I often have people ask me "how do you do it?" when it comes to finally finding fitness and keeping the weight off. Sometimes I don't really know what to say. There isn't any one thing anyone can do. I think of it often... just how to answer that.
It's not always about joining a group for support, though that helps. I've been in with MANY groups online for support... and I've found success while others haven't (and dropped out). Other times I see others having success and I was the one to disappear off the board. So that's not "it"... although I highly recommend finding a group with people so you have a place for sharing like-minded ideas and venting with those who know. It's just not "it".
It's not about finding some "perfect workout program" either. Although I am all about Beachbody and will tell anyone how great any of the workout programs are- it's not magic just to bite the bullet and buy one... just to let it sit on your shelf. And with all the variety that Beachbody has... I can't say any ONE program is the perfect program that will suit everyone. You just have to find something YOU enjoy that suits your personal likes and goals. The excitement about starting a new workout program is only short-lived. Believe me, I've been there many times, with many of Beachbody's programs. They are ALL great!!! And they work!! But to just do a few days of it and then stop... that's not "it".
So yeah, the online message boards and support groups for fitness are great tools. And the Beachbody programs & nutritional guides are great tools as well. You DO need all of those to help you find fitness success. I've tried doing it on my own without those, and didn't get very far. You really do need to get plugged in with people... and do the work with the tools that are available.
Fitness is about the exercise aspect. You have to do it. Health is about the nutrition aspect. You have to eat well, too. It can't be done without doing BOTH parts.
So everyone knows that. But still... how do you do it? How do you keep it going? People ask "how do you stay motivated?"
Motivation. So elusive. It's not about setting some big goals and keeping you eye on those goals. "I want to lose 80 lbs"... or "I want to run a marathon"... or "I want to get into a size 6"... while you are still sitting at 250 lbs, or can't even run to the end of the block, or shopping in XXL sections of the stores. Those goals are great, and yes- write them down! Believe that you WILL get there!! Believe it as you believe in yourself!!! But that doesn't get you anywhere when it comes to the day-to-day motivation. As time slides by and your efforts don't seem to get you any closer (it's never fast enough!)- it's too easy to be discouraged and overwhelmed. And quit. So setting long-term goals is not "it". Neither is setting short-term goals- such as "I will lose 3 lbs this week", as sometimes you STILL battle through each day. Although setting sights on a weekly goal is better than something much more vague without a time frame.
So back to the motivation. Like someone once said- finding motivation is like bathing. It doesn't last, so you have to do it every day. But just where do you find the motivation? How? I'm not really sure how I "get it" except that over time, I think I have now finally "gotten it". And nothing has stated it as well as The Slight Edge by Jeff Olson. If you haven't read that book- that tiny, thin little book- you really need to. It explains really well the "how" about finding motivation. How to keep doing what you need to do, each day- even when you don't feel like it. And many times over- when it comes to health/fitness, you won't feel like it. But yet you have to understand that in order to reach any of those long term goals... you have to just take it day by day- and do what you need to do- TODAY, that will get you an increment closer.
Don't focus on those goals. Yes, dream big- and write them down. Create a dream board! Post them on your bathroom mirror! All of that... but yet- you have to stop focusing on those end results after that. FOCUS ON TODAY. Look at what you need to do NOW, not where you want to be, next year. Be in the present (love Eckhart Tolle!) and put all your energy into what you are doing AT THIS MOMENT. Focus on now, and just do it the best you can. Let those future goals sit where they are... and trust that if you continue to focus on today and doing what you need to do, now- that the process will get you there to those goals. Focus on the activity of today, not the goal of tomorrow.
I really think that is what helped me get my success in fitness. And I'm still not done yet, but I will keep on doing what I need to do, EACH DAY. And not let those long-term goals overwhelm me. It's just how it is, and there is NO short cut around it. Sure, you might be able to find a crash diet or boot camp that will get you there faster (even Beachbody sells the 90-day transformations!) but then what comes after that? THAT is where your true success comes. Did you just get temporary success from pulling a 90-day program, just to stop and gain it all back? Or did you "get it" and realize that you still have to keep on going even once you are "there" -otherwise you'll just start moving backwards again? When they say it's a "lifestyle change" that's what they mean. It's about truly changing how you live, so you can get the healthy eating and exercise activity in, every day. It's the ONLY way, otherwise the success will only be temporary, if it comes at all.
And it isn't a philosophy you adopt only once you "get there". It's a philosophy you have to adopt NOW. It'll get you there... and then it will KEEP you there. There is no magic, there are no short cuts. It's just simply knowing that you HAVE to just do what you need to do, each day... and the results will come. It's not about perfection. It's only about consistency over time.
If I can be of any help, just let me know. :-)
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