How To Stay Motivated In Your Diet and Fitness Routine!

Sometimes I find it really hard to stay on track with my routine especially when I am stressed out at school or work. Sometimes I am tempted to skip the gym or cheat on my diet, but there are a few tips and tricks I have come to know do help in those tough situations. We are only human and sometimes things are not always perfect, so it is important to know that it is okay to slip up sometimes and not to be so hard on ourselves. But it is also nice to know we can do certain things to make sure those slip ups are rare!

1. Make GOALS...

One thing I need to do in order to have my head in the right place 100% of the time, is by knowing exactly why I am doing this. I don't mean being healthy, which is something that is a given and should be an obvious goal for everyone. It is important for me to have a clear purpose, for example right now my goal is to build muscle and gain weight (which if you asked me a year ago if i would be doing this I'd think you were crazy). For you it might be to lose a specific amount of weight by a specific date or maybe to look great on a vacation or at an event. Having a clear purpose and desire for my fitness and diet is key to my success.

2. Dress for Success!...

Sometimes when I am going to the gym alone or it's the weekend and I'm feeling lazy I don't really make an effort to wear something nice to the gym. A lot of people probably are the same way, we think well I'm going to go sweat anyways so might as well wear some baggy old clothes. However, this mentality I find really affects my workout, when I don't feel my most confident and I don't feel I look that great, it really reflects in how well I do at the gym. So try to get some new leggings, or workout tanks or whatever it is for you once in a while because looking good totally co-relates with feeling good.

3. Make Eating Healthy Fun!...

I love to find new recipes all the time that taste amazing, but are still so clean. Tone it up is a great website to check out, the link to their website is in a previous post I did on healthy breakfast options. But also just try to switch up your diet every once in a while, rather than eating the same things all the time, those changes will make a huge difference in how manageable your diet is which brings me to my next point.

4. Change Things UP!

Whether it's what I am eating or my workouts I find changing it every once in a while makes it so much more fun for me. Not only is changing it up good mentally, but it is also great because it won't allow your body to get used to what you are doing, making it all that much more effective!

What's In My Gym Bag!

Today I thought it would be really fun to write about how I keep my gym bag organized and what things I find essential to always have with me when working out. Personally I like to keep things really simple. I do a lot of commuting so my gym bag is super tiny, but I manage to fit quite a lot in it. If anyone is wondering where my bag is from, it is from the store Aritzia by a brand called community. There stuff is so beautiful and they have tons of really cute workout stuff which is an awesome way to get motivated.

Click here to see Community's collection on Aritzia's website!

So in my gym bag I of course always have the outfit I am planning on wearing that day at the gym, so shirt, sports bra and bottoms (leggings usually, sometimes shorts). Sometimes I also like to hit the sauna, pool or hot tub so I'll bring my bathing suit in a plastic bag for when it's wet. I also of course bring my running shoes, especially in the winter when it's impossible to simply wear running shoes (I wish). Other basic things include my water bottle (which is amazing, it is glass so it does not smell, can be purchased at target), deodorant, wallet, keys etc. Although, sometimes I just keep those things in my purse.

Now for the fun stuff! I just recently bought the Women's Nike Perforated Golf Cap which is my new best friend in the gym. It is so awesome for when you are having one of those days when you just want to hit the gym and be totally alone because it hides your face. But mostly I just love it because its super cute, I wear it casually out all the time as well and I am most likely getting the same one in white, can you say addicted?!

Click here to buy the Nike Cap from amazon.ca, however you can probably find it at amazon.com as well.

There are a few beauty products I really love to have with me while at the gym as well. I typically do not do cardio unless I know I am going home straight after, so many times I do weight lifting workouts in the middle of the day. So, because it is at such an awkward time, I'll be wearing makeup, I use a really great primer and I'm lucky to have my makeup stay in place quite well. My skin regimen is pretty stable and I don't usually have any issues with breakouts and such. However, when I feel like I am at risk I do take my makeup off or I will powder my face after a workout to control any shine or problem area. I usually keep concealer, MAC's translucent powder (which I swear by) and makeup wipes with me at all times. These are pretty much the only ones I need for any retouching. In my purse I obviously have so many more beauty products, but in terms of gym related ones these are my essentials.

Anyways, that's all I keep in my bag, hope it gave some insight!