SPRINGER: Fitness: Sticking to New Year's resolutions

By now you might already be working on your New Year's resolutions. Besides focusing on your goal, analyze what has gone wrong in years past.

Have a well-laid out plan of how to attack your goals this year with optimism and flexibility. Even the best laid plan can go wrong when the goals are unrealistic. Remember, we are all human and bound to make mistakes. Plus, whether it is smoking cessation, weight loss or exercise, these changes are habits that must be ingrained in our mind and body in order to become standard.

Set up a time line for which you will accomplish "mini-goals" along the way. Say exercising twice a week (compared to zero) is your goal to complete in three months. Once you have consistently repeated this task you can then increase your workouts to include another day of activity.

When it comes to fitness, the tendency of most is to go for it at full force. The day after New Year's starts the new strict-diet-workout-fanatic-plan. This plan is bound to fail.

Examine where your eating and exercise habits currently derail. Are you a fast food junky? Do you sit at a desk all day only to come home and watch hours of television? Making small changes can result in long-lasting weight loss and an improvement in your health.

Start by minimizing your splurges. If you normally eat two or three sweets a day, limit yourself to just one. Although the trend is to cut it out completely, this can lead to deprivation, depression and bingeing.

Also, find healthier substitutes for your favorite foods. For example, choose the same snack (cookie, muffin, candy) in a smaller version. You will be getting the exact same gratification but in a smaller portion.

Retrain your brain. When it comes to exercise the brain is the most powerful muscle of all.

If you do not currently exercise or have slacked off, now is the time to start using that brain-power to get you moving. Make a list of all the positive benefits that you get out of exercising.

Besides just aesthetic improvements, also remember to list the physical and mental changes that can be had through exercise. Remember, killing yourself at the gym will not help you lose weight any faster; it will only burn you out quicker. Start slow.

Now examine your goal and the hindrances that have stopped you from accomplishing it in the past. If your whole goal is centered around what the scale tells you then you might be using the wrong measurement for success.

When starting an exercise and nutrition program, take many measurements that will help encourage you along the way. Body fat percentage, blood pressure, resting heart rate and body measurements are all indicators that you are on the right track. Take the focus off the scale and redirect it to how you feel and how your clothes fit.

Surround yourself with a support of people that are like-minded in their goals or supportive of yours. There is nothing worse than to announce you are on a diet only to have "friends" tempt you with dinner out or gifts of food.

If you need help, ask. An outside professional that is knowledgeable might be the help you need. Also, a professional will be able to clearly guide you on your journey.

Finally, be prepared to modify your resolutions. If by March you have abandoned your goals, make some adaptations. Examine what went wrong and start again. Persistence and dedication will pay off in the end.

Kim Springer and her husband, Mike, are Certified Personal Trainers and owners of Springer Training. They can be reached at 233-9442 or at their Web site www.springertraining.com.


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