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Show i !t D cc (iters':: Pt (Mtirrrn3!i GMKaoui v la X he t . er ra WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 25 , 20l -- 8- cl DIXIESUNNEWS.COM I ! YA L'3 1 1 STUDIXT CHAUXNUi: V Iteireoly fewm E too Maw (sCaalGKDQDs ar SI ec BY HALEY HAZEN haleyhazen 1 th ne fr Saying no to the after-part- y and getting some sleep have had their perks over the past five weeks. Reflecting on the healthy student challenge, making my health a priority did have drawbacks, but in the end, new habits have become valuable. It was difficult to do a complete overhaul in conjunction with the new semester starting. As the challenge progressed, creating habits became easier. I have to say the first two weeks were the hardest because of the adjustment to my lifestyle and my attitude. I felt quite a bit of guilt when I didnt eat well or missed a workout. My insight: During busy times in ones life, try incorporating one or two new practices into the daily routine. A complete routine overhaul might be more realistic during the summer when there arent so many schedule demands. Ill keep up the habit of having calming rituals at night, like sipping on herbal tea flavored with erythritol and painting my nails. By also making sleep a priority, I noticed more mental clarity throughout the day. I will also continue saving my wine for the weekends. Exercise became a soothing so I plan to way to on making it a priority. keep up I ended up preferring to workout outdoors and in the sunshine opposed to the gym. In hindsight, I wish I would have gone with the If It Fits Your Macros, or IIFYM eating plan. IIFYM is based on meeting daily macronutrient goals centered around protein, carbohydrate, fat and calorie intake. Basically, you can eat whatever you would like as long as your numbers are met. It came to the point where I was a little obsessive about only eating natural foods. I do believe it is smart to keep food as clean as possible, but having a little leeway with a busy schedule would have taken ki y di J 'V r-- i I : i , - in t- - c A Sj ' - CO t tv liv rel ert n cai from St. Geoiye, Deciding to give up unhealthy habits, Dixie Sun staff members Haley Hazen, a senior integrated studies majork t health;-denand Spencer Ricks, a freshman communication major from Seattle, put the final nail in the coffin of their challenge. Both of them intend to continue their new healthy habits in the future. five-wee- some of the anxiety away. With this eating plan, I would have been able to legitimately eat my sneaky hamburgers and fries. My insight: Food preparation did help. One easy food-pre- p was to bake two or three sweet potatoes at 415 degrees for about 45 minutes. Then, I would cut the spuds in half and refrigerate. In the morning, I and top with cinnamon and honey. Just dont forget you are cooking potatoes and leave them to bake overnight, like I did. Twice. Did I accomplish my goals? Yes and no. As an insufferable perfectionist, I would have to say no because I wasnt going at 100 percent all of the time. Slowing down and taking time out to consider my health was a goal I did accomplish. In the end, the healthy student challenge ended up being the challenge to slow down: The challenge made me take the time to really consider where my (lack of) healthy habits where and what I wanted to change. de-stre- re-he- at r BY SPENCER RICKS SpencerRicks I , u The healthy living challenge is done but my commitment to living healthy is far from over. In the past five weeks, I torched my old habits and dedicated myself to eating right and exercising regularly. They say it takes 21 days to break a habit, and even though I looked at eating unhealthily and skipping workouts as more of a convenience than a bad habit before, I can now say I hardly miss the unhealthy lifestyle. As much as I could write about how deliberately living healthily has helped me improve myself physically by giving me extra energy and making me stronger, the main perk of living a healthy life is that it truly makes me happier. Many studies show a link be- - rX . J 7 I 1 I 1 go let wi lea me see CHALLENGE page me 9 est 1 ter AI BUM ANA! AIMS dei imagine Oragoois sluomp with spIhrtn)EPe f J vate. PAYTON DAVIS j "'J A IS Las Vegas own Imagine Payton Davis DSN Dragons crossed from the alternative charts to top-4- 0 with their 2012 debut, Night Visions. However, the groups ability to to the music bring guitar of the charts often top a rarity doesnt benefit rock n roll because as Smoke Mirrors, Imagine Dragons sophomore Nick-elback-esq- ue I - liiua. Js z 1 1 j ( yjy z jy f Imagine Dragons is the type of band that makes you switch your Spotify activity settings to pri effort, proves, this brand d of rock consists of little more than cliche lyrics and formulaic instrumentals. But Ill give the boys this: They experiment tirelessly throughout Smoke Mirrors (though the success of that experimentation deserves little praise). The title track, song three, sounds like Cold- -' synth-plastere- play if Chris Martin grew up in a trailer park; lead singer Dan Reynolds grunts his way through . life lesson after life lesson until the ending guitar solo. Then theres the fourth track, Im So Sorry. Any sweetness the title might hint at disappears when multiple distorted string riffs usher in the first verse. Soon foot stomps and gruff backing vocals reign, and Imagine Dragons musical joke is complete. Im So Sorry isnt a song dedicated to lovers in turmoil; its what listeners might expect to blare in an Arkansas strip club. The Album Analyzer must confess he put Im So Sorry on repeat the way bored teens binge watch listen head-scratchi- bui of DS Sh Sharknado. an uncovered anotb the & lyric more overindulgent licks. After four listen' he concluded this: I So Sorry is a beautdu disaster. most Unfortunately, of Smoke Mirrors neither quality noth' ?U1 stu nei rel, doi sail S tor foe foe see DRAGONS pi$ lea |
