How to Have a Great Life As a Teenage Girl

Co-authored by Diane Martinez

Last Updated: July 10, 2024

So you want to be the best teenage girl you can be? To start improving your life, you have to remember to be aware of your physical, mental, and social state. Being intelligent, healthy, and having good relationships with yourself and those around you keeps you happy. Not to mention having the trust of people around you is very important. This article will help you design your day-to-day so that you can have a happy life.

1

Keep your body healthy.

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Being healthy doesn't mean being the skinniest girl. Being extremely skinny can be unhealthy, and guys aren't attracted to it either.
- Don't compare yourself to other girls at your school. If you are concerned about your weight, ask your doctor for proper health advice.
- Don't go on those fad diets, like "Hollywood Cookie Diet" or anything like that. If it sounds fake, it probably is. Plus, you're a teenager; you're growing, and not getting the nutrients you need won't make you healthier if you follow some silly extreme diet!

2

Exercise!

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You can't be very healthy if you don't have any exercise. It's very easy, actually. As long as you're moving or on the go, you're doing fine! It all keeps you healthy.
- Find ways to make the activities you're already doing a little healthier. For example, you can try doing sit-ups while you are watching TV. If you're listening to your iPod, you can take your dog for a walk and still listen to your music.
- Doctors and health physicians recommend that you get an hour of exercise every day. You can make it fun, too! Invite a friend over and watch some of your mom's old Tae Bo videos while exercising along with it!
- You don't have to be perfect at it, as long as your heart rate is up that's great! The best way to burn calories, however, is by running, mainly. Do you have a treadmill in your home, or a fitness center in your town? If you have a treadmill in your home, just enter your accurate weight and age and it's easy to burn calories! Just keep at a steady running pace, and you can make it more fun by watching TV or listening to the radio.
- Something to keep you exercising every day is to make goals. For example, give yourself a reward after exercising each day after two weeks. Don't make it something that will ruin it, like eating a hot fudge sundae. Instead, go to the mall and buying a new shirt or pair of jeans to celebrate your healthier body!

3

Watch what you eat!

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This may sound like the hardest part of being healthy, but really, it's not at all. One of the main things to do is eat breakfast every morning.
- Having breakfast neither causes you to gain weight nor helps you to lose it. Although it is not directly linked to having breakfast, however, to other factors which influence weight, people who have breakfast are more likely to have a healthy weight.
- Some good breakfast meal ideas are sunny side up eggs, a banana and a glass of milk, cereal, whole wheat toast, yogurt, or Special K waffles with low-fat syrup, or a cereal bar. Yum! They also will keep you going for the rest of the morning until lunch.
- Speaking of lunch, be wary of the cafeteria foods. The cookies and brownies and doughnuts and french fries they may have are delicious but don't tempt yourself. A good idea for a meal is bottled water or apple juice or milk with a chef's salad. If you are still hungry, most schools have the ala carte option so you can have baked chips or a 100 calorie pack to go with it.
- For dinner, you can have whatever your parents are cooking.
- This is always being repeated to kids, but eat lots of fruits and vegetables. You can basically eat as much as you want of those because they're so good for you. Go to the grocery store with your parents one day and pick out a variety. Find your favorite ones! But most importantly, think about what you eat!

4

Have a healthy mind!

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Being mentally healthy is also key to being the best teenage girl you can be. You don't have to be the brainiest girl in the room, but always try your best! Also, it doesn't mean getting good grades. It's also having common sense and knowing what's best for you.

5

Care for your appearance.

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Especially as you get older, shower every day to keep yourself looking and smelling clean. Complete this look with your clothing. Rather than wearing loose, oversized, baggy old clothing with holes and stains everywhere, take care to present yourself as clean and organized. This doesn't take much effort. Get a couple of pairs of jeans that fit you, and make sure only to wear clean shirts. If you're concerned about fashion, devote a little more time to researching and shopping for the cutest, most popular outfits; however, this is not necessary.

6

Be friendly.

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Greet others with a smile and a nice "hello." Ask people how their days are going, and open up to them if they return the favor. Presenting yourself as a friendly, approachable person will help others feel comfortable and happy around you and will help you make friends with more people.

7

Get along with your parents.

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Don't go out of your way to disobey them or make them unhappy. Instead, obey them as much as possible, and talk to them when you have problems or concerns. After all, they've already been through everything you're dealing with, and their wisdom can be invaluable. Having a good relationship with your parents will make a huge difference in how much you enjoy being a teenager.

