The summer is coming up very quickly, and it's about that time we {yes, I'm referring to both me and you} start working on our bodies. I mean, we want to look and feel our best when the only thing we're wearing is our bathing suits. Right? Correctamundo. {After looking up 'perfectamundo' which is the hipster word for perfect, I have been throwing 'mundo' at the end of all of my adjectives. Haha.}

I am a participant in the #1800minutechallenge (running from April 1st to May 31st), which motivates me {and many other bloggers} to get fit and in shape for the summer. This encourages me to come up with creative ways to work out. The math says to log at least 30 minutes per day to get to the 1800 minutes by the due date, but some days I just cannot get to the gym, walk outside, etc. This means that I make up days by spending approx 50 minutes to an hour in the gym or outside walking.  Will it be enough to make up all of the days that I've missed? Eh, I doubt it, but at least it is something.

I figured I should share with you all my exercise regime. I try to do this at least four times a week. 

Make sure that you STRETCH before and after the workout. It is necessary to keep from getting cramps. On the other hand, when I walk outside, I walk three miles. The first time I walked, I hadn't realized that I went so far. It's quite easy, though, when I have a partner to walk with, am listening to music, or talk on the phone with my friend. 

Tune: One Hundred Sleepless Nights by Pierce the Veil

...that I really need to find a workout partner. I feel as if I would do a lot better if I did. When you have a partner, you are being held accountable. You can try new things together and not be so embarrassed when you fail. You can laugh and probably even enjoy your workout a little bit better. 

Sadly, I do not have much to share about this week health wise. As mentioned in the preliminary paragraph, I have been falling off of the wagon of getting off my butt and going to the gym. Every now and then, I might do some squats, but aside from that, I have barely done anything. I mean, yesterday I decided to not go to the gym. Wait...what? When have I ever {starting this year} said no to going to the gym? I usually get upset if my dad says that he isn't going, which means that I cannot because he is my ride. 

Even eating wise, I have been sucking. I barely care what I eat now. Well, let me take that back. I have been doing decently with this by taking home-cooked meals to school instead of eating their disgusting meals. Plus, I ate a bunch of string beans, so VEGGIES. I guess I can half-pat myself on the back for this week and my eating habits. {Still could be better, though...}

This week, I want to find some motivation in getting back to the gym. If I do nothing else, this is what I want. The progress that I have been seeing {little, but there} has been such a motivation for me! I mean, whoa. My pants feel loose, ahah, back to the gym. I notice that I am not dying, out of breath after climbing up the thousands of stairs at school, oooh, back to the gym. I need that back. 

Tune: Problem by Ariana Grande feat. Iggy Azalea

For this upcoming week, I want to get back into going to the gym. Maybe I should have went yesterday when my dad offered me to go, but eh, I didn't feel like it. {Sue me. ;}

Tune: Religion by Skylar Grey

 My birthday is in eleven days! I'm about to be sixteen, y'all. That's exciting for me. I'm not planning on doing anything big. Of course, I am going on my annual Xochi's run, but aside from that, I doubt I am going to be doing much else. If I am granted this California trip, then that'll be my birthday gift. If not, then I guess I'll just ask for some money so that I can shop, or go out with some of my close friends to the movies (or laser tag?). Who knows what might happen.  I don't really care, though. I'm just pepped to finally be hitting that 1-6. ;)

 Tomorrow, my mum, dad, sister, granny, and I are heading to Tennessee (well, we're dropping my granny off in Ohio to visit her sister) for our Spring Break. Woooo! I am a little bit too excited. We're going to be getting a tour of Tennessee State (although I've already been) and doing plenty of other fun excursions.

 I went to Plato's Closet on Friday and bought three items for $27 total (plus some change). Can I say go me? Originally, the items that I purchased would've been so much more, and I am glad that I caught them at a nice deal. I finally have some red (bleach-wash?), high waist jeans! Y'all. I am super excited about that, like, OH MY GAH excited. Hahah. It's pretty crazy. I also bought this floral dress that will be perfect for the spring and summer. {It's funny because I was just telling myself that the dresses in my closet are getting old, and I need some new ones.} My last purchase was a cute, denim tie shirt. I cannot wait to wear that as the weather continually heats up.

 Uh-oh. I am thinking about another blog change, y'all. Somebody stop me! It's quite obvious that I never change the template (because I'm a broke girl with no money to pay someone to design it for me), but I do make a change to my header, colors, signature, and about/contact pages. It just seems to be fresher, y'know.

