Hey guys, happy Sunday! I wanted to post these photos today and share something I have been thinking a lot about lately.

JUST DO IT.

Nike’s genius slogan says it all.

Often times it can be difficult to get yourself up, out, and ready to conquer the world. This can be applied to your job, business, or even your fitness routine. No matter what you are trying to achieve, you really need to just get your ass up and do it. Starting is the best way to accomplish something.

I really do use the “just do it” slogan in all aspects of my life. For example, my fitness. Often times (ok all the time) I post photos from my favourite sporting activities on just the sunny and beautiful days. Well, that’s not necessarily how it is every time I get active. Take the photos above. These are from last week when I hiked up Seymour Mountain in Vancouver. It was raining and horrible outside, and as you can see from the photos I was literally drenched. We ran into some other hikers on the way down and they asked me if I had jumped in the lake because I was so wet. BUT, it was a really great hike and I got out there and did it. Word on the street is the view from the top is pretty cool too, but I will have to see that next time when there is no fog/rain haha.

It is really important to me that I am always improving my fitness and setting new goals for myself. If I were to wait for only the sunny days to get outside and conquer mountains, I wouldn’t be working out very frequently and my skill/fitness level would begin to deteriorate. My point being: the shitty days make you appreciate the sunny ones that much more. So get up, go out, and just do it.

Alright team, that’s enough from me. I want to know how you are going to apply the “just do it” mantra to your life. Your job? Trying new things? Tell me in the comments below!

Let’s be action takers, risk seekers, and goal crushers together. Deal? Deal.

x,

Okay team. Remember my Summer Bucket List post?? Well, I am crossing things off that list one by one! AKA I am living proof that writing something down will actually make you get off your ass and do it. 

So, Summer Bucket List item #2 was to learn to sail. And that is exactly what I did! I mean, by nobody’s standards am I a seasoned pro now or anything. But I went out there, learned the basics, and had blast in the process. Now I can confidently say fancy sailing terms like “port” and “starboard” in my daily jargon. (Anyone who actually knows how to sail right now is just like jesus christ woman…. stfu haha.) 

Also. ALSO. I know I look super useless in those photos but I swear I actually did things. That was just when we were waiting to get in the water so I took the liberty of perching myself up on the boat. Obviously wearing my super fashionable yellow lifejacket. Chic, no?

Have you written down your summer bucket list yet?! If so, whats on it? And are you getting out and crossing things off the list?? Tell me in the comments!

x,

Hello from Vegas!! 

Okay so you know how I was complaining before about over-packing? SO glad that I did that. It is honestly just so nice to have options for things to wear lol. Especially in a crazy place like this. We have been spending our days at pool parties, and dancing our nights away at EDC. SO MUCH FUN YOU GUYS. Like, the most. 

Not going to lie though, I am so exhausted haha. Vegas is so crazy!! Nobody ever sleeps here lol. It will definitely be nice to get back to Vancouver on Monday and get back to my regular health/fitness routine. And be eating yummy nutritious food again. I have been eating lots of “vacation” food while I am here. Becauseeeee calories don’t count when you are on vacation (science.) hehe 😛

Anyways, just wanted to pop in and say hi! Hope you guys are having a great weekend 🙂

x,

I know a lot of you are graduating right now (congrats!!) so I wanted to share one of my favourite life mantras with you (that is very relevant to graduation.) Never stop learning. Today’s post is all about learning. After all, knowledge is power. 😉 Your education should never “start” or “stop” at any point in your life. A formal education is an extremely valuable thing. Knowledge really does give you power because no matter what happens in this crazy crazy world, nobody can take the things you know away from you! 

Which is why (even after graduation) you should make sure you are always seeking out opportunities to learn, grow, and discover. This can be applied to literally every aspect of your life. Thirst for knowledge is a conscious way of thinking. You always need to be looking at things like, “how can I learn something from you?” You guys feel me?

Okay so there are many ways in which I apply this perspective to my own life. And nowww.. (drum rollllll) here are 6 ways I always make sure I continue to learn (even after my graduation.)

READ

I am a total bookworm and I freaking love it. You get to borrow someone else’s mind and explore what they think is cool. Then, you can sound really smart when you recount the things you learned to your friends. (Win-win.)

POSTITIVE VIBES

Just making the most out of situations and seeing how I can learn something from a great, good, or crappy circumstance can make all the difference in the world. The way you look at a situation can totally change what you get out of it (or don’t get out of it.)

GOAL SET

Setting goals – and I mean with things I already do. For example, skiing! If I never set goals or just dribbled along as I always had, I honestly would probably suck right now. But if you set out to achieve a goal you will learn how much you are really capable of. Read more on staying motivated by clicking here and here. 

TRY NEW THINGS

Lately I have been all about trying new things! Just say yes. Like if someone asks you to go on a hike or take a course that frankly scares you shitless, JUST DO IT. (Nike’s genius slogan says it all. Except for the “if it scares you shitless part.” That was my genius creation 😛 ) You will learn something new and feel great about yourself in the process. And if you suck at whatever you are trying… than so what!! You tried it and probably had a great time in the process. 🙂

FAIL

If you mess something up, there is always an opportunity to learn. Mistakes are not mistakes, they are opportunities to better yourself as a person and assess how you can improve the next time.

