How to Set Fitness Goals to Stay Motivated

This is an excerpt from The Natural Way: The Holistic Guide to Total Mind-Body Healthy & Fitness, by Beth Horn. 

The Natural Way by Beth Horn

 

It all begins with goal setting. You need to know what you want to do and that will keep you motivated. Think small, realistic goals. Take small steps along the way to making big changes. If you contemplate losing 30-40 pounds it is just so overwhelming. You need to focus on losing 1 pound per week to get to your goal.

Here’s a bunch of motivation strategies to get you on the right road to success:

Strategy #1 – If you are not working out right now, start your new program with a one-day-per-wekk approach. Take a walk. Increase your time. Change or add something each week.

Strategy #2 – From a nutritional point of view, that change could be a simple as drinking water.  Most people do not drink enough water.  Keep a water bottle on your desk at the office and try to drink a little bit more each and every day.

Strategy #3 – Cut down on starchy carbs like bread, pasta and potatoes. I’m just asking you to cut back on them, not to take these foods completely out of your diet.  Try not to eat them after 2 p.m. each day.

Strategy #4 – Easy off on the soft drinks. This is a big problem for many people.  I’m not a big fan of diet pop, either.  You can’t get away with drinking four cans of this stuff per day – it’s just not healthy.  Cut back to two cans per day.  Soft drinks have a ton of empty calories that you can do without.

Strategy #5 – Eliminate or cut way back on eating fast food because there’s way too much saturated fat and sodium in most fast-food items.  If you are eating a cheeseburger every single day you should cut back slowly to a couple of times per week.  Order sensibly at a fast-food place, for example, a salad or chicken.

Strategy #6 – Allow for one or two cheat meals a week when you are eating clean and healthy.  It keeps you sane and it keeps you on target.  Most of my clients eat clean and healthy five days per week – low carbs and a high-protein diet with good food choices.  On weekends they can eat whatever they want, but it’s essential to get right back on target on Monday morning.

Strategy #7 – Eat small portions at every meal.  There’s a tendency to eat way too much in a sitting so cut back two or three mouthfuls.  Leave a little bit of food on your plate and take it home with you.  Most business people eat a huge lunch.  Just eat half or what they serve you and bring the other half home.  This takes self-discipline.  If losing weight is your goal, get in the habit of making sacrifices at meal time in pursuit of looking and feeling better.

Strategy #9 – Cut back on or eliminate buying junk food when you do go to the grocery store.  Think ahead and don’t buy it because if it’s in the pantry you are going to be tempted.

Strategy #10 – Consume less food at night, especially after 8 p.m.  Protein snacks are better at night.  Skip the carbs unless you are balancing them out with protein.  One-half of an apple with cottage cheese is okay.  Green tea is delicious at night, full of antioxidants that will help curb your appetite.

Strategy #11 – Plan your meals ahead of time.  This last motivation device is probably the hardest one to be consistent with.  If you want to focus on improving your physique, though, you will have to make an effort to think ahead and strategize your meal plan.  Plan a breakfast to eat before work, and a snack and lunch to bring with you to work.  This way, you will eat every three hours – and eat healthy- to maximize energy levels throughout the day.

If you want to lose 5-10 pounds the key word is consistency.  You can’t diet for a couple of days and then eat whatever you want every couple of days and expect to lose any weight.  Those late-night snacks will come back to haunt you.  Smaller meals will keep you satisfied, carrying you over to the next small meal two to three hours later.

Use Coupon Code NATURAL for 25% off Beth’s new book — The Natural Way: The Holistic Guide to Total Mind-Body Health & Fitness  – Available Now!

Beth Horn

About the Author:

Beth Horn, America’s Toughest Sweetheart, is a personal trainer, nutritional consultant, national fitness champion, and one of America’s leading experts on health and fitness.  Also known as Venom from the new American Gladiators television series, Beth has broken new ground in the fields of nutrition and exercise science with the development of numerous fitness programs and healthy eating plans. Beth has appeared in or written for a number of fitness publications including Muscle & Fitness, Muscle & Fitness Hers, FLEX, Men’s Fitness, and Oxygen Magazine. She also works with the students of The Professional Fitness Institute based in Las Vegas and with injured soldiers for Destination Fitness Training. Over the past year, Beth has visited U.S. Soldiers in Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Hawaii and parts of Africa on USO and Goodwill tours.