 I think I am officially addicted to hot fries. I used to hate them, but now I love them. Every day last week, I took a plastic bag of them with me to school. Hahahah. But hey! At least I am trying to portion it out right so that I won't eat an entire bag in one sitting. That must count for something? I mean, one regular size bag lasted me for an entire week (or four days since I did not have school on Friday).
 On Friday, my mum bought me some workout pants that I adore a lot! They fit perfectly around my hips and thighs, but when it comes to my waist, it is too loose. {I suppose that's a good thing, but then again it isn't because the pants keep falling down around that area.}

I am guilty about my health habits this week. For one, I slacked off on my workouts a lot more than I'd care to admit! Ew. I feel all grubby and shizz. However, to make up for that lost time, I attempted to eat slightly healthier meals or at least portion them well. I can semi-say that I did that (give or take a few meals). The day that I really fell off was yesterday. I ate three freaking tacos from Taco Bell, a McDouble and medium fry from Mickey D's, and a bit of my mum's Chinese food. (Insert exasperated, what the heck emoji here) I need to really practice self control or something. 

Tune: There's A Good Reason These Tables Are Numbered Honey, You Just Haven't Thought Of It Yet by Panic! At the Disco

That few day break of no blogging has been quite joyful.  I needed the break. School has been weighing down on me for awhile, and I needed time to recuperate. Thank gosh Spring Break is next week! Tennessee here I come, baby. ;) 

*Lately, I have been watching Supernatural. This is the new show that I am binge watching. Must I say that I'm in love? {Okay, and partially creeped the eff out.} The reason that I even wanted to start watching this show was because of Dean Winchester (played by Jensen Ackles). Like, he's freaking hot. Once I started to actually watch the show, I kept watching it because it's kind of good, and by kind of, I mean amazing. I might have begged my mum, sister, or dad to come and watch the Bloody Mary episode with me, but I'll subject myself to the creepiness of the show if that means I can stare at Dean and Sam all day/night. ;) Harhar.

*My dad barbecued yesterday, and oh my oh my, it makes me long for the summer. 

*Today, I spent the majority of the morning taking outfit photos for next week when I am away in Tennessee. I won't be live-blogging, so that means I must schedule something. Now, all that I have left to do is edit the photos and I'll be set.

*Four day school week for me! Yippee! 

*Oh my gah! I only have eighteen more days until my sixteenth birthday! I'm getting old. ;) Haha. At the moment, I am clueless as to what I want to do for my birthday.  Of course I am going to Xochimilco (duh), but aside from that I don't know.  If I get this Stanford opportunity, then that'll be my gift, but if I do not, then I think I might just ask for some beer shopping money.

I feel so energized! The weather this upcoming week is supposed to be fantastic. If that is not an instant mood lifter, then I do not know what is. Today, my mum, sister, and I are going shopping for a bathing suit for our upcoming vacation to Tennessee. Aside from that, it should be a pretty relaxing day. 

* I mentioned this a few Sundays ago, but I just wanted to bring it back up: the WYCD Downtown Hoedown is coming up! May 30th-June 1st, a lot of popular country artists are coming to town. I need to purchase my ticket (tickets are $29.95). Right now, I am leaning more so towards going to the Hoedown on Friday. 

* Earlier this year (in January), I wrote a post about my fear of hearing no. Well, what inspired me to write that post was my want of getting accepted into the Joyce Ivy League Foundation. I worried for no reason at all in the long run! I got awarded $6,000 to either Stanford, Barnard, or Emory! That's pretty amazing. I've decided to rule out the last two colleges, and hopefully get accepted to Stanford. If I do, then I will be able to stay there and earn college credits over 8-weeks this summer. I pray that I get it. If not, then I can always try again next year (plus, I have a back up plan). 

*Tomorrow, I will be sharing a poetry video that I found every amazing! Please do watch it. It's on the subject of something that needs to be spoken about a lot more. Listen to all of it if you do decided to watch the video.

*I need to watch the last season of How I Met Your Mother. If only Netflix would upload it. Geesh! 

To begin this post off correctly, I want to talk about the #1800minutechallenge. This challenge is being hosted by Living In Yellow and other lovely ladies between the days of April 1st and May 31st. So far, so good. I have been at the gym avidly as well as taking walks on the nicer days. Considering that the weather is about to get a lot better, I am going to be adding in hour long walks throughout my week. This entire challenge is to encourage bloggers (and non-bloggers, too) to get in shape for swimsuit season! If you want to be held accountable and feel as if you're not doing this whole fitness thing alone, this challenge is the perfect one for you! It's never too late to join in, even if you cannot complete all 1,800 minutes. I encourage you to tag along.

