Spring is a time of new beginnings. Birds are singing. Bees are buzzing. Backsides all around the world are rising off of cold winter couches to get outside and move. The world is waking up from its long cold sleep, our minds feel energized, refreshed and ready to celebrate the coming of better weather and warmth. Does your body feel the same way?
If you haven’t been working consistently on your fitness and health this winter, your body may be struggling to keep up with your mind. It’s hard to make a new start when you feel sluggish and discouraged and just plain ugh.
That’s why I exist: to help you move from reality to your dream. If you have tried and failed at fitness (harsh words, I know but that's often how we feel. Like a failure but I promise you, you're not. You just didn't have the right tools), then you likely feel too paralyzed to try again. Motivating people to get healthy, however, is what I do best. I make it fun again, or at the very least entertaining; just ask anyone who comes to Cherry Bomb or watch any of my YouTube Vids to see what I mean...yup, I'm a weirdo and proud of it. But you have to let me help you! Let’s get started.
A quick look back
I'd prefer you focus on what is ahead for you; the past is the past and it is best to leave it there. Buuut... in order to make the best start, we need to take a look at what may have sabotaged your previous efforts to get in shape...
Impatience. Instant gratification. You know it. You love it because we live in a society that is used to it. It may come as a shock that fitness doesn’t happen fast. Sorry. I don’t care how many infomercials you watch that promise you a 6 pack in 6 weeks, it is not going to happen. There is no short cut to fitness. If you threw up your hands in frustration in the past because results didn’t happen as fast as you would like, prepare yourself now for a different attitude: we will celebrate small results and be patient as the transformation happens. Say it.
I will celebrate small results and be patient.
Lack of planning. The biggest sabotage in any fitness plan is... drum roll please... lack of planning. If you have tried and failed miserably, it's probably due to lack of any kind of planning. Without a plan, forethought and intention, you cannot eat a healthy diet, get enough sleep each night and stick with an exercise routine. This time, you will plan before you start.
Support. If you have attempted to get fit before and felt like you had no support, you are not alone. Many people try to change their lifestyle on their own. The trouble with this approach is that those around you will probably not value what you are doing or they will be afraid that you are changing and change is scary. They will unintentionally or intentionally sabotage your efforts. For example, they may resent the time you take to workout, or they may ridicule the changes you make to your diet. However, you will have support this time, and the difference will shock you.
Moving Forward
Today you start fresh and leave the past behind. Yes, you may have quit during your previous attempts to be healthy. That doesn’t matter now. What matters is what you do today, tomorrow and next week.
The following tips will help you make a strong start and make this time different.
1. HAVE PATIENCE
This is where patience and courage comes in.
What is your dream or your goal? Do you want to lose 20 pounds? Do you want to run a mile? Do you want to eat a diet that energizes you? Maybe you want to exercise for 6 days a week.
Do not let the distance you have to cover cause you to give up before you even begin. Recognize that this will take some time. Every single fit person you know started somewhere short of where they are now. How did they get to their present condition? By taking it one day at a time, celebrating every victory and getting up when they fall down. (we call that a burpee:) You can do the same.
2. MAKE A PLAN:
“Failing to plan is planning to fail.” -Alan Lakein
Count on it: if you do not plan for fitness and health, it simply will not happen. This time, make a plan. Before you even start your new healthy lifestyle, decide:
- When and how you will get your exercise (bootcamp? running in the mornings? join a local gym after work?)
- What foods you will eat and how you will ensure that you have access to those foods (do you have a small cooler that you can take along with you? What will your breakfasts consist of? How much caffeine will you allow yourself?)
- How you will arrange your schedule so that you get at least 7 hours of sleep each night (do you need to get the kids in bed sooner or prepare your lunches on the weekends to save time in the morning?
Without a strategy, you set yourself up for failure. Plan on succeeding! Take some time right now to jot down some ideas to overcome the obstacles that you know will arise. Be prepared for them, and you will breeze through them.
3.BE ACCOUNTABLE
"No one can whistle a symphony. It takes a whole orchestra to play it." -H.E. Luccock
It is no secret that the biggest predictor of whether a person succeeds in their fitness and weight loss efforts is whether or not he/she has accountability. I’ve said it before, but it bears repeating: getting fit is not easy. If it were easy, more people would be doing it! In order to make sure you succeed this time, get some support. That support could come from a few friends who are making a new beginning with you, a personal trainer or a boot camp instructor.
 The people in your support system will be genuinely interested in how you are doing. They will encourage you when you lose your motivation. They will cheer when you get up early to exercise. They will talk you out of eating those brownies. They will expect you to tell them how you are doing. And they will not let you fade out of the program: they will come after you if you start slacking. This is why we do team training at Cherry Bomb. It's has a built in accountability system!
Are you ready for your New Beginning? It is within reach.
MM
READY FOR A CHANGE?
1 Hour Coaching and Goals Assessment with me. Get it Free.
If you have any questions feel free. Contact me.
Lets see how we can best help you to succeed.
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SPRING INTO ACTION WITH THIS BEGINNER FRIENDLY WOD
Have lower back issues?
More often than not crunches and situps just cause more lower back pain because it tends to engage the hip flexors which are already shortened and tight from sitting. So a wee little suggestion is to stretch out those tight hips with a deep lunge and to start doing other core strengthening exercises.
This is simple and truly beginner friendly. Cardio and core!
No equipment necessary.
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