| The date has been set
and arrangements have been made! Now what?!
You’ve heard it before. “I want to lose 10
pounds before I go to the beach,” “I want killer
arms for the wedding dress,” “I want to be able
to run a marathon,” etc. Whether you are getting
ready for a wedding, a race, a vacation, or
something else, it is always important to
remember the key to being successful is planning
and being consistent. You always want to make
sure that you include the three P’s of working
out and eating right...Planning, Prioritizing,
and Preparing.
#1 Planning
The first part to reaching your goals
successfully is to decide on the amount of time
you have leading up to the event and to come up
with a detailed workout plan for each week. This
type of planning never leaves you guessing about
what to do on any given day. It also allows for
consistency in your schedule so that you know
what to expect each day and automatically put
exercise into your routine.
Planning also allows for an increase in
intensity in order to build up to the big event.
This is extremely important! One of the biggest
causes for failure when physically getting ready
for a big event is to start out too strong and
then burn out or doing the same workout program
and eating plan for the entire duration leading
up to the event. What happens is that your body
changes along the way and essentially needs a
different prescription of workout and exercise
to accommodate the new you. You probably have
heard of an acquaintance that has started out
great, lost a lot of weight, really started to
tone up, and then just stopped seeing results
even though she was doing the same things as
before. That is what happens when you do not
plan for change in your routine.
As far as nutrition goes, the key to healthy
eating is to have meals planned out that are
realistic to your schedule and lifestyle. If you
are someone who works in an office with a
limited number of breaks and can not eat 5 meals
a day realistically, then plan your meals
according to the breaks you do have during the
day. And, if you are the type of person who
absolutely CANNOT live without your 5 cokes a
day, then plan a healthy eating menu that is a
compromise to what you like and what is going to
make you most successful in reaching your goals.
#2 Prioritizing
You need to decide from the beginning what is
most important to you. If you make it your
priority to exercise 3-5 times a week with no
excuses, you will be more inclined to follow
that regimen. Motivation and success have a lot
to do with your mind set not only from the
beginning but throughout the entire program. The
best way to keep your mind in the game is to
continuously offer yourself day to day personal
challenges and praises. A few examples of this
would be when you wake up and are getting ready
for the day, look at yourself in the mirror and
tell yourself that you are going to exercise
that day at a specific time. Now you have made a
promise that either needs to be kept or broken
which is a form of accountability. Another
example would be to put a reminder in your
e-mail or cell phone calendar for a specific
time each day that you are going to set aside
for exercise. Everyone needs encouragement but
don’t just depend on others for it, start with
yourself!
#3 Preparation
If you are unsure of how to get started, get
help from either a friend, a coworker, or a
professional such as a personal trainer. The
more researched and individualized your program,
the higher your chances of success. Read
magazines, news articles, do some internet
research, etc. in order to learn different
techniques that will help you achieve your goal.
If you have attempted to get in shape in the
past and failed then get to the root of your
those failures before you begin your regimen so
as not to repeat the same mistakes. Figure out
what it is that you enjoy doing and make sure
those activities are an integral part of the
routine. Get the equipment you need right away,
i.e., the right shoes, a day planner to keep
track of your progress, a date with a friend
half way through to get you motivated, whatever
it takes to get it done so that you finish
preparing prior to the program.
Success is easy with the right tools and you are
only as successful as YOU want to be! |