Anyways, let's talk about what exercise I have been getting in lately. The gym has been my best buddy this week aside from Thursday and Friday, when I could not make it. {This is reason number one why I cannot wait to get my own car!} I put in at least thirty five minutes on the treadmill each day that I went {I actually ran on the treadmill for a few minutes yesterday, too!}, plus I did the arc trainer for ten minutes one day. Oh gosh! The arc trainer is hard! After I was done with it, I was very proud of myself, so I guess the pain paid off. The Thirty Minute Room (if you go to Planet Fitness, you should be familiar with this) has also been getting frequented by me lately. I want to start weight training along with my cardio so that I can get toned while shedding the fat. {Before, I only did cardio, but lately, people have been telling me to mix weights (not heavy) with my workouts so that I can see progress faster.}

I am getting super excited because I can notice a change in the way my clothes fit. That's really exciting! And do you know how people say that others can notice a change in how you look before you generally can? Well, my family has been mentioning that to me, and it's encouraging. After all, the gym is becoming my addiction. Haha. I pretty much rip my dad's head off if he tells me that we are not going to the gym nowadays. That never used to happen. #ohno #gymaddict #i'msohashtaggingonmyblog

Please do not ask me about my health. I really need to get the amount of fast-food that I eat under control, and asap. I have been trying to limit how much I eat, but I feel as if I can do way better on this portion. For this upcoming week, that is my goal: to limit how much I eat. What is yours?

Tune: Stupify by Disturbed

It's Sunday, Sunday, Sundaaaaaay. How are y'all? I'm feeling quite energetic. Earlier today, my mum and I went to go pick my sister up from her trip to Lansing for MYIG (Michigan Youth In Government). After that, we all made a trip to Twelve Oaks where we spent approximately an hour in Charlotte Russe. I found an adorable top that I cannot wait to wear during the Summer (possibly sooner than that). Two words: lace and sexy. My trip to 'You're The Only 10 I See" {Sorry. I am still being corny.} will definitely be seeing an appearance of that top. Later this week or next, you will be seeing an update of recent clothing purchases. Look out for that. 

*I am really craving some \[Lebanese] Fattoush this week. That is one of the best salads I have ever had in my entire life. If you've never tasted it before, get it. Get it, pour a twinge of ranch over it (or other side of choice), and devour it like it's meant to. After you do that, come back and talk to me. ;)

*My mom's birthday is on Tuesday! I am super excited for her as well as thankful simply because she was born and is being allowed to see another year. Always stay grateful--death does not have an age. Never-mind that, though! Let's think happy thoughts because I'm happppppy. {Pharrell, anyone?}

*Right now, I am watching an episode of Law & Order: SVU, and it is completely blowing my mind. Are they seriously trying to pin Olivia for the murder of this sociopath that kept women in a dungeon? Really!? How about they shut up and stop. {Television shows are my weakness. Anger, sadness, and extreme happiness are the three emotions that I feel whenever I turn on my TV.}

*Yesterday night, my mother, her best-friend and I watched The Purge (finally). Three words: what. the. bleep. Just think about that. I would never, ever, in my entire life watch that movie again, and I am so thankful that I did not pay to see it in a movie theater.  It was ridiculous, and I honestly would have ran out of the movie theater halfway into the movie. {No lie.} The little boy was crazy for letting that man into the house, which brings me to the fact that he even knew the pass code to the security system! Like, parents, do not tell your children vital information like that as they have very curious minds and will most likely do something very, very stupid with said vital information. And their neighbors--whattttt. I could never look at them the same way; "YOU TRIED TO PRAY AND THEN KILL ME AND MY KIDS, YOU PSYCHOPATHS!" That is essentially what I would have been thinking if I was the mom. Okay, okay, I'm done. Just don't watch it if you have never seen the movie. Save your eyeballs and your sanity.

When I went to the gym, I generally did 45 minutes (I believe), and no less on cardio. I even reached my goal from last Sunday to do twenty minutes on the elliptical along with thirty (or forty) minutes on the treadmill. {Go me!} Also, for a few days, I worked on my arms, chest, and legs, and it was pretty tiring; however, every time I left the gym, I left feeling refreshed. Working out is quickly becoming one of my favorite pastimes. 

On the topic of eating, ehhhhh. This week, it was all kind of wishy-washy. It was like that because I was off from school for two days, meaning that I was free to grub on whatever I wanted at home. Then, I ate Thai food (my ultimate weakness), fortune cookies, and a lot more McDonald's than I'd care to admit. Okay...now that I look at it, this week has been bad health-wise. Boo.

I want to work on my arms three times this upcoming week, while fitting in forty-five minutes of cardio every time I go to the gym. That sounds kind of difficult because I am very lazy when it comes to weights and the like. {Hello! I have absolutely zero upper body strength.} I am going to really try, though.  If I do not get there though, it'll be fine.  All I'd like is to know that I tried. :) Oh! Another thought--although I am not making this an official Sunday Health Goal, I want to try to limit the amount of fast food that I eat this week. Fast food is no muy bueno; es muy mal.