HEALTHY IS HAPPY: MY FITNESS JOURNEY/ROUTINE

Hi everyone! Two posts back to back, that can only mean one thing! This girl got all her homework done ;) So, today I'm going to share with you my fitness routine! For the past 5 years or so, working out has become a part of my daily life (totally not saying i'm perfect and literally went every day for the last five years...that would be ridiculous lol) and has helped me become more confident in myself and my body. Back in middle school and early high school (wow, i'm old), I used to dread P.E. class...I used to make my mom write me notes so I could wriggle my way out of running the mile every Friday...yeah I was that girl. But something changed when I started going to the gym on a regular basis the summer before my junior year (well my boyfriend of a year and half dumped me so...that might have been a motivating factor...you know the "i'm gonna get hot and then he'll realize what he's missing" mindset?) Something just clicked when I discovered how much more positive my outlook on life and opinion of myself was when I exercised. When I moved across the country 2 years ago, I left behind a multitude of things, one of those things being my beloved gym. Not only was it 3 minutes from my house, it had pretty much any piece of equipment you could possibly want and classes like Zumba (oh how i miss you) and kickboxing (don't miss you quite as much because you killed me but hey) But thankfully for me my fitness story didn't end when I moved because I discovered the beauty of working out at home! And that's where this comes into the picture:

I love Youtube. I watch Youtube probably more than I watch TV these days. Like I've said before, I was partially inspired to create my blog by the people I watch on Youtube. I was perusing the site one day, and I stumbled upon a workout video by Blogilates (person? company? entity? at that point i didn't know, but i would soon find out) and I clicked on it. Now, I cannot remember for the life of me what video it was, but in the grand scheme of things, that detail isn't important. What was important was the fact that I had just discovered my new favorite way to workout! :)

This is Cassey Ho, and she's amazing. She (so it is a person!) is the creator of Blogilates, a Youtube channel chock full of the best workout videos out there (personal opinion of course...but true) What does Blogilates stand for, you ask? It's a portmanteau (see this is where my english classes come in handy...it's a fancy word for combined words) of blog and pilates, which I think is adorable. So yep, at it's roots Blogilates is pilates. Which may intimidate people...but it's so much fun! Cassey takes pilates (and yoga sometimes!) moves and choreographs them to pop songs, like Call Me Maybe and Roar (none of that weird chanting stuff they play in some pilates classes...) So I'm sure some of you are sitting there saying, "But I don't know anything about doing pilates, Shannon!" Well fear not, because even though Cassey challenges you, there are always modifications! And the videos are short, so no excuses about not having time to do them ;)

When I wasn't in school, I was working out with Blogilates videos every day! Even though I wasn't running every day (i hate running...ugh), I definitely felt like I was doing an effective workout. This semester of college, however, I'm taking yoga and I do it three times a week. So Monday, Wednesday, Friday I do yoga 50 minutes of yoga, and Tuesday and Thursday (and saturday and sunday if i have time) I workout at home with Blogilates. I love doing both, as they make me feel refreshed and energized :) Since I've been started doing Blogilates, I've put on a lot of muscle, which is something I didn't really get from going to the gym! At first, I didn't really know how I felt about gaining muscle because I thought it would make me look kinda "manly", but I've decided that it makes me look strong and healthy, and I love it! I can't imagine my life without Blogilates and yoga, they make me feel amazing and I plan on doing them for a long time to come :)

I hope you enjoyed my fitness journey/routine! Blogilates does have an app (iphone and android) that has monthly workout calendars (which are awesome because they tell you exactly what videos to do when!), all you have to do is search for it in the app store!

Comment down below your fitness routine and where you excercise! Home? School? Gym? I'd love to hear how you stay fit!

I'll link below to some of my favorite Blogilates videos in case you're interested and you don't know where to start :)

until next time,