Exercise? I thought you said extra fries. I know, I would rather go through the McDonald’s drive-thru than put on those workout clothes too. However, I have found that when I do take the initiative to get in those workout clothes and break that sweat I feel a thousand times better.
I dread working out, I argue with myself for hours and I take forever to put those workout clothes on. When working out finally wins, I feel so much better about myself. Exercising is an amazing form of self-love. It relieves my stress, helps me get those nine hours of sleep, gives me more energy, gives me more body confidence, and overall I feel better and happier throughout my day.
As college students, we experience tremendous amounts of stress daily from balancing classes, jobs, a social life, and those unavoidable, random, stress-inducing circumstances life loves to throw at us. In addition, this new social media-saturated age we live in creates stress with the constant need to know everything and to compare ourselves to everyone. Exercise is a huge outlet for college students to put down that book, close that app and to focus on themselves.
Stress really takes a toll on the body. It makes it hard to get a good night’s rest, impedes focus, induces a loss of appetite or cravings of unhealthy foods, causes a sluggish feeling throughout the day, etc. The combination of all these factors wreaks havoc on the skin and causes breakouts, dryness, and dullness.
The less stress you have the fewer skin issues you encounter. This is why working out is so important, it is an amazing outlet to alleviate all these negative effects of stress.
The only workout I do not dread (or do not dread as much) is spinning. I am an avid spin class taker and I highly encourage this workout to anyone and everyone I meet. After those 45 minutes on that bike (yeah, the one that goes nowhere) I feel like a completely new person.
The bike is my escape from that terrible day I am having or from the assignments that just keep piling up. When I step off that bike, drenched in sweat, I am refreshed and ready to take on all my responsibilities.
The only downfall of spin classes is that they are extremely expensive and impractical for a college student. When I am at school (and very broke), I am unable to partake in my favorite form of exercise. Instead, I use fitness apps on my phone such as Peloton, Beachbody on Demand, and Fitnation.
I make the goal at the beginning of every semester to work out at least two times per week. To hold myself accountable I schedule specific times in my planner around my class and work schedule so that working out is a part of my weekly routine.
The past two school years I lived in the dorms on campus that had gyms attached so I found it convenient to fit working out in between classes. However, I am living off-campus this year and it has been a struggle to find a good routine with hitting the gym between classes.
With a larger living space this year, I have discovered how to utilize these workout apps within my home. I can easily throw on some workout clothes, roll out my mat, prop up my phone and get in a good sweat before my next class.
Now it is time to put my words into action and get my butt to the gym or my college version of an at-home gym.
PHOTO TAKEN from Monmouth University
