"Success isn't a result of spontaneous combustion..."

[BlazingBella]

That quote ends with, "You must set yourself on fire." That is exactly what I plan to do.

 

Hiya!

 

My name is Hayley, Bella is my nickname, and I am 19 years old. I'm studying Pre-Med/Biochemistry and Spanish, and my last two years have been spent in a pretty rigorous free residential high school (aka boarding school) and it was such a blessing. However, in that school I began to struggle with severe anxiety. This anxiety caused a pretty serious drop in appetite, and I struggled to sustain myself each day. It was a pretty rough situation, and I ended up at a pretty scary place in my health. I have always struggled with my weight, though, in fact, my whole family has. So, I was praised for losing so much weight, and no one really realized it wasn't healthy.

 

Now that things are getting better, I'm struggling to be truly healthy. I've never truly known how to do that, and I recently have had a blood pressure scare. I've decided that it's time I start taking responsibility for my body and stop letting my family's history define me. I found this resource and it's been incredible. I'm not a New Years resolution type, and this has been in the making for a while, but why not now? I'm hoping this community will help me to reach success and I can't wait to see where this journey takes us all.

 

Let's do this!

Bella

[Red1263]

Heya Bella! Welcome to the Rebellion! Ahh, school-related health problems, I've seen that before! Well if you're searching for help, you'll find plenty in here! Let's start with what specifically you want to work on? Getting fit generally? or is there a particular type of route you want to take? Running? Lifting? Also you should know that diet is 80% of the battle, so make sure you clean up what you eat. Heh, I'm also Pre-med and speak Spanish (weird, I know) so if you have any questions on those topics, feel free to ask me. 

 

You'll make it Bella! Just grit your teeth and let's do this! I look forward towards seeing you rock on your journey!

 

P.S. I saw your quote and thought it was really cool!

[BlazingBella]

Thank you so much for the encouragement and guidance! And that's incredibly cool that you're Pre-med and speak Spanish as well!

 

I am finally understanding just how key diet is, and I've got a plan to get that taken care of. Unfortunately, I'm required to have a meal plan this next semester, but I am getting the smallest one I can, and will be using the community kitchen in my dorm to prepare more meals. I won't be going full Paleo because I think that is both unrealistic for me right now and would be a little dangerous mentally. I'm definitely going to be eating clean, though. 

 

As far as my fitness goals, I want to be in pretty good shape. I'd really like to get my body fat percentage down around 20%. I just started dancing again, and that requires a combination of strength, flexibility, agility, and endurance. I really want to focus on strength training, though, and start doing some running. I'll get plenty of work on my flexibility and agility during my dance rehearsals and practices, and maintain that by stretching properly each day. My biggest goal: see what my body can truly do.

[Red1263]

You're most welcome! I always try to be as helpful as possible, so if there's anything I can do for you, please let me know.

 

Paleo isn't for everyone, only for those who can make that change of lifestyle. In the end, everyone will tell you to make your own diet, eat what's right for you and only you, You don't have to follow any particular style, you can make your own, in some parts, Paleo, in others, non-paleo. There's no pressure, it's all a gradual change anyways, and you'll be modifying it to suit your life in the end.

 

"Pretty good shape" OK, that's a good start. Your body fat % will be based mostly on your diet, so your plans to clean your diet is a good start towards that goal. Dancing, Strength Training and Running are all good ways to get into better shape! Start slow and increase your difficulty gradually. Don't attempt too much too soon, otherwise you'll burn out and lose hope. There are many ways you can improve each of these areas, one is by focusing on each one individually, like level up in Dancing then focus on Leveling up in Strength Training, and so on. But you can always ask other people for their opinion, I encourage it! You'll find wells of knowledge on this website, just explain your situation and everyone will do their best to contribute. (We're all in this together!) 

 

If it helps, There is a 6 week challenge coming up in the new year on the 6th of Jan. That always gets me motivated towards working on my fitness goals, if you think you're up for that sorta thing, you'll find people from your level of fitness, above, and below, as well as people who just want to see you become awesome like me! Let's see you shine, Girl on Fire!

[Teros]

Welcome to the rebellion.  Will you be doing the next 6 week challenge?

 

Why would paleo be dangerous mentally? 

 

You list flexibility, strength training, and running all as goals.  I understand wanting to make everything better- but what tends to happen to people is ONE thing is worked out.  It's simply not realistic to have all of those simultaneously.  It's probably better to work on things in phases. First, do some weight training with some free weights or bodyweight exercises.  If you don't like it that much, then shift towards more dancing/running.  Maybe something like zumba.  I only bring this up because when people decide to get 'better', they try everything all at once and  burn out quickly.  Like, a lot of people workout once a week and then suddenly think they can do 6 times a week- thier body simply can't do that and they burn out after about 2 weeks.  Seen 100 threads like that.  I've had plenty of starts and collapses over the years too and focusing on clean eating along with 1 type of exercise is enough of a change to cement new, healthy habits.

