Fit Thursday: How to get yourself motivated to exercise

1. Find exercises that you will enjoy.

Whether it's running, jumping or dancing we all have our favourites. Doing something that you enjoy will just motivate even more to participate. Even if exercise is not your thing but you love long walks on the beach, then go for it.

2. Prepare ahead

Plan your workouts ahead, whether it's a week or a month planning your workouts will motivate you because you've committed yourself enough to write every workout down on paper. The night before your next workout, lay out your workout gear. seeing that yoga mat or sports bra first thing in the morning will make you crave exercise. Plan your goals, that doesn't just mean weight loss goals but can also be fitness levels such as holding a plank for over a minute or jogging a minute longer than before.

3. Find celebrity body inspiration

Find a celebrity in a magazine or online that you would like to use as a motivation tool. Whether its Blake Lively's lean legs or Kate Hudson's abs, print or tear out that picture and stick it on your wall or cupboard door. you won't necessarily look exactly like that celebrity though, just remember that.

4. Find an outfit

Find your outfit that you don't fit into anymore and use that as another motivation tool. So dish out that mini skirt and tank top out from the back of your closet and move it to the front as a constant reminder on why you have started this.

5. Get addicted

For those of you who are new to exercise, you will find out soon enough just how addicted you will get and start seeing exercise as a hobby and not just a task you have to complete daily. Just be very, very careful of over doing it. If you are new, I would recommend exercising at least 30 minutes four times a week and gradually progress as your stamina builds up.

 

"Nothing is Impossible the word simply says I'm Possible"- Audrey Hepburn

Heather McIntosh

Random Musings

I knew from the start
That we would fall apart
I have run out of tears
Even though I still want you here
Now it is your turn to cry
So here is to goodbye

Imani Dlamini 

Divergent by Veronica Roth

"She turns to the future in a world that's falling apart. for sixteen year old Tris, the world changes in a heartbeat when she is forced to make a terrible choice. turning her back on her family, Tris ventures out, alone, determined to find out where she truly belongs. shocked by the brutality of her new life, Tris can trust no one. And yet she is drawn to a boy who seems to both threaten and protect her. The hardest choices may yet lie ahead... . A debut novel that will leave you breathless"

 

My Rating: 9/10

My comment: I really enjoyed this book. I haven't read many fantasy/dystopian novels, but I have read the Hunger Games and have definitely read the Harry Potter series (at least 5 times :P).

I loved everything about this book. The structure was perfect and Roth really made me believe that I was a part of this world. I loved the sexual tension between Beatrice and Four/Tobias. I would definitely reread this book and continue to enjoy this series. Hell, I actually enjoyed it more than The Hunger Games.

The story is based in a futuristic type of city, and each family belongs to a different faction. When you turn sixteen you do a physical personality-type test to determine which faction you are most suited for, but you may make the final decision yourself.

The personalities of each faction and definition:

Abnegation: to refuse or deny oneself; to serve others before yourself.

Erudite: Great Knowledge

Candor: state or quality of being frank or open; sincere in speech or expression

Amity: friendship; peaceful; harmony; peace between nations. (one that I would've chose)

Dauntless: To be different (the faction that Tris chose)

Divergent: This faction is not well known. It is a mixture of all five factions, and you should not tell anyone that you are a Divergent as you can be dangerous and a threat (the one that Tris got sorted as during her personality test).

 

This book is definitely worth the read and I'm glad that I hopped onto the bandwagon and gave it a shot. -Heather McIntosh

Unrequited Love

You finally get the courage to tell the boy you have been crushing on for ages that you like him and would like to be more than friends, and you are so positive he will feel the same way. But just as begin pouring your heart out to him, he stops you with an apologetic smile on his face and says, "You're a great girl, but..."

Or, is your problem (often like mine) what Taylor Swift sings about in her song "Teardrops on My Guitar?" You know, where you have a really close friendship with someone who possesses all the qualities you want in a guy - he's sweet, funny, a great listener, and he values your friendship just as much as you do his. You're always exchanging secret wishes, fears, hopes, and aspirations, and there is this "connection".

Then, one day he comes to you looking all excited, with that huge charming smile that makes your knees weak, to tell you some "good news": he's found a great girl whom he really likes.

"I'll bet she's beautiful
That girl he talks about
And she's got everything
That I have to live without."*

The smile on your face fades as you congratulate him on finding the girl of his dreams, as you try to fake a smile (since you are friends and you're supposed to be happy for him).

Then it dawns on you that your guy friend does not think of you in that way. All the text messaging till 3 am, sitting across from each other at the bench talking for hours on end, and smiling every morning you mistook as some kind of sign makes you wonder: Was I imagining all of this? 

"He says he's so in love
He's finally got it right
I wonder if he knows
He's all I think about at night."*

We have all experienced it. I know I have on numerous occasions (which is quite sad, I know). When I first heard the song by Swift, I could relate to the lyrics. It is as if the song was dedicated to me!

