I’ve said it a million times before, and I’ll continue to say it an infinite amount of times; summer is by far my favorite season. While autumn comes in a close second with its gorgeous colors, and smell, summer trumps everything!
From flip flops, bikinis, concerts in the park, beach visits, sundresses, sunnies, iced cold drinks, and outdoor activities, nothing beats summer!
I never used to be super into fitness or a very healthy lifestyle. College got the best of me and it was all beer all the time. Then I had kids, and my body was suddenly a little foreign to me. I began working out solely for the purpose of my wedding.
Then I became addicted. Everyone says it happens, that after 21 days, you become addicted, your body craves it, but I didn’t believe it, until it happened. I went from not being able to run for a solid minute to going for a whole mile, then two, until finally I made my way up to five miles. And then I couldn’t wait to wake up and throw my two babes into the double stroller and get out there.
I still enjoyed summer BBQ’s with our family and friends, beers on the beach, happy hour and dating my husband, but I still kept up a pretty healthy lifestyle.
When we moved to Washington this past spring, it had been a year since I really started to workout. I had dropped six sizes. Which was huge for me! All from running, and a little T25 or Jillian Michaels thrown in there occasionally.
But this past spring, I got stuck there. No matter how much running I did, my body wasn’t budging. And that’s when I realized it was time to shake things up a bit. It had gotten used to running, and I had lost the easy weight, but the last stubborn ten pounds, wasn’t going anywhere.
Since summer was here, and the weather was beautiful, my workouts were easier to shake up! I still run 3-4 times a week, but I started to incorporate much more sprinting and intervals. I swim, which is an excellent workout, the sun stays out later so we load the kids in the wagon and can go for a walk after dinner. My son will ride his bike from sun up to sun down if I let him, so I do. And I workout in the garage with T25, Jillian Michaels, or a recent favorite, and already making a huge difference; kickboxing!
If my kids were old enough for hiking, I would do that too, hopefully next summer! But there is a Starbucks two miles from our house. So occasionally in the afternoons, we load up and run out there for an incredibly refreshing Starbucks Teavana® Shaken Iced Tea! Such a treat!
Have you guys tried them yet? The flavors are crazy good; The Teavana® Shaken Iced Blackberry Mojito Tea Lemonade™, Teavana® Shaken Iced Peach Green Tea Lemonade™, and Teavana® Shaken Iced Black Tea Lemonade™! The Blackberry Mojito is my go-to!
It’s such a great way to shake up our day, especially if we haven’t gone anywhere yet, and make a trip down to my favorite coffee shop. Sometimes I tell my husband that I’m going to pick up a part time job there, it really was my favorite college job!
If we’re heading out to the beach or a day at the zoo, we always stop at Starbucks for a treat for the boys and a refreshing drink for us! There is no yummier way to cool down after a good workout or on a hot day!
Summer is so much fun, and we all seem to get out more and do more. Fitness is generally more enjoyable in the summer, and there is such a happier balance between it all! And that’s what it’s all about!
How are you shaking up your summer?!
“Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Starbucks through their partnership with POPSUGAR. While I was compensated by POPSUGAR to write a post about Starbucks, all opinions are my own.”