barachinaangela

[barachinaangela]

That’s Life. It’s All Change. 

Nobody talks about the mental struggle of trying to create a different life for yourself. One minute you think you’re doing your best and making so much progress, then the next second you feel like you haven’t done enough. Trying to change your mindset is ten times harder than actually doing the physical work. But throughout these eight weeks of journaling my weekly happenings, I realized that I needed to embrace change rather than fear it. Because this is life, as much as we are comfortable with our current situation, eventually everything will change, and all we can do is go with the flow of the universe.

All of my blogs are about me trying to be productive, resting without guilt, and getting back on track. But this week, I did a different thing. I changed my routine, but it’s not about trying to go back to my old routine anymore; it’s more about trying to make a better routine for myself. Prioritizing my academics might give me a high grade, but focusing on my physical and mental health will help me more to achieve the future lifestyle that I want. I know for a fact that I won’t disregard my academics just because I’m focusing more on other things. Because the most important thing for me right now is being in touch with myself.

One thing I have realized in this journey is that I need to embrace change. Because this thing is the only constant in life, it is the path to growth and new experiences. It may be scary, but it will lead me to the most beautiful destinations. Now, I’m slowly accepting the fact that life doesn’t always go the way I want. And I need to let go of what no longer serves me and make space for new possibilities to grow. This is me, embracing change with open arms.

#student life #fitness #academic #gym life #change #embracing change #lifestyle #real life #journey #journal #weekly update

[barachinaangela]

“Who cares if I’m pretty if I fail my finals?” – Rory Gilmore 

When did sleep become optional? When did eating one meal a day become enough? And when did coffee become so essential to the point that I could not function without it? I think since I developed this academic validation thing, I’ve been questioning these past few days if this academic validation is really important to me. Or do I just like the feeling of validating myself whenever I get high grades? Is this thing really more important than my physical health? Well, I guess this is my kind of college life.

I started watching "Gilmore Girls" this week despite my workload. I feel like I need something to keep me away from my schoolwork, or else it will always stay on my mind. It’s been a busy week: working on our midterm papers, preparing for presentations, trying to keep up with minor subjects, and studying in advance for law class. Honestly, I’m not that consistent in my fitness life this past few weeks and I don’t want to reason out my lack of motivation, but maybe this is me trying to focus more on my academics, or maybe I just don’t really want to push myself too hard to do other things. I’m just focusing more on getting my life together, figuring out some things, and taking it slow.

"I can’t. I have to study." Is the most relatable line that Rory said in the first few episodes of Gilmore Girls. I’ve been canceling plans just so I can study for midterms, do other schoolwork, or just sleep. My mind is so tired and drained from the same routine every day. But I have no choice but to keep going because this is my life right now, and school might be boring, but I won’t be in school forever. I want to enjoy and cherish every moment because, in two years, I’ll be graduating, and who knows what will happen after?

#student life #fitness #gym #gilmore girls #rory gilmore #gym life

[barachinaangela]

Setting Emotional Boundaries 

On a random Friday, I saw a note on my table saying, "If it doesn’t bring peace, profits, or purpose, then don’t give it your time, energy, or attention." I’ve always had boundaries around people, but I feel like this is a sign for me to set my emotional boundaries higher. I’m aware that there will always be people or things that drain my energy, and they are out of my control, so I don’t need to stress about them. I can observe things, but I don’t always need to absorb them, especially if they are negative. I need to protect my peace so that I can focus more on my goals in life. Because these negative people and negative things are just a phase, and I only have two choices: either I will stay on it or move forward.

My 2021 self was my standard. I like how she sets emotional boundaries because she values her peace so much. She cut off people who brought negativity into her life. She’s just too focused on herself, her lifestyle, and her academics. She lives as if she doesn’t see any negativity in the world; she’s just grateful for her everyday life. She loves the solitude, but not the loneliness. Looking back to my old self, I realized that building the lifestyle that I really want will be lonely sometimes. Because in this world, you only have yourself, and that is the reality. Yes, you have your friends and family by your side, but they also have their own lives, battles, struggles, and goals, and you can’t always depend on them. So I guess I just need to focus on what I want and what I feel like doing. If people call me selfish because I have high walls around me, then I am selfish. I will still do the things that I think will benefit me in the future, despite what others are saying.

