This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at FSU chapter.

We have a lot of free time right now. In my opinion, we have a little too much free time. I’ve seen a few things on the internet about how we should use this time to accomplish something: learn a language, write a book, achieve your ultimate body goals, change your life, etc. But, it’s important to know that it’s completely okay if you don’t come out of quarantine as a new and improved version of yourself. We have never experienced life like this before so there is no reason to feel guilty for doing nothing in this extremely stressful time.

At the beginning of quarantine, I immediately thought it would be the perfect time to work towards my dream body. I spent the first two weeks forcing myself to diet and work out, unsuccessfully. But, I binge eat when I’m stressed and bored, and I have been feeling really stressed and bored lately. Whenever I decide to start working towards that goal again, I start to feel less satisfied with my life. When this happens, I have absolutely no motivation to do anything, I feel guilty and the cycle repeats. Recently, I decided I need to stop setting these strict expectations for myself. I truly believe that if I start paying more attention to my mental health during this time, I will start to feel healthier inside and out. I’m never going to get anywhere if I keep forcing myself to do things that aren’t making me happy.

girl jumping mountain view — Peter Conlan on Unsplash

Having high expectations for ourselves during a time like this could be very damaging to our mental health – which needs to be our priority right now. And although being active and healthy is a great way to promote a positive mental state, there are ways to do so without forcing ourselves to achieve strict goals. There’s nothing wrong with going on a chill walk or a bike ride instead of forcing yourself to run two miles or do an at-home workout every day. My parents have been walking our dog after dinner every night and, whenever I join them, it’s the highlight of my day. There’s nothing wrong with moving our bodies in a healthy way if it’s through doing something we enjoy! It becomes unhealthy when we feel it’s something we have to do. Get some fresh air, move your body and do things that make you happy!

Some people may use this time to get their dream body, but that shouldn’t make all of us feel like we have to. If you are setting goals for yourself to achieve during quarantine, make sure you prioritize your mental health first. For all of us, that is the most important thing we can do during this stressful period. I have decided that the only goal I am going to set for myself is to take care of myself by promoting a positive and healthy mental state. It would be amazing if we all come out on the other side of quarantine feeling better than we did before. But, this journey will be different for everyone and the most important thing is that you do what is best for YOU.

Want to see more HCFSU? Be sure to like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest!

Why You Shouldn’t Force Yourself to Reach Fitness Goals Right Now

We wanna slide into your DMs