[BlazingBella]

Thanks you guys! I really appreciate all your help and input.

 

I realize that it sounded as though I was planning to do everything at once, and at the time I think I was so excited that I was doing that. After writing that I kind of realized that I was setting myself up for a burnout; so, I sat down and wrote out some goals and a basic plan for how to achieve them over time. My plan is to start taking 30+ minute walks each day (depending on the time I have, but at least 30 minutes) and focus on my diet for a month. I figured I should make the habit first, and get my eating figured out. Then I plan to start running, and work towards my running goals one at a time. I really like the idea of leveling up one at a time.

 

The reason I stated that it might be dangerous mentally for me to do Paleo is because I have had some problems in the past, and I want to be careful about making things too restrictive. That wasn't really the best way to say it, though. I feel like I'll be able to handle changing my diet because my attitude is a lot different than it used to be, I'm just being cautious. I really like the Paleo idea, though, and plan on eating similarly.

 

I may check out the 6 week challenge and do that instead of my walks, but I'm not sure yet.

 

I hope all this makes sense. I really appreciate all the support and help available in this community, and I'm really excited to have found it!

[Wondertje]

Truth is that any kind of diet is or at the very least can be dangerous for anyone who has a weak spot when it comes to their relationship with food. I don't know what kind of experiences other people have, and it may very well vary between people, country and/or continent but generally speaking, diet isn't the treatment for any kind of issues with food relationship. In fact, I have both personal and non-direct sources that when treating any kind of diet-related issue, the most common treatment is "diet and restriction isn't the answer, simply eat everything you want in moderation." Only when you're able to fully live out that life can restrictions be made in a way that is healthy for you, both mentally and physically. Of course, if someone never had any problems with food relationships, then going on a diet is probably no issue for him/her.

 

Welcome here, and I wish you the best of luck on your journey!

[RedSevenofNine]

Hey, Bella. Glad to meet you. I remember being close to where you are in life, now. I am sure you hear it all the time, but get  yourself where you want to be now. It's much harder when you are older. I come from a family with weight problems, as well, so I know what that is like. Here to working our hardest to overcome our family's history.

[Red1263]

Thanks you guys! I really appreciate all your help and input.

 

I realize that it sounded as though I was planning to do everything at once, and at the time I think I was so excited that I was doing that. After writing that I kind of realized that I was setting myself up for a burnout; so, I sat down and wrote out some goals and a basic plan for how to achieve them over time. My plan is to start taking 30+ minute walks each day (depending on the time I have, but at least 30 minutes) and focus on my diet for a month. I figured I should make the habit first, and get my eating figured out. Then I plan to start running, and work towards my running goals one at a time. I really like the idea of leveling up one at a time.

 

The reason I stated that it might be dangerous mentally for me to do Paleo is because I have had some problems in the past, and I want to be careful about making things too restrictive. That wasn't really the best way to say it, though. I feel like I'll be able to handle changing my diet because my attitude is a lot different than it used to be, I'm just being cautious. I really like the Paleo idea, though, and plan on eating similarly.

 

I may check out the 6 week challenge and do that instead of my walks, but I'm not sure yet.

 

I hope all this makes sense. I really appreciate all the support and help available in this community, and I'm really excited to have found it!

That sounds like an excellent start! Make the habit first then improve on it. Being cautious isn't a bad thing, but there only way you'll find out how far your limits are is when you start being less and less cautious. Besides, if you need to vent or rant, there are plenty of people who are willing to listen if you ask them. 

 

We're always excited to have new people. I hope for the best for you.

[Basement Cat]

Welcome Bella!

 

It seems you are in good hands, so I will just wish you welcome and good luck!

[BlazingBella]

Thanks for all the encouragement you guys! I'm so pumped for this. Recently, I decided to stop being so intimidated by the gym and asked for some guidance in how to begin lifting. I am reading and researching, and am planning to pursue that instead of running. I always chose running when I was attempting to get in shape because lifting really intimidated me, but I've found two other girls at different levels in lifting that are also willing to join me, and after discovering "Starting Strength" (thanks NF friends!) I am feeling much more confident. I'm still going to do it slowly, and follow my plan to make my habits first, but I am ten times more excited to have finally found a way to pursue this. It sounds way more fun than running to me! Anyway, I just wanted to thank y'all for all of the encouragement! I can't wait to hear about all of your amazing journeys!

 

 

Hey, Bella. Glad to meet you. I remember being close to where you are in life, now. I am sure you hear it all the time, but get  yourself where you want to be now. It's much harder when you are older. I come from a family with weight problems, as well, so I know what that is like. Here to working our hardest to overcome our family's history.

We've got this! Thank you for the encouragement, and I look forward to seeing you kick family history's bum on your journey! 

[Red1263]

And we look forward to yours! Congrats on finding the courage to start lifting, you won't regret it! Remember if you need a helping hand in this Community, you'll always find one!