Love Yourself Right Where You Are.

Love yourself right where you are -this is one of the most important parts of your journey into a life of health, happiness and wellness.

Self-love is where it all starts. You cannot fully step into your best self until you realize your worth.
You are important. You are valued. You are worthy of everything amazing this world has to offer you.
The only thing stopping you? Your self-doubt. Your worries. Your negative self-talk.

You are your only obstacle. Read that again. YOU ARE YOUR ONLY OBSTACLE.

Stop worrying about what others think or will think of you.
Stop stressing over what hasn’t happened.
Stop doubting your worth and potential.
Stop the negative self-talk that consumes your daily thoughts.

It is vital to learn to love yourself right where you are. Right in this exact moment. Who you see when you look in the mirror, yup love that person with your whole heart and soul. Imagine that person you see in the mirror achieving, believing and living life to the full extent.

It is easy for us to point out our own flaws and missteps. It is easy to let those flaws and missteps define who we are. We let others define us by those same exact things. But what would life look like if you chose to see the beauty and goodness in yourself? If you chose to ignore what others said and finally put yourself first?

I will tell you, it is an amazing step in a wonderful journey ahead. A journey of self-love and appreciation for who you are and who you are becoming. Will it be easy? Nope. You’ll fall back into the same old habits a time or two. I know I have and that’s okay. It happens. Who cares? KEEP FUCKING GOING.

Learning to love yourself right where you are will bring you new opportunities, blessings and happiness you have yet to experience. I promise you. How do I know? Because I have experienced it myself. I am walking proof that when you shift your mindset, change your habits and find a new level of love for yourself things start to fall right into place. Things start to happen.

So keep fighting the good fight. Keep walking out your truth. Love yourself fiercely and live unapologetically. This is your life and you deserve all the good things. Manifest your goals and dreams. Manifest goodness into your life. Start right now, right here.

You totally got this.

Motivation to Move.

The key to a healthy life is to make sure you are taking care of yourself fully. Stop trying to take shortcuts and stop selling yourself short. You are capable of a fulfilled, happy, beautiful life but you can’t reach your full potential if you are cheating yourself on the way.

What do I mean by that? Well let’s unpack this…

• Positive Mindset

• Self-Care

• Healthier Eating Choices

• Move for 30 Minutes, Daily

• Love Yourself

These are 5 things I am constantly preaching about when it comes to taking care of yourself and learning how to live a healthy lifestyle for life. I talk about it on my social media platforms (Instagram, Facebook, etc.) as well as the countless blogs I have written. These 5 areas are so important to your health and wellness. I mean, IMPORTANT. You can’t do one and not the other.

So today, let’s dive dep into bullet point #4 -move for 30 minutes, daily. Notice how I didn’t say get to the gym, workout for an hour or two, take a break then go run 5 miles. No, no, and no. Who has time for all of that? Let me tell you, NOT ME. But it is vital that you are moving for 30 minutes, at least, every single day. It can literally be anything.

Go for walk.
Go on a hike.
Ride your bicycle.
Have a dance party.
Do some yoga.
Stretch.
Swim.

These are just a few ways you can move your body and trust me, I could go on but I’ll stop right there with those. There are countless ways to get moving, you just gotta stop making excuses for yourself and just get moving. You have to stop with the…

”I don’t have time”
”I am too exhausted”
”Ugh, I hate working out”
”I couldn’t make it through * insert specific activity *”
”I am way too out of shape for that”

STOP. STOP. STOP.

Those are excuses and we are done making excuses for ourselves.
You have the time, I promise. You have time to binge watch Netflix, you got time to move.
You have the energy. It’s the self-doubt of starting that makes you feel exhausted. Push through.
It’s not a workout when you are doing something you actually like. Figure it out.
You can make it through. Stop trying to start big and take baby steps.
You are never to out of shape to get up and move. Ever. Also, refer to previous advice -start small.

My motivation/advice to get you moving today and every day from here on out is that tough love. You have to want a healthier, happier life for yourself. You have to stop with the negative self-talk. You have to stop with the excuses.