Then I read a play by William Shakespeare - Twelfth Night - and my English teacher mentioned a word I had never heard before: unrequited love. According to the Merriam Webster Online dictionary, unrequited is "not reciprocated or returned in kind". In Twelfth Night, Duke Orsino is so madly "in love" with Olivia, but she did not love him in return.

Or, remember how, in the beginning of Romeo and Juliet, Romeo liked Rosaline, but she did not love him back? Oh, how heartbroken these men must have felt. And that is the sad reality of love (or crushes) - rejection. Ouch! 

You are going to encounter situations like these and maybe more (it depends how lucky you are), but that is okay. Just because one guy does not like you, it does not mean you are "destined to be single for life." You just haven't met that special someone yet. Just like in the above mentioned plays, Romeo, soon after the ball, found Juliet, and Duke Orsino found Olivia.

It is not that simple in real life though. But we can dream, right? 


* lyrics from "Teardrops on My Guitar", by Taylor Swift

Popcorn Bites: The Scarlet Letter (1926) (**spoiler alert**)

Directed by: Victor Sjöström

Starring: Lillian Gish, Lars Hanson, Henry B. Walthall

IMBD Synopsis: "In Puritan Boston, seamstress Hester Prynne is punished for playing on the Sabbath day; but kindly minister Arthur Dimmesdale takes pity on her. The two fall in love, but their relationship cannot be: Hester is already married to Roger Prynne, a physician who has been missing seven years. Dimmesdale has to go away to England; when he returns, he finds Hester pregnant with their child, and the focus of the town's censure. In a humiliating public ceremony, she is forced to don the scarlet letter A - for adultery - and wear it the rest of her life. Dimmesdale is encouraged by the church fathers to demand of Hester the person with whom she sinned."

Genre: Silent, Drama, Romance

My Rating: 9/10

My Comment: As this was my first silent movie, I must admit, that I was a little hesitant to watch. But I was wrong. The movie captured my attention from the very beginning. I loved the classical music that was playing during the film and it set the tone perfectly. My favourite scene from the movie was when Arthur finally confessed to his sin. He had made himself so ill with guilt that he burned the letter ''A'' across his chest. This whole scene made me bawl my eyes out when he died peacefully in Hester's arms. Beautiful, Incredible movie. Although it is silent, it is not for people who don't like reading or reading too slow, cliché romance stories and tragic endings.

Healthy Fridays

"Take care of your body. It's the only place you have to live."
Jim Rohn 

I am not a health expert. In fact, I am far from it. I am just an ordinary girl who has read countless times on how important it is to live a healthy lifestyle.

               

“Exercise for 30 minutes a day"

“Get 8 hours of sleep"

“Eat less sugar and fats"

We have all at some stage in our lives received this advice, yet we do not follow it all the time. Making healthy choices may be a little bit of a challenge at times for a lot of people (myself included), but it is not impossible. Every single day I try and find ways of improving my health, whether it may be through exercise or by eating a snack healthier than potato chips.

The purpose of Healthy Fridays is to offer health tips that I have gathered throughout the course of my life.

Fit Thursday: Fitness is my commitment

First of all I am not a personal trainer nor a nutritionist and that everything I say is my personal opinion.

I never liked sports in school. I was uncoordinated and lazy, and I tried to avoid afternoon sports as much as possible. At the beginning of 2011 I realised that i needed that to change when I noticed how big and blotchy I was getting so I introduced myself to workout videos. And that's when my new found love for fitness began :)...

I don't have any interest in joining a gym. My personal trainers are those on the workout videos. my very first workout programme, the one that started it all, was 30 day shred with Jillian Michaels. I was shocked at how red-faced, out of breath i was after 20 minutes. It is more motivating than going for a run (which i despise so much, no matter how much I try and convince myself).

 Last week i decided that I will dedicate Fit Thursday to workout programme reviews (mostly from Beachbody and Jillian Michaels) , quick at home workouts and fit tips. The workout programme that I started again this week is Beachbody's Brazil Butt Lift. The reason why I say "again" is because I have tried it twice before, except this time i'm just doing "pear-shape" and ''classic''. But I'll write a review in two months when i've completed it. :)

"Nothing is Impossible the word simply says I'm Possible"- Audrey Hepburn

Heather McIntosh

Random Musings

I wish I had more time

To treasure what’s mine

Sometimes I wonder

If you still feel the same

I feel like I made a blunder

I am willing to take the blame

Life goes on

When you’re not here

I still can’t believe you’re gone

Even though it’s been a year

Imani Dlamini 

Persuasion by Jane Austen

“In her last completed novel, published posthumously, Jane Austen revisits the theme of mischance and misunderstanding along the road to personal happiness. Circumstances force vainglorious spendthrift Sir Walter Elliot to let out the family seat, Kellynch Hall, whose new occupants, Admiral and Mrs. Croft open up old emotional wounds. Mrs. Croft’s brother, Captain Frederick Wentworth was once engaged to Sir Walter’s second daughter, Anne, who was persuaded to break with the dashing but penniless naval officer, as much for his benefit as his own. Captain Wentworth’s fortunes have since prospered, but the pain of past rejection burns deep. Anne can only look on with regret as her former lover seems to have another in his marital sights, while she finds herself with a new ardent suitor in the shape of Sir Walter’s heir. Having been “forced into prudence in her youth”, the mature Anne must use her own judgment, exercise her own will-should a second opportunity present itself.”