There’s nothing wrong with setting boundaries; this is just proof that you have self-respect and don’t want negativity to drain you or affect your future. I think this is also essential to achieving balance in life. Don’t let these kinds of things affect your energy. We only have limited energy each day, and we don’t need to fight battles that don’t really matter. Think of your energy as money; choose wisely where to spend it.

#boundaries #self development #student life #balance #atomic habits #cornelia street #moving forward #solitude

[barachinaangela]

“Speak Now, or Forever Hold Your Peace.” – Taylor Swift 

This past few days, my priority has been just my peace. You know, I just want my mind and my surroundings to be calm, just like an innocent kid. Honestly, I barely did anything this week; I cannot do my schoolwork, I cannot go to the gym, and I cannot even cook meals for myself. It’s just me wanting to be at peace to the point that I don’t care if I am fulfilling my responsibilities or not. It sounds mean, but that is really how I feel. I know for a fact that I am not resting; I just like doing nothing these days. I actually don’t like talking to people if I’m in this kind of mood where I just want to be alone because it is so peaceful. But then, as a student and in the field that I am in, I need to constantly socialize. So I need to choose whether to hold my peace for a while or show up and prove to my future self that I can achieve the lifestyle that she has.

Sometimes we feel like we never grow up, and that’s normal. At this age, I easily get into a cycle of productivity and the pressure to succeed in every aspect of my life. It is easy to feel guilty about taking a moment to do nothing because we live in an environment where there are a lot of expectations of us, but that’s just their expectations, and this should be the story of us. Just us focusing on ourselves, our goals, and our priorities because, at the end of the day, this is ours, and we are the ones who will make our own stories based on what we want and feel. That’s why it is important to understand that part of being human is occasionally taking a step back, taking a breath, and allowing ourselves to exist without any regrets or guilt.

I know that my blog is all about me trying to have a balanced life, but this blog is also about the realistic and honest happenings of my week. Whenever I allow myself to do nothing, I always reflect on the things that have been happening. I am able to gain perspective and clarity on my life by pausing in the midst of the chaos. I am able to look at my priorities and observe my progress. This self-reflection helps me align my academic, fitness, and social lives, making my actions more meaningful.

Doing nothing is not a sign of laziness but rather an essential thing to maintain balance and our well-being. Long live to us and our dreams for our future selves, and make sure to live an enchanted life despite of having struggles and doubts. 

Stream Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) <3

#student life #academic #fitness #speak now tv #taylor swift #gym #long live #enchanted #taylorsversion

[barachinaangela]

[barachinaangela]

The Best People in Life Are Free

Taking a step back from everything was the best thing I did this week. I let go of all the negativities, pressures, and expectations that I’ve been throwing at myself these past few weeks. I started to take a rest, not just physically but also mentally. I started to look at life differently and slowly went back to my old hobbies. I freed myself from the mindset that I needed to be productive all the time just so I could say that I had a stable life. I let things happen the way they should because I cannot control everything, and life just got so much better these days.

Going back on track with a different mindset feels so good. I realized that expecting too much and putting pressure on myself would just cause me to act negatively toward things. Out of all the people in my life, I should be the one who understands myself better and knows what my needs are. Recently, I bought self-help books because, aside from the gym, these books are also my escape from reality. If I have new books, I always give myself free time to read them, and that’s how I rest my mind.

Working out is one of the things that I look forward to doing every day. But unfortunately, the last couple of weeks have been a struggle, and going to the gym feels so heavy and frustrating to me. But then, when I decided to change my perspective on life, I felt so excited again to go back there and appreciate the peace of mind that the gym was giving me. Gym helps me lighten my mood so that I can do my other responsibilities as a student and as a young adult.

I realized that having fun and doing your other hobbies despite your busy schedule should not put you under any guilt. They tell you when you’re young, "Girls, go out and have your fun," and that’s what I am doing. We should learn to be satisfied by doing as much as we can to succeed in life without having too many expectations. I don’t know who needs to hear this, but you will always have problems. Learn to enjoy life while still solving problems.

#student life #fitness #gym #new romantics #nothing new #48 laws of power #self help books #gym life #red tv

[barachinaangela]

Academic Validation Girlies Listen to “This Is Me Trying”

If I had to pick a song to describe my whole week, it would be "This Me Trying" by Taylor Swift. The intro of the song says, “I’ve been having a hard time adjusting," and it is so real at the moment. Life has just been so challenging these past few days; it’s hard to keep up with everyone and everything; even waking up in the morning feels like a challenge to me. There’s this constant guilt of not doing anything productive, but you know deep inside that you need to rest. So, this is me, trying to survive my hell week.

