OK ladies… it’s time to get real about fitness. Have you ever told yourself that you would start your exercise routine tomorrow? How about that you would start to get back into fitness once you had more free time? Here is the honest truth… you will always find an excuse to not exercise if it is not a priority in your day.

You are busy… I get it! You have a lot going on and sometimes exercising seems like the last thing that you want to do. I have been there and completely understand feeling like exercise can wait, but I have news for you… having a fitness routine that you love will actually enhance your life – in more ways than one. Loving your workout can add tons of value to your day in the form of having more happiness, excitement, energy, satisfaction and promoting good health!

Is loving your body and feeling amazing about yourself important to you? Do you find importance in having amazing health and tons of energy to power through your day? Fitness that you love will get you here. So let’s get creative and get you there…

Now that you know that fitness can add tons of value to your life – you now need to commit to taking action towards creating a fitness routine that you love. In order to be successful in this area of your life you must be passionate, excited and committed. Don’t fear if you haven’t found a fitness routine that you have loved in the past – there are tons of new and exciting ways to get active that are coming out everyday!

Right now I want you to place your hand on your heart… smile big and declare out loud: “I am ready to commit to creating a fitness routine that I love!”

{photo from ChelseaMarkel.com}

The moment you decide to change the way you look at fitness is the moment that it changes! Your energy around this commitment will be one of the strongest factors in whether or not you succeed at having a shot at creating your dream body! Anyone can do it… you just need to commit first.

So… how can you reignite the fire between you and fitness. Well – in my experience there are many ways to do it. Here are a few incredibly helpful tips that worked for me and for tons of my clients.

Tip 1: Focus on the bigger picture instead of only seeing the daily tasks and “to-do’s.” When you take the focus off of the daily to-do’s and focus on the big picture (what you are working towards) you will feel 1000% different about the activity. Instead of seeing yourself exercising each day – choose to see yourself in 3 months feeling super healthy, having a smaller waistline and accomplishing all of the fitness goals that you set out to! When you change the focus and see what you are working towards it becomes a lot easier to make it happen. Don’t give into your “mind chatter” that will tell you not to workout and to just do it tomorrow – that will ensure that your body stays the same and that the fire between you and your fitness routine is never hot again.

Tip 2: Have a reward that you are working towards. Celebrating your small successes and rewarding yourself for good behavior is something that will seriously serve as motivate for you. Find something that you want to work towards as a way to celebrate your commitment to your fitness routine. An example could be something like this… “When I complete 20 fitness classes (pilates, yoga, etc) I will have spa day full of pampering time!” Doesn’t that sound amazing? Wouldn’t you love to reward yourself for all of these small successes! Make it happen girl, you can do it!

Tip 3: Surround yourself with people who are committed to their health and fitness! Your environment absolutely contributes to the choices you make and the actions you take, or do not take! If you choose to surround yourself with people who are committed to health, fitness and being active then you are putting yourself in a much better position than if you were hanging around people who could care less about health and fitness! Find people who would rather go for a walk than eat a burger and you will see your motivation sky rocket. It’s fun to share values and things that we are committed to with those around us. Hey – maybe you can be a source of inspiration in your office or group of friends. It only takes one to start something amazing!

Tip 4: Change the name of the workout! This is a fun one that really made a huge difference for me in this process. Instead of saying something like “I am going to the gym” or “I am running on the treadmill” or “I am doing pilates” – you can completely change it to something like “My sexy body time” or “It’s my dream body magic time.” You can get really creative here and find something that will actually motivate you to go and take action! There is no right or wrong name… as long as you are feeling inspired to make it happen than it is perfect!

Those are some of my favorite tips to rekindling that love and excitement about my health and fitness. Remember that you can do this. Find something that you love or even create something that you love and make it work for you. Get people involved and you will definitely inspire those around you to do the same. When you step up you invite others to do the same. Keep going towards your goals and know that your dream body and your fitness goals are just around the corner. Your level of commitment and desire will determine whether you make it happen or not. So don’t “try” to do it… just do it.

Please leave a comment below with how you are going to incorporate these tips into your daily life. I would love to hear you thoughts and feedback.

August 2013 Issue