Getting Started in your 20’s

Disclaimer: I’m not a trained professional in either nutrition or fitness. All of these views are my own, and based on my own experience with trying to live a healthier lifestyle.

 

We all know how it goes, you’re in high school, eating chocolate, pizza, and obscene amounts of everything that you shouldn’t. You don’t have a gym membership, you’re putting little to no thought into exercise, and somehow, as if by magic, you’re staying fit.

And then all of a sudden, you’re in your 20’s, you’ve maintained all of the habits that were working for you through high school, but now you’re 10kg, 20kg, even 30kg heavier. What the hell happened?

So you decide it’s time for a change. You restrict your diet, not really knowing how, but assuming that sugar and fat are no-no’s. You know you should add in some exercise, but apart from going for a run, you’ve got no idea.

A week in, and you’re hungry, cranky, tired, and wondering why you don’t look like a Victoria Secret model yet. So you cave, you eat everything in sight, and vow to start again on Monday. Perhaps you try some fads, detoxes, fat melting wraps, but the results, if there even are any, are minimal. You still feel like shit, and now you’re out of pocket a few hundred dollars.

Sound familiar? I’ve been there. Many times. This is the exact path that I took, and I spent a good part of the last 27 years building my knowledge, through trial and error, to get where I am today, with a good understanding of what it takes to make this work.

Getting started in your 20’s is hard. You need to re-wire your thinking and instill new habits. Movie binges with cheesy pizza, cookie dough, and ice cream will be replaced with sessions at the gym and meal prep. Sounds terribly boring doesn’t in? Well, it doesn’t have to be. The trick is to keep it interesting and fun!

First let’s talk about why getting started in your 20’s is both terrible and amazing.

It’s hard. It’s like when you skate through primary school without having to study, and then you hit high school, with zero study ethic or skills, and your marks start to drop. Then you fall behind the other kids because they’ve been studying their whole lives, and you’re only just starting to learn how to now.

Sometimes it might feel like everyone one else has their shit together, everyone else knows what they’re doing, and how to do it, and you’re just floundering around trying to figure it all out.

But let me assure you, it’s much better to start now than later. The longer you wait, the harder it is to change your habits, and physically get rid of the extra pounds. So if you feel like you’re lost and not sure what to do, don’t stress, just keep tuning in, and I’ll walk you through it!

 

What’s the first step? Drink more water. Women, you need at least 2L per day, men 3L per day. Stay tuned for an upcoming post about what water does for your body, and how it can help you lose weight, but for now, drink, drink, drink!