The only thing that pushes me to study for my exams is my need for academic validation. Honestly, it feels so good for a short period of time, especially if you’re getting a grade that you want and deserve. But it is so DAMAGING in the long run, to the point that you will base your happiness and self-worth on numbers. It became so unhealthy for me, and I am trying to remove it from my life because I know my worth, and my grade is not the only thing that can define it.

I am aware that I am drained right now but I know that I’ll be back to my normal self, I just really need time to process everything. You know when it feels like you are not living life anymore; you are just here trying to survive, trying to keep up with all of your responsibilities, trying not to get left behind. And the best thing for me to do right now is to feel everything, reflect on some other things, and try to look at life positively... because it always works.

On my last blog, I talked about having self-discipline. Right now I don’t feel good, but I will still study and go to the gym, not because I need to but because I WANT TO. Discipline doesn’t care if you’re tired; do it anyway, right? And always give yourself credit for trying and surviving.

#academic validation #student life #this is me trying #taylor swift #gym #discipline #just surviving #growth #life lately #hell week

[barachinaangela]

Is Time Management Enough for A Balanced Life?

They say that being a student is the easiest stage of life. Why? Because all you do is go to classes, do schoolwork, and then sleep for the rest of the day. However, this is not the case for many of us. We have other commitments in life aside from classes and academic work, and it is difficult to balance everything.

As a 20-year-old, I understand that my academics should be my top priority. But, let's face it, we want a life outside of campus. And who doesn't want to live a healthy and active lifestyle? I want to develop a lot of positive habits for myself in the future; I want to travel alone or with my friends and family; and I want to be physically strong. Aside from those desires, I also need to satisfy my academic validation. But how exactly? Is it possible to accomplish all of this? Will my introverted self be able to handle it? Is 24 hours a day truly enough for the lifestyle I wish to create?

We are all aware that time management is essential in this type of lifestyle. We can plan ahead of time, establish a goal and a deadline, and do all of that. But how can we be certain that it will last for a month or something? I think organizing and planning your calendar is useless if you lack self-discipline. If we really want to build a positive habit, we need to be disciplined enough.

Going to the gym was initially a challenging task for me. I felt bad because I should have been doing my academic work at home instead. But then I made a decision to show up every day, not because I feel motivated or anything, but because I am committed. And one thing I realized is that I never regret going to the gym, but I always regret NOT going. 

Other than time management and self-discipline, I think the most important thing is to know your limits and not feel guilty about them. This is the reality: we don’t always need to be productive; we need rest, or else we will be burned out without even noticing it. It's okay if you can't do it today; there's always tomorrow. Pay attention to what your mind and body are telling you. And there’s nothing wrong if all you did today was rest.

#academic #student life #fitness #gym #time management #self discipline

[barachinaangela]

What Will I Be Blogging About?

Setting priorities and balancing everything is challenging. Join me on this journey as I figure out how to balance my academic, social, and fitness lives as a college student. In this blog, I'll be open about how I manage my weekly schedule and how it is going so far.

I’ve been working out since 2020, but in June 2022, I decided to go to the gym. Why? Mostly because I’ve been so stressed just focusing on my academics because I was an accounting student before and there’s a lot of pressure. The gym helped me lessen the stress and escape reality for a while.

I think the key to this school-life balance is good time management. It is an essential skill that has allowed me to focus my attention on what is important. This is how I have managed my life for the last eleven months:

Make a weekly schedule and get organized.  I schedule time for studies, family, friends, exercise, and other chores that must be completed.

Don't stress about achieving perfect grades. I acknowledge that my focus should be on learning rather than scoring 100% on every exam or activity because, at the end of the day, I know that I am giving my best in all of my schoolwork.

Give yourself a treat. I always plan a reward for sticking to my schedule or finishing my work ahead of time.

Learn how to say no. Sometimes, meeting my commitments at school and at home will be enough for the time being. I listen to what my body and my mind tell me.

Have fun. I spend time with friends and family or read non-academic books if I have my free time. 

As a college student, I know that I should focus on my academics, but as a young adult, I know that I must stay healthy and enjoy my life because this will also benefit my future. To develop a habit, I still have a lot to learn, and I'll be writing about it all in this weekly blog. Keep an eye out for more!

#academic #gym #fitness #student life