sounds so simple, but we've all failed at diets before. Make a commitment to yourself, and to your future self. To be what others aren't, you have to be willing to do what others won't. 

Up next! Part 2 of 3: Work Out Woes