“You don’t learn to walk by following rules. You learn to walk by doing, and by falling over.”

 – Richard Branson

ASK QUESTIONS

This is something I am working on every day. If someone did something you think is awesome, or has a great point of view… ask them about it! Find that person who is in a spot you want to be in, and ask them about it. People have all sorts of great insights and sometimes all you have to do is ask to find out what that is.

As you are graduating I encourage you to seek out learning opportunities in your everyday life. This might be hard as you are starting (or not starting) an entry level job or even beginning the job of your dreams (go you!!) but make sure you take every situation and look at it as an opportunity to learn something new and better yourself.

And hell ya this is a scary scary time. I graduated recently too and I was a massive ball of stress. Stressy stress stress. All me, all the time. What I found to help was to stick with my mantra of to never stop learning. Every day I absolutely love what I do, and I am so happy that I get to share all the things I am learning here with you all! And hang out and have chats, because we are homies. 😀

Okay so tell me!! What are you going to do to make sure you are always learning? Leave me a comment below with your thoughts! God knows I have blabbered on enough for one day. Now it’s your turn <3

x,

Hey guys! How was your weekend?? Did you spend a your time lazing about in the sun like me? I sure as hell hope you did. And if you did, you neeeeed to go and check out the white sundresses at Urban Outfitters right now. Seriously those guys are killing it lately. I almost bought two last time I was there, but then I decided I should probably be an adult and not purchase two ridiculously similar dresses haha.

What do you guys think of this outfit? Will you be wearing any long white sundresses this summer? Comment below!

x,

Today’s post is dedicated to something so simple yet so vital. Not only is it good for our overall health but for our survival too. Water. If you and water are not already besties, become friends right now.

What motivated me to talk about something as simple and “boring” (it’s not actually boring its really freaking awesome if you ask me, which is why I cleverly put the word in quotations 😉 ) as water was the sheer amount of absolute crap drinks that are sold. There are tons of energy drinks, “fruit juices” that contain a whopping 10% of actual fruit juice in them, sport drinks that promise to enhance your performance, and beverages that are supposed to curb hunger. I could go on forever but I will spare you the pain. These drinks really are completely unnecessary. They are filled with chemicals that you nor I can actually pronounce, and are literally packed with refined sugars. Basically what I am trying to say is you don’t need to buy these things. They are a waste of money and calories. 

Which brings me to my main point…. here are my TOP 5 FAVE REASONS TO DRINK LOTS OF WATER!!! (these are my favourite reasons, obvi there are far too many to actually list.)

1) Water makes your skin look FAB by preventing excess moisture loss! Also dehydration makes you look like a prune, and nobody wants to look like a prune.

2) Helps energize your muscles! That is right my friends, you don’t need a sugar-and-chemical-filled energy drink to help get you moving. Water will do it for you! It is especially important to drink water while you are getting your fitness on.

3) Water will boost your productivity! Yasssss. Love this. I find just having a nice cool glass of water while I am working keeps me alert, focused, and productive.

4) Calorie control. Having a big glass of water before a meal will make you feel less hungry when you start eating, and help avoid overeating when you are super hungry and have low blood sugar levels.

5) Digestion! Drinking water is a great way to make sure your insides stay healthy, if you catch my drift. 

As you can see water does really awesome stuff for your body, but it isn’t necessarily the most exciting thing to drink. What I like to do to spice up my water is drink it with copious amounts of lemon, frozen cranberries, and cinnamon! Soooooooooooo good. Learn about my classic hot lemon, ginger, and water cold-cure by clicking here. 

So yes! Make your water exciting so you can be sure to drink as much as possible throughout the day. I always have a massive mason jar on me wherever I go that is filled with water, lemon, and cinnamon. Just having it on you will encourage you to drink it 🙂 (<— seriously such a good trick.)

Hope you guys found this post helpful! Start downing that water like it’s first year university and you just discovered there was a free keg in your dorm. (Or…. like you really like water….. ehem.) Okay that is really enough out of me for one day. KBYE <3

x,

Each summer I like to write down what I want to do for the following few months. The simple action of writing it down is enough to make me actually do the things I want to do. So today, I decided I would share that summer bucket list with you so we can compare and contrast! With this post I hope to inspire you to set yourself up for a summer of fun in the sun. 😀

Hereeeee we gooo!!

CLIMB MOUNTAINS

I ski down them, so why shouldnt I hike up them? That is the fun of mountains when they are not covered in snow! There is something about climbing to the top of a mountain and looking at the gorgeous view that is just so rewarding. It feels like you conquered it!

LEARN TO… SAIL

Learn to sail a boat! Why? Sailing is betchy. It is something I feel like I should already know how to do but for some unfathomable reason I don’t know how haha. And being out on the ocean is one of my favourite things to do, so hell yea I want to learn to sail!

