By
Jo Chris
Does this line sound familiar? "My new year's resolution this year is going to be getting back into shape and this time I'm going to make it work."
Let me ask, how many times have you made that resolution? Having a history myself with that resolution, I can appreciate the earnest intension of the statement, the struggle of the action, and the frustration of the failure.
One of the reasons that we aren't successful in achieving the New Year's resolution of getting back into shape is that we don't have all the information we need in order to achieve our goal. Consider this, when you start working out, when do you expect to see results? How often do you skip meals thinking that starving yourself is the best way to lose weight? Have you started your resolution with a plan or program in place that you can follow without questions?
By not having the important information that is necessary, you're setting yourself up for failure more so than success. To better express this thought, think about it as if you were going on a weeklong vacation. Would you just get into the car and drive and expect to have an awesome time? Or, do you plan on a destination, make hotel, flight, and car reservations, get directions to where you're going, make sure you've got plenty of gas in the tank to get to where you need to go, etc.?
In the same manner as this, if you don't have all the information you need, getting back into shape won't be successful for you. Remember this quote? "Failing to plan is planning to fail." This definitely holds true if you want to get back into shape in the coming new year.
So to help you in your resolution, here are the top 5 tips for getting back into shape.
Have a realistic goal - Way too many times we want results and we want them fast. Getting fit and healthy doesn't work overnight, especially when the last real exercise we did was possibly years before the kids were born and the normalcy of married life and being totally and utterly happy by just being the way we are set in. Getting fit means dropping body fat not just losing water weight so we don't want to target losing 20 lbs in two weeks. That's not fat loss and that's definitely not healthy.
Give yourself time to get results - Before I became a personal trainer and well...quite frankly didn't know the true about getting in shape, I used to "diet" and workout expecting major changes within 1 and 2 weeks. When I didn't see those changes I opted to give up. Guess what? Getting in shape doesn't work that way. It's best to count on it taking 4 to 6 weeks in order to see significant results. Commit to yourself to put forth real effort for at least 4 weeks before giving up on an exercise and healthy nutrition lifestyle thinking it doesn't work. It does work but it takes a few weeks to get going. Rest assured though, if you do work hard and monitor your eating habits you WILL see results, HUGE results. Plus, after 4 weeks you will have formed the habit necessary to make exercising and eating right a lifestyle which is necessary for long term success, not just a temporary fix.
Starving yourself is NOT the way to lose fat and get healthy! - Food is not the culprit in our unhealthy out-of-shape society. The kind of food and the amount we consume is the problem. Making good choices on types of foods and how much you eat is what needs to be kept in mind when it comes to lowering body fat. Remember one simple concept about food to help you with this..."Food is fuel." Look at it this way. If your gas tank holds 20 gallons of gas, you don't put in 25 do you? If you're not planning on going anywhere for the rest of the evening in your car, do you make it a point to fill the tank to park the vehicle in the garage? This being the case, don't over fill your personal tank beyond the amount necessary.
Don't weigh yourself everyday - A person's weight can fluctuate by 5 pounds every week based on water weight. A little extra salt in the diet can retain water, bloating, or even the PMS cycle for a woman can cause that. You're better off to weigh yourself every two weeks if that often and just go with how loosely your clothes start to fit as you continue on your path to getting back into shape.
Forgive yourself, love yourself through your journey, and don't give up - Please remember that no one is perfect. There might be one morning when you just can't get out of bed to work out, or the temptation was just too strong and you just couldn't resist that donut or piece of cake. You know what? It's okay. That one time, or two times, or even three is not going to cause you complete and utter failure. So don't beat yourself up for a brief moment of indulgence. (Hey, I know...donuts are my downfall.) Just accept that it happened. Keeping your chin up, love yourself through the moment, and then get back to the plan. Workout a little harder if you want to work off the guilt you may be feeling. But don't quit. Don't give up on yourself or your journey of getting back into shape.
Let me ask, how many times have you made that resolution? Having a history myself with that resolution, I can appreciate the earnest intension of the statement, the struggle of the action, and the frustration of the failure.
