With the new year upon us seems all the gyms are busier than ever, must be all those new years resolutions coming out of the woodwork, and seems come every march the crowds get smaller and smaller. While it’s nice to have the equipment open up it’s also sad to see many people not sticking to their goals. Diane Heinauer the spin instructor we introduced you to last year brought up some excellent points about reaching the fitness goals you set for yourself.

First, plan out exactly what you want to achieve. “Losing weight” is not a specific goal and gives you nothing to work towards. Instead of “losing weight” how about lose 15 pounds. You now have an attainable goal that you can reach and accomplish. Once you reach that goal and decide you want to lose more, set another 15 pound goal and so on.

Second, create realistic goals. If you set your goals too high and it’s impossible to reach you are just setting yourself up for failure and disappointment. Repeatedly failing to stick to your goals means that either your goal is out of reach or that you haven’t quite figured out what to do do to reach it. It helps to have a clear idea of what you want and the basics for what’s involve in getting it.

The Simple Truth To lose a pound, you have to burn approximately 3500 calories. If you burn a total of 500 calories with exercise AND diet each day, you’ll lose a pound in about 7 days. 
If you’re eating more calories than you’re burning, you need to either workout more, eat less or a combination of the two.

Example: If my BMR is 1500 calories and I burn 500 calories while exercising, I need 2000 calories to maintain my current weight. To lose a pound a week, I’ll need to eat about 1500 calories a day and burn 500 calories a day with cardio and weight training.

•Eating a balanced diet means getting all the nutrients you need so that you feel good all day and you have enough fuel for your workouts.

•Keeping track of what you eat will help you avoid mindless snacking and eating when you’re not really hungry

•Stay hydrated. Thirst sometimes presents itself as hunger pains.

•A complete workout includes strength training, cardiovascular exercise and flexibility exercises.

•If you’re hungry throughout the day, you’re either not eating enough or your meals aren’t satisfying you. A combination of carbs, protein and fat will help you feel full for a longer period of time.  Remember having reachable goals will set you on a path to success, which will only inspire you to do more and be the best you can!