8

Pay attention to your studies.

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One of the most important things is to always listen to what your teacher says. If you are spacing off or passing notes to your friend while your teacher is trying to explain something, you will miss out on what you were supposed to learn and not understand how to do a math problem or what pages to read in a book, etc. Or worse your teacher could call on you, and you won't know what he/she is talking about, which can be very embarrassing.
- Always do your homework. Yes, it can be boring, but just work your hardest on it and get it over with. If you don't do any of it, you'll probably fail your next test on that chapter because you won't understand anything. And when you fail a test, that moves your grade down, which will show up on your report card and which will tick off your parents. See how this domino effect goes?
- And it would all be because you didn't do your homework. If you don't understand it, ask your parents, or a teacher. Even during class! You may feel dumb, but chances are there will be someone in your class who had the same question, and your teacher will appreciate you asking.
- As a last resort, you could ask a friend. But make it a good, reliable friend who won't go off-track with the assignment and start talking about something else. The best thing about getting better grades is that you will be proud of yourself, plus your parents will be proud too, which leads to them trusting you more and giving you a longer leash.
- But on the other hand, what if you fail a test? The first thing you may want to do is rip it into a million pieces and throw it in the garbage. Don't. Your parents will find out anyway, so you might as well keep it. The next thing you should do is go over what you did wrong. Did you make a small mistake? Or you possibly didn't get it?
- Make a list of questions on things you want to go over with your teacher, and he/she will respect you for wanting to responsibly take care of it. You could maybe even ask your teacher if you could redo the test, or do something for extra credit. Another thing you might think when you get a bad grade is, "I'm so stupid the only career I'll ever get is picking up litter!." Always remember, one bad grade on a test won't affect your entire grade. Just study more on your next test and all is well!

9

Use your common sense!

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1
Well, common sense may sound like a no-brainer, because it is. You are your own person, and everyone else should respect that. Don't let anyone judge you upon first meeting you. If they do, they're not worth your time.
- Also say no to drugs, alcohol, and cigarettes! They aren't cool. If someone offers it to you, just say, "Sorry [insert name here], but I don't want to mess up my body." If they think that's lame, they're the ones who are! You are the cool one because you know how to stand up for yourself and be smart! Also, drugs and cigarettes can lead to baggy skin, big under-eye circles, and yellow-brown teeth. And alcohol can make you act like someone you really aren't, not to mention all the bad things for your body.
- And remember you don't have to have sex if you don't want to. If someone wants you to do that even though you're not ready yet, it's wrong, and if they truly care for you, they won't try to persuade you or if they do and you say no, they'll respect that and won't ask again. And if they say "If you really love me, you'll do this", a red flag should go up! This is wrong, and do NOT say yes! Don't do it until you're ready! Don't ever feel pressured to do things like that. You don't have to do drugs, drink, or sleep around to be cool or respected. Being cool and earning respect from others comes from being yourself. Of course, there is nothing wrong with sex, as long as it is safe and consensual.
- The bottom line is that you must treat your body and self with kindness!
- Strengthen your common sense by focusing on what you feel is right and observing other people’s behaviors.
Be sociable! The most popular girl in the room isn't the one with the thinnest waist or fairest face. It's the one who has self-confidence and is happy with who she is! It isn't that hard at all.

10

Be confident and believe in yourself.

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If you're constantly worried about what others will think of you, you'll be too nervous to give them anything to think about. Don't worry about other people, as they're only focusing on themselves and their opinions don't really matter. Instead, do what makes you happy. Relax and have fun with yourself, regardless of what everyone else is doing.
- If you struggle with your self-image or confidence, stand in front of a mirror and say, “I love you!” It may sound silly, but it may also be exactly what you need to hear.

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Tips

Do not over-exercise or not eat. This could lead to an eating disorder, which is very unhealthy and could even be fatal.

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Helpful 8 Not Helpful 1
Being smart doesn't mean just in school! You could be smart in music, or sports, or anything else you may have a talent in!

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Helpful 14 Not Helpful 0
When you eat a meal, look at your plate. Is there a variety of colors of food there? That is a good sign. That means you are eating different foods from the food pyramid that are essential to you.

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Helpful 6 Not Helpful 2

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Don't ever try to be someone who you aren't, like changing your personality or looks to be in a certain clique. The most important part of being a happy teenager is to be yourself.

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