5 fitness tips for a year of fitness results

January 1 2010. The world makes another trip around the sun and you get a fresh chance to make this revolution the most effective to date.

Most folks will shrink into old complaints, repeating the roll over act of last year. Sad, but true. A select few, however, will use this year to regain control of their time and their life. Will that be you?

As you dictate your next 365 days, keep in mind these 5 fitness habits:

#1) Get a Schedule

Not a “routine,” routines are boring and besides they are fascist. Get a schedule, something you can look forward to.
The two most important elements of a schedule: when and where. Woody Allen said 80% of life is showing up. Find a way to make fitness something that you can just “show up” to. Group classes, personal training, and planned one on one time with a treadmill are all different ways to plan “showing up.”

* Schedule 3-5 hours of cardiovascular exercise and 2 hours of resistance exercise per week.

#2) Reign In Your Sleep

Just returning from vacation, how many folks sheepishly admit that the best part of vacation was the sleep? Answer – most people do. On vacation you went to bed early, you slept in, and you felt amazing. Highly effective people incorporate rest into their workout program.

* Average at least 7 hours per night of sleep.

#3) Drink, Drink, Drink

Water, of course, is the fundamental element of life. American’s live their life in a mild state of dehydration. Don’t short change yourself drink water. Your energy, stamina, and body composition are all affected by your water intake. Get a water bottle, get a water cooler, and get a lemon or 5 because you’re about to drink some serious water.

*Drink ½ your healthy body weight in ounces of water per day. Ex: 140 lbs = 70 ounces of water.

#4) Just Eat It

Learn what you need to eat. Consult a qualified nutritionist or check out a website like www.sparkpeople.com to learn how you can fuel your body. Post exercise – get a liquid meal replacement in you as soon as possible.
As a rule, if you cannot imagine what is on your plate growing in the wild then it doesn’t belong inside of you. Ever seen a twinkie tree? Enough Said.

*Consult a professional and take control of your nutrition.

#5) Move with a Purpose

Sports have seasons, animals migrate, weather changes. So too must your fitness program change if you are to experience lasting fitness results. As a rule, results happen in increments of 4-6 weeks. If your program’s not changing every 4-6 weeks, neither will your body.

* Know what you are doing, know why you are doing it, and be determined to act with intent.
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Fitness results come only after you have taken control of your self and your time. This year marks another series of choices. To complain or to control, to roll over or to take accountability - the choice, as always, is yours.