Rating: 6/10

Comment: Although I didn’t enjoy this Jane Austen novel as much as I did “Emma”, Austen took me back in time to an era in history that I take pleasure in studying and would love to have lived in. 

Heather McIntosh

Strangers

"It's amazing when two strangers become the best of friends, but it's sad when the best of friends become two strangers."

It's amazing how one can walk past a person without looking back. Sometimes it hurts, as your mind is flooded with memories of how every morning you used to send each other a good morning text message, then greet each other with a special handshake in the hallway, as soon as you arrived at school.

But sometimes it does not. You have other, more important matters to deal with. If they really wanted to speak to you, they would, right? In high school, also known as "life as we know it," we are all so caught up in our own lives, even in the two-minute break from class in between periods as we hastily walk through the corridors to our next class. So many thoughts are buzzing in our head.

How am I going to manage all my classes? Why isn't she talking to me? How am I going to explain to the teacher why my homework is not done? My head hurts.

Walking past your best friend without a simple hello was a rare occurrence. It was done when you two were arguing, and swore to never speak again, only for that promise to be broken within a matter of hours. But sadly it's been like this for a little more than a few hours.

Let's go back to the good old days. The good old days were characterized by 3 AM phone calls from opposite sides of the world. Lengthy emails describing your newfound summer love. But it's always talking. You never run out of anything to say. Never one-word text messages. No matter how far apart or how busy you get you are always talking, and the bond between you two grows and grows.

And when you are finally reunited ... something has changed. You can't quite put your finger on it, but something has changed. They don't greet you with same enthusiasm they once did. They even forget your birthday and cover it up. It's easy to hide forgetting someone's birthday, by acting all " whoopee!"

But you can tell they forgot when they act all surprised when you receive a ton of hugs as you enter the school building, then hug you and apologize for not sending you a text message. Then they further dig a hole for themselves by stating why they did not have the decency to call. The list of excuses grows, one of them being "I had a rough weekend. Trust me, you don't want to know."

Then you think back to the times when you would invest time and send them a heartfelt birthday message. And when they would in turn arrive at school with a box of chocolates, teddy bears, and so on.

Now all you get is a standard automated Facebook message: "[insert name here] wishes you a happy birthday."

Then it further develops when you find out your friend does not know even the minor details that people you've just met know about you. That you play the guitar, not the clarinet. That you are a vegetarian. Why you insist on keeping your hair natural. What your hopes and dreams are. It upsets you how this person could forget something that means so much to you. They might as well have forgotten your name.

Maybe I am less successful? Maybe it's something I said that could make them slowly write me out of their life?

The only time you speak is never out of choice: student council issues, like the new benches, or group projects. Nothing personal and never out of choice. Every once in a while you wave, but wonder, if they really wanted to speak to you they would, wouldn't they? Or is their ego so big that they believe people should be chasing after them, not the other way around.

You notice how you have grown apart, and you promise to never grow apart and become 'strangers.' That promise is broken within a matter of days. The same drill happens. The brief greetings in the hallway turn into a half-acknowledging wave. The small chit chat is interrupted by something way more interesting. The crowd behind is beckoning for you to come over. With your conflicting cliques, it seems impossible to blend. You used to be able to hang out with everyone.

Suddenly you don't feel the same about each other anymore. There is no need to talk, unless there is no one left to talk to. Not because you don't want to talk, or that you don't have time. It is not that there is nothing to talk about. You could talk about the weather, or what happened on your favorite soapie the previous night.

You could joke about your science teacher's eccentric fashion style. Anything, because you had always managed to joke about the simplest of things. You never ran out of things to say, and the transcript of your conversations could go on for miles and miles. You'd just rather be with someone else ... somewhere else.

Then it dawns on you that they only stay for a short while to chat. That they don't remember half the things you said in a conversation. That they're happier with their new group of friends. It seems almost impossible to catch up.

And then you realise that you don't need to chase after anyone when you've got great people right here with you. It is better to be surrounded by people you don't have doubts or uncertainties about. Those with whom you never run out of things to say. Those with whom you feel comfortable spending the whole day. Those who have similar interests.

Those who still talk to you around their other friends. Those who always greet you in the hallways, every single day. The same thing you had with that someone else is gone. And it's fine, because people may come in and out of your life, as they say. But all that counts is those people who remain.

Maybe it will happen again. Maybe the friends you make now will one day be nothing but strangers. Maybe you will find yourself walking past them without a simple hello.

But it still bothers you as you walk past each other every single day. You feel a little bit guilty for not making an effort, but on the other hand, if they really wanted to speak to you, they would, right? Why should you be the one to say "hello" first.

This pride accomplishes nothing, as you both think that way. I guess you will have to settle for being strangers.

Imani Dlamini