What you need to do is start. Start today. Start where you are. Start now.
Remind yourself of your goals and why you are doing this.
Have your people hold you accountable.
Push through and stay determined even in difficult moments.
Most importantly, always remember, you are stronger than your strongest excuse.

You have to want this for yourself and nobody else. You have to want better. You have to do better. We will all face weak moments, bad moments, and all the in-between but let me tell you those moments don’t define us. What does define us? The moments we choose to persevere and overcome.

This is your moment.
This is your now.
This is your motivation to get moving.
Now, GO. You totally got this.

Change Your Habits, Fuel Your Body.

Change your habits.
Fuel your body.

Changing habits can be hard.
Breaking bad habits can be even more of a challenge.

So let’s get right down to it because we all know where I am headed with today’s blog…eating is a tricky subject and can be difficult to address. Choosing healthier options can be tough.

BUT I get asked all the time, “How do you stay so consistent with your eating?”…
”What’s your secret?”…”I always crave the bad things”…”I just can’t give up eating my favorite junk foods”. So let’s talk about it! Let’s dive deeper into the subject of eating.

Hey, I am not perfect. I love me some junk food. And don’t get me started on the goodness of pizza. If I could eat pizza every day, I would. But that just doesn’t fit with my lifestyle anymore. I want to fuel my body in the best possible way and if I expect my body to perform at its best then I have to be mindful of what I am fueling it with.

Yes, living healthy isn’t all about working out and eating salads. That’s not where I want you to think this is headed. You can still enjoy your favorite foods but how you enjoy those foods may need to be adjusted. We can’t expect to eat pizza, candy, fast food, etc. every day and expect our bodies and mind to function properly and at their best. We need to nourish our bodies with nutrient rich foods. You have to incorporate your daily dose of water, fruits, and vegetables. Blah, blah, blah…boring, I know. We’ve heard it all before. Hear me out though.

When I decided it was time for a change it was hard. Make a meal at home or Taco Tuesday at Rosa’s? LOL, I know you get me. We’ve all been there.

I realized I could not make changes by just going cold turkey and vowing never to eat unhealthy foods again. That’s not realistic, at least for me. So, I decided to start small. I started researching. I researched healthy meal ideas, how much water I should be drinking, the normal amount of fruits and veggies I should be eating. I educated myself on what my body needed (not wanted) and put a plan into action. I wrote out my goals and how I would (fingers crossed) accomplish those goals.

My first goal…cut out soda. Yes, I used to be a HUGE soda drinker. Hello Sonic Happy Hour! Haha. I started replacing my soda with flavored water and regular water. Once I got into the habit of choosing just water and meeting my daily intake goal, I moved onto limiting my fast food intake. I created goals for myself every 2 weeks. The first 2 week I could only eat out 3x a week. The next 2 weeks only 1x a week to where eventually I wasn’t really eating out at all. And the cycled continued with all of my goals.

Here’s the thing, you have to set goals for yourself and you have to be committed through it all. Even in the weak moments when you give in and you feel like you’ve failed, you keep going. It wasn’t easy for me. Told myself I would only eat out 3x a week and I found myself having my 5th fast food meal, it happens. But what did I do? I forgave myself, I kept going, and eventually what seemed impossible became possible. It became a new lifestyle for me because I never gave up on myself or my health. I didn’t shame myself for not sticking with my goals. I worked through every moment and asked myself how I could do and choose wiser for next time. You can still have your favorite foods, I know I still do but I have reached a point where I control how much and when.

Life is about choices. You can absolutely choose better, do better, and be better. But it all begins when you decide to start. To start living for a healthier you. Healthier doesn’t mean “skinny”. Healthier doesn’t mean “I need to workout for 5 hours every day and have a salad for every meal”.

Healthier means loving yourself, flaws and all. Healthier means choosing nutrient rich foods that fuel you. Healthier means creating new habits. It won’t be easy but you have to start somewhere. And choosing healthier options doesn’t have to be boring…I have so many delicious recipes that are more than what you are thinking healthy is. I eat my carbs and enjoy my cheese but I enjoy those things in moderation and in healthy ways (for ideas go check out my recipes page).