One of the reasons that we aren't successful in achieving the New Year's resolution of getting back into shape is that we don't have all the information we need in order to achieve our goal. Consider this, when you start working out, when do you expect to see results? How often do you skip meals thinking that starving yourself is the best way to lose weight? Have you started your resolution with a plan or program in place that you can follow without questions?
By not having the important information that is necessary, you're setting yourself up for failure more so than success. To better express this thought, think about it as if you were going on a weeklong vacation. Would you just get into the car and drive and expect to have an awesome time? Or, do you plan on a destination, make hotel, flight, and car reservations, get directions to where you're going, make sure you've got plenty of gas in the tank to get to where you need to go, etc.?
In the same manner as this, if you don't have all the information you need, getting back into shape won't be successful for you. Remember this quote? "Failing to plan is planning to fail." This definitely holds true if you want to get back into shape in the coming new year.
So to help you in your resolution, here are the top 5 tips for getting back into shape.
Have a realistic goal - Way too many times we want results and we want them fast. Getting fit and healthy doesn't work overnight, especially when the last real exercise we did was possibly years before the kids were born and the normalcy of married life and being totally and utterly happy by just being the way we are set in. Getting fit means dropping body fat not just losing water weight so we don't want to target losing 20 lbs in two weeks. That's not fat loss and that's definitely not healthy.
Give yourself time to get results - Before I became a personal trainer and well...quite frankly didn't know the true about getting in shape, I used to "diet" and workout expecting major changes within 1 and 2 weeks. When I didn't see those changes I opted to give up. Guess what? Getting in shape doesn't work that way. It's best to count on it taking 4 to 6 weeks in order to see significant results. Commit to yourself to put forth real effort for at least 4 weeks before giving up on an exercise and healthy nutrition lifestyle thinking it doesn't work. It does work but it takes a few weeks to get going. Rest assured though, if you do work hard and monitor your eating habits you WILL see results, HUGE results. Plus, after 4 weeks you will have formed the habit necessary to make exercising and eating right a lifestyle which is necessary for long term success, not just a temporary fix.
Starving yourself is NOT the way to lose fat and get healthy! - Food is not the culprit in our unhealthy out-of-shape society. The kind of food and the amount we consume is the problem. Making good choices on types of foods and how much you eat is what needs to be kept in mind when it comes to lowering body fat. Remember one simple concept about food to help you with this..."Food is fuel." Look at it this way. If your gas tank holds 20 gallons of gas, you don't put in 25 do you? If you're not planning on going anywhere for the rest of the evening in your car, do you make it a point to fill the tank to park the vehicle in the garage? This being the case, don't over fill your personal tank beyond the amount necessary.
Don't weigh yourself everyday - A person's weight can fluctuate by 5 pounds every week based on water weight. A little extra salt in the diet can retain water, bloating, or even the PMS cycle for a woman can cause that. You're better off to weigh yourself every two weeks if that often and just go with how loosely your clothes start to fit as you continue on your path to getting back into shape.
Forgive yourself, love yourself through your journey, and don't give up - Please remember that no one is perfect. There might be one morning when you just can't get out of bed to work out, or the temptation was just too strong and you just couldn't resist that donut or piece of cake. You know what? It's okay. That one time, or two times, or even three is not going to cause you complete and utter failure. So don't beat yourself up for a brief moment of indulgence. (Hey, I know...donuts are my downfall.) Just accept that it happened. Keeping your chin up, love yourself through the moment, and then get back to the plan. Workout a little harder if you want to work off the guilt you may be feeling. But don't quit. Don't give up on yourself or your journey of getting back into shape.
I used to think that by reaching a certain "model figure" weight I
would be happy and look great. Unfortunately, my inabilities to drop
that kind of weight only left me frustrated and upset because I could
never reach my goal. However, once I got older I shifted my focus from
weight loss to getting back into shape.
Now, at 40 I am more fit and healthy than I have been since I was a
young teenager. My body fat is at its lowest ever as an adult and I feel
great. From the compliments I get...I guess it looks pretty good too. Reach your goals by clicking on http://www.getting-back-into-shape.blogspot.com to get more tips for getting into shape.
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