Although willpower has long been touted as an essential part of fitness, the fact is willpower has very little to do with becoming and remaining fit. The key to fitness is to build a habit of enjoying good nutrition and participating in forms of exercise that you find interesting. The key to fitness is continued and effortless participation. Here are five tips to help you incorporate excellent health and fitness habits into your daily life.
1. Create a specific long-term fitness goal and map out the steps or objectives necessary to arrive at your goal. Focus on one step at a time, and be sure to celebrate your successes each time you achieve one of your objectives. In this way you can stay motivated, and you will never feel overwhelmed by the enormity of your task.
2. Imagine yourself exactly as you will be when you have attained your ultimate fitness goal. Do this in a regular and practiced way. Take 15 or 20 minutes every day to meditate on how your life will look and how you will look when you have attained your fitness goals. It’s a good idea to do this just before bedtime so that you can see your potential self in your dreams.
3. Eat satisfying amounts of healthful, nutritious, whole foods. Don’t starve yourself. Simply replace any junk food in your diet with pure, clean, natural foods that have not been overly processed. Eat lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains and lean, high quality protein sources. Drink fresh, pure filtered water, freshly pressed juices and healthful herbal, black or green tea. When you make sure to give yourself plenty of excellent food and drink, you will not have to be overly concerned about counting calories.
4. The patient! Realize that a successful fitness plan consists of creating a new set of habits that you will maintain throughout your life. You did not develop the habits you now have overnight, and you cannot expect to change them and become perfectly fit overnight. Change one thing at a time, and give yourself ample time to incorporate each and every one into your everyday life.
5. Determine whether you will be better off sharing your goals and hopes with friends and family or keeping your goals and hopes to yourself. This really depends on your family and friends’ dynamics. Sometimes our friends and family can have tremendous confidence in us and can be very helpful when we are trying to attain our goals and dreams. In other cases, friends and family members seem to be very invested in maintaining the status quo and can be very discouraging. Only you know whether or not your success will be helped or hindered by sharing your fitness aspirations with others.
By creating solid goals and objectives, visualizing your ultimate goal, adjusting your daily diet to consist of the most nutritious foods possible, and being patient with yourself and true to yourself, you can transform your life and become the fit and healthy person you have always wanted to be. Keep these tips in mind as you embark upon your fitness journey, and you will surely find lifelong success.
