Fitness is not as simple as it may seem. “Exercise and Eat Healthy”, those two commandments are the most challenging hurdles people face in their lives today. With your physical and mental health being dependant on fitness, eating right and exercising are essential although cumbersome parts of reality.
Understand this, being healthy and fit is a lifestyle. It is not something you can achieve in one day, nor can you destroy it in one week. It takes commitment, and your efforts must be for the long term. As you know, in order to be successful at any long term goal, a person must PLAN and PREPARE and have PATIENCE with yourself. These three characteristics are indispensable to any health & wellness plan and without them, fitness will be difficult to achieve.
Planning and Preparing by example:
Each week on Sunday- I wake up about 1 hour before my husband. It is at that time, I drink my tea, sit back relax, enjoy the silence of the Sunday morning and begin my planning for the week. I take a look at my calendar for the week ahead and take note as to how busy I will actually be. Where do I have to go on what days. After that- I then plan my workout schedule….I figure out on which days I will study martial arts, on which days I will lift weights and when I will achieve cardio. Next- I think of food. With my schedule in place- I now know how much time I will have to dedicate to cooking, and I have a good idea of how I will feel both physically and mentally each day. I then sit in the kitchen with a paper and pen- and actually write down- what I will eat all week…..Breakfast M,T,W,TH,F….snack….lunch….and so on. I factor in fruit, veggies, lean proteins and I plan which days I will eat a meal that has been prepared ahead of time on Sunday or that is frozen. Now that my meal plan is all worked out- on the other side of the paper- I make my GROCERY LIST. Now I am ready for the week. I have planned, and I am ready to prepare the meals I have planned out. I am also ready to conquer the supermarket with a purpose. When I get there- there will be no needless browsing or purchasing. I will go to the market somewhere in the day on Sunday. In this shopping trip- I will buy ALL the food I need for the week- to avoid unnecessary marketing traps of the SUPERMARKET and needless purchases. Once the fresh food is in my home and unpacked, on Sunday evening while getting myself ready for the week I begin to cook the food I plan on eating for the week! By Monday I have my food planned and prepared and I am ready for action! I have a little lunch box and I am all set. I am also able to resist temptation while I am out on appointments as my food is packed and ready to go! Without PLANNING AND PREPARATION- with all of the temptation of the Standard American Diet, you will never reach your goal of eating healthy and getting fit.
Patience:
Now for the last P in the equation…..PATIENCE. This is essential- as no matter how much you plan and prepare- things always go off track without notice. This could be due to family, work, stress – whatever. Maybe you just don’t feel like eating string beans again! OK- so you lose your mind and go to Carvell. Well- in my book that is no big deal- if these slips are few and far in between. One day of eating bad will not kill you – just like one day of eating well will not make you healthy! So- have patience with yourself….make changes in your life one at a time! Give yourself time to adjust and formally change your habits SLOWLY to ensure LONGEVITY. You cannot change all of your eating, exercise and life habits in one day. It takes time; to understand that and accept that concept you need patience. Remember, Eat, Exercise and Be Happy! That is what life is all about.

http://WorkoutwithBecky.com

As always,
Stay Focused Until the Miracle Happpens
Becky

The biggest issue many people face when trying to embark on a new fitness and wellness plan is the inability to stay motivated. The idea of getting healthy, eating right and exercising is really exciting; however, the act of following through with a new plan / life change is often overwhelming and too challenging. As a trainer, I get asked the question
“How do you stay motivated and what do you suggest I do to keep up my motivation for exercise and proper diet?
Physical Fitness and proper nutrition boil down to more than the ability to exercise and eat right. The most important component that is often over looked is the mental strength and stamina required to maintain the motivation to continue exercising day after day and to eat right.

I often lecture on how to build mental strength; the first step in developing it is acknowledging your need for it, and then seeking to achieve it. This is why I advocate taking small steps when embarking on any new fitness plan / life change. It will help you build the physical AND mental strength to reorganize your life, and consistently challenge yourself daily. In other words, if you want to start eating healthy, make one small change a week to your diet. This is a much more reasonable life change – and one where you can make calculated and long lasting changes to the foods you eat, rather than drastically trying to change your eating habits and failing. Or, should you wish to start exercising daily – start with ONE day of exercise for a week or two and slowly add additional workouts to your week. This will prevent you from being overwhelmed and overworked.

Mind over Body- your BODY WILL OBEY any command your MIND gives it. Try it now- tell yourself to lift your left arm above your head. You get the idea. If you fail to keep up with your workouts or proper eating, it is because you need to strengthen your MIND to develop the discipline and motivation to be consistent!

To help myself stay on track – I find taking photos of my body give me the mental push I need to stay motivated. One of two things always happens when I see pictures of myself: I either get disappointed and hit the gym to fix the problems I see OR I get happy and get motivated to push on to maintain the results I see!

You can check out my blog for more extensive readings on this topic: www.BeckysFItnessBlog.com

Getting ready for swimsuit season? Now that Spring is in full swing – the countdown to SUMMER has begun! It’s official – you now have less than 60 days to go from tankini to bikini! Here are some tips to help get your body looking like a BEACH BODY FAST!

1. DRINK LOTS OF WATER! This will help get your skin clear, flush out your system of of toxins and replace calorie filled beverages! Research shows that people who drink more water lose significantly more body weight and fat overtime then those who drink less water.

2. FRESH and CLEAN is the name of the game when it comes to food! Act like it is summer- eat light meals, filled with fresh clean ingredients! Stay away from junk food and be sure to eat lots of fresh fruit, veggies, lean proteins and seeds. Make sure you eat 3 small meals with 2-3 small snacks per day to keep that metabolism churning! Keeping a food journal will help you stay on track! Be sure NOT to skip meals – just make sure everything you eat is fresh, real clean foods- foods that are closest to the natural state.

3. Get a Summertime GLOW- with a nice sunless tan! Go ahead – try it! You will be amazed! One week of eating clean fresh foods, drinking lots of water, exercising hard- then a nice sunless tan! You will look like you just returned from vacation! There are lots of great home sunless tan products as well as salons that offer sunless tanning options! Be sure to exfoliate and moisterize to help your SUNLESS GLOW last longer!

4. SLEEP is essential! Sleep helps to replenish your body and build up your energy which you will need if you are set on getting that beach body by summer time.

5. AMP IT UP! Your workouts that is!!! You want your body to look BEACH BODY READY – you better pick it up and ensure that you are making the most of your time at the gym or working out! Need some help?

Well try out Becky’s Boot Camp just in time for Summer!

With the Becky’s Boot Camp – Basic Training bundle pack – you get a 4 week plan outlining what workouts should be done on which days- maximizing your the benefits from your fitness regimine and taking the guesswork out of it! Becky has taken the time to create this plan with the goal of fat burning, lean muscle building and helping you achieve the body of your dreams! If lean and sculpted is the look you want- then this is the program for you! Included with your bundle package are 6 MP3 Downloadable workouts (Lean Body by Becky Beginner, Lean Body by Becky Advanced, Total Body Sculpt by Becky Beginner, Total Body Sculpt by Becky Advanced, Tabata Blast and Cardio Interval Running Challenge), a Basic Training Program guide – providing you with 4 weeks of programing / instructions on what workouts to do on which days, nutrition protocol and other useful information to ensure you get the MOST out of your workouts with Becky.

Click here for more info on Becky’s Boot Camp – Virtual Boot Camp Program!

As Always,
Stay Focused Until the Miracle Happens!
Becky