READ

Read at LEAST 6 new books (I mean come on…. I will be spending my weekends lazing in the sun if I am being real so I should be reading!!) It is really important to me that I am always learning and continuing my education throughout my entire life, so this is a great way to do that! <— post on always learning coming soon 🙂

TRAVEL LOCAL

Travel… locally! One of the things I love most about living in Vancouver is the gorgeous summer. And the best part about it is getting outdoors and exploring it! And really not just Vancouver. I am talking about beautiful British Columbia. Basically my goal is to explore as much as possible, and see places I have never traveled before. This can be applicable no matter where you live. There are so many places that we never take the time to explore and discover… so get out and travel local!

NO TV

Honestly such a waste of time. I can literally think of a million better things you could do after a long day of work to wind down, that are far better for you than rotting infront of the tv. Instead of watching tv, try things like: going for a walk, meeting a friend for drinks, relaxing on a patio, going for a swim… anything! That being said I do love to relax infront of my favourite shows once and while. How I make sure it stays at a reasonable amount is only letting myself only watch 2 shows at once, and keep it to 2 episodes a week. This way I still get my TV indulgence and it is guilt-free. My favourites (both will be forever and always so don’t judge me cuz if you are a judge wudgy you can gtfo right now lol) are Keeping Up With The Kardashians and Top Gear. Yup, pretty much opposite ends of the spectrum, but thats how I roll. Diverse tastes ftw. 😉

COOK

Okay so I think by now it is obvious to you guys that I LOVE food and I LOVE cooking. If you read my blog on the reg (which you should cuz Skinny Belle is awesome if I do say so myself hehe :P) you will know I am in hot, steamy, and passionate relationship with food. I dream about it, I talk about it all the time, and I think about it when I am doing pretty much everything. The reason this is on my summer bucket list is because I want to expand my knowledge of cooking. I would like to challenge myself to go outside my comfort zone and start creating some things that are a little more complex! And obviously when they are killer recipes I will share them with you guys. Friends who eat together stay together. You feel me?!

All I can say is I am SO stoked for this summer! In my opinion it has already began, so let the fun times begin. Can’t wait to spend time having fun in the sun with the people I love most 🙂

NOW TELL ME FRIENDS! What do you guys want to do this summer? Do any of our summer plans match up or are yours way different? Comment below <3

x,

Hi guys! Okay so last ski photos for a while here. Today was my final day skiing up Whistler (Canada) for the season and oh my lorddddd was it great! If you can’t tell by my huge smile, I was pretty stoked about the day. But now it is time to put my skis away for a few months, and start getting my fitness on in other ways!

Do any of you have seasonal fitness preferences? Comment below! <3

x,

Happy Easter everyone! I spent my long weekend up in the mountains. AKA my happy place. 🙂 There is no better feeling to me than being out in the fresh mountain air, and skiing all day long.

Today I wanted to share with you one of my favourite ways to stay motivated with my fitness. To start, it is so important to do something active that you love. It just makes things so so so much easier haha. Second, (and today’s main topic) is setting personal goals and challenges for yourself. Lately I have been challenging myself to try new things on the mountain to make sure I am always improving at what I love to do. Since I grew up downhill ski racing, I have a bit of a lazy tendency to just want to do the nice groomed runs. Why? Because I’m good at it and it comes easy to me. In my opinion, it is so important to be continuously improving at anything you do and always striving for excellence. Repeatedly doing the same thing over and over can get you into a bit of a “rut.” Your skill level will not improve, and you will become bored and uninterested with the activity because nothing new or exciting is happening (at least that happens to me lol.) I tend to be very motivated by tangible results, or visible improvements in my skill level. This is why I have been challenging myself with my skiing (and in most things I do) to make sure that I am always improving, and always striving for excellence. When you push yourself, you will usually discover that you are better at something or can do things you never even thought you could! Personal challenges in themselves are enough to keep me going up the mountain, and striving to do better. It makes things a bit more interesting, you know? 

What do you do to keep yourself motivated in your fitness routine? Setting personal goals/challenges for myself is a big one for me, and I really recommend you give it a go! Comment below to tell me your favourite way to stay motivated 🙂

x,

Hi guys! Hope everyone has been having a great weekend. Mine has been so busy but so awesome! Just wanted to say a quick hello today and share my latest obsession with you… the Saje nebulizer! It is basically just a thing that you put water in and it makes steam and is wonderful. My friend Leah got this for me for my birthday, and I am totally addicted right now. Each night before I go bed I put it on for an hour or so, and oh my goddd does it smell good. You can buy different aromas to put in it, which is also awesome. I obviously got the ‘stress release’ one because sometimes I am a bit stressy haha. Anyways, this is one of my nighttime rituals that I wanted to share with you guys! You can get these nebulizers (steamers? misters? all sound odd haha) at any Saje location. Definitely recommend picking one up, I love it! 

Have a nice and relaxing Sunday night friends 🙂

x,