People resolve to hit the gym and get in shape every time a new year starts. But how many follow through and achieve their fitness goal?
If you’d like to know what a feasible path to fitness is like for regular individuals, here are the stages to follow to help you chart your personal goals and progress.
One: Overcoming inertia
Starting your fitness journey is like the concept of inertia – remember your high school physics class? If you try to push something heavy that’s been at rest for a long time, it takes a lot of effort just getting it to budge. But once the motion starts, it gets easier to keep rolling.
Many people are stuck in this stage and simply give up after a few post-New Year gym sessions. There are many tactics to beat inertia. Keep a fitness journal to get into the mindset of reaching your health goals.
Two: Establishing habits
Have you ever wondered why fad diets and workouts come and go? Because getting fit is not so simple. The body is a complex system; you need to approach your goals in several ways.
Instead of looking for a mythical silver bullet that will fix your weight problems, acknowledge the bad habits that lead to poor fitness. This can only be overcome by building good habits, such as a regular walk and healthy meals every day, and breaking free from the negative ones such as unhealthy snacks or lying on the couch all day.
Three: Staying committed
When you truly make the effort to get in shape, the results can be amazing. But like many endeavours, achieving physical fitness follows a curve. Initially, you will shed a few pounds and make noticeable progress, then want to stop and go back to old habits.
Do not lose motivation at this point. Try a variety of exercises and get creative with your meals in order to keep things fresh. Without letting go of your goals, try not to obsess about the weighing scale or hitting a milestone at a specific time. Just keep at it and enjoy the journey.
Four: Setting new standards
If you persist and keep working hard, the results will come and you will realise that your fitness habits have become integrated into your lifestyle. Now you may want to set higher goals. That’s well and good, but do not forget to maintain a balanced lifestyle. Find time to rest and listen to your body in order to avoid fatigue or injury.
Five: Helping others
What is left to do after you have fully embraced a healthy lifestyle and physical fitness? You can turn your personal transformation into a full-time practice to help others. You can start a health blog sharing your experiences and tips for others looking for information. You can also enroll in health coach training and become a guru. That could be the start of a new lifestyle business for you.
The best thing is you can help others embrace a positive change and go through their own fitness journey.
Not a lot of people have the discipline to start, maintain, and reach their fitness goals. You may be committed to exercising daily but don’t feel the need to set personal records. That is fine, as long as you maintain good health and habits, you’ll be in great shape sooner than you planned.