Set goals. Be realistic about those goals. And remember, eating to fuel your body, mind, and spirit doesn’t have to be boring or hard. Do your research. Stop looking to other’s for validation. Figure out what’s best for you.

YOU TOTALLY GOT THIS.

Reflecting On Thirty.

How am I already another year older? How did my 30th year on this earth go by so fast? How am I 31 already? What, what, what?

2020. It was the year of the great pandemic. The year of quarantine. The year I turned the big 3-0.
The year I looked to with much anticipation and dread. Where I was isn’t where I imagined my life to be.

I was alone when it felt like everyone else had their person.
Starting over at a new job while figuring out quarantine life.
No kids when I felt everyone else was experiencing the joy of parenthood.
*side note before someone goes crazy on me -not saying parenthood is easy but I can only imagine the journey and joy parenthood brings to one’s life. Anyways, moving on…

These are the 3 main things that were big for me.
They were big to me because I had a timeline of my life planned out.
And when that timeline didn’t happen exactly as planned let me tell you, I WAS NOT HAPPY.

We all have things that are big to us but small to others.
We all reflect on life at a certain point and think, ‘this is it?’
We all have our moments.
And that’s okay. These moments are valid.

For me, mine was turning 30. It was my time of reflection. It was my ‘this is it?’ moment. I didn’t imagine I would be single, living alone, no kids, and starting completely over in life. But it happens and what I know now is that life happens and every moment serves a purpose.

There is reason and meaning behind every single moment and how we choose to look and act on these moments determines our next steps. Determines our future. What path do I choose? Where do I go from here?

• Do I choose negativity and defeat?

• Do I choose to move forward and make the most of what I have?

Spoiler Alert…

I choose the latter. I choose to move forward with determination and make the most of what God had given me in that exact moment. After all, I know God is always working in my favor and He had something to tell me in that moment that went beyond my doubts and fears.

And I say this with certainty and confidence (now) because fast forward a year later, I am exactly where I prayed I wanted to be (well, mostly lol). Was I this certain and confident living it out to this moment? Uhm, NO. I am not here to say I didn’t ssttrrruuugggllleeeee because I, one thousand percent, did. But if there is one thing I was during that time of growth…I was determined.

I continued to work on myself, grow in my journey, and most importantly, pray.
I didn’t give up on God and His plans for me (even if it looked a bit different than expected).
I didn’t give up working on myself through therapy and self-love.
I didn’t give up on my journey and the goodness I knew was to come.

I love my job and, I am continuing to grow and learn every single day. My job has lit a new passion inside of me for teaching and I have the opportunity to continue my education and knowledge in what I love to do -teach and make a difference in every single child I encounter. What more could I ask for?!

And what do you know, I found the perfect human for me that challenges me to better every single day, in the best possible way, and helps me not take life so seriously. He manages to make me smile even in trying moments and while we may not be perfect (nobody is), we definitely are perfect for each other. God gave me someone not to complete me but to compliment me. He’s my person and I thank God for every single relationship that didn’t work out before him, and for teaching me to be patient in the wait because it sure was worth the wait.

While I may not have everything I want in this exact moment I have everything I need and for that I am grateful.

The same can be true for you. If you are experiencing your ‘this is it?’ moment just know the best is yet to come. I promise. Don’t give up. Stay hopeful. Stay determined.

If you aren’t experiencing ‘this is it?’ moment and life is perfect, well hats off to you and keep rocking it.

But for most of us, I think we can agree that life isn’t what we expected it to be. What we had planned didn’t exactly go as planned. Am I right?!

Through all the highs, lows, failures, successes, happy moments, sad moments, and all the in between, life has a funny way of working out exactly as it should. So, as I reflect on another year of life I am truly grateful for where God has me in life. I encourage you to do the same. Find your light, push through, and never give up the good fight.

Life will, no doubt, always have its difficulties and struggles but it is how we come out on the other side that matters most. So here’s to another year around the sun. I am ready to see what 31 has in store for me.