Hey girl,
Are you just starting your fitness journey? You are probably excited or scared, or maybe both.
It’s exciting because you are taking control of your body and health, and the possibilities of that outcome are exciting. You have a goal in mind of what you want your body to look like and could look like, and that’s motivating. Your goal could be to get stronger or build muscle, that’s exciting.
It can also be scary in the sense that your not sure what you’re doing. What program is best for you, what meal plan should you follow, what and how much you need to eat. Oh right! You have never worked out before, so now there’s the fact of not knowing how to do the exercises.
Girl, this is normal to have all these emotions initially or even the whole way through. I still get these emotions, and I’ve been training for 17 years. Each stage of your life, your goals will change and, unfortunately, your body and metabolism, so then you have to switch things up; I know all about this.
I wanted to share my best wisdom with you that I have learned along the way and wish I knew then what I know now. My hope in sharing this with you is to help you along your fitness journey build the body you want and also your relationship with yourself.
3 Foundational keys to starting your journey
GOALS
- Set SMART goals, this will help keep you focused and motivated.
Setting the right goals is important because if your goal is unrealistic, you will get frustrated and give up. If you dont set any goals well, it is like driving in a foreign country without a map. Goals give you direction and focus. It can become very easy to get distracted or sidetracked. There’s always going to be marketing companies trying to get you to buy into quick fixes, fad diets.
MINDSET
You are going to have to trust the process, trust the program, most importantly, yourself. I can’t tell you how many times I got thrown off my journey because I let doubt creep in. Doubt will take you down and divert you from your path; you have to have your mindset strong just like you train your muscles in the gym. You will have to have a plan to train your mind. Your mind naturally wants to go to the worst-case scenario with an all or nothing mentality. This mindset is a trap and will have you giving up or buying into quick fixes; changing your body and mindset is not easy and is not instant.
It takes daily practice, and you need both working together. There’s a saying, ” the body achieves what the mind believes “
It’s 100% true, so you must train your mind daily to focus on the truth, and this can seem uncomfortable if we have negative stories playing in our minds.
I wish someone would have told this to me when I first started my journey, as this would have saved me lots of pain and misery. When you pick your program to follow and meal plan, you better have a plan for your mind too.
This could be daily devotions every morning, saying affirmations out loud in the mirror, reading books that inspire you along the way, listing to podcast’s and the list goes on, whether you do one of those things or all of them its so important to have a plan.
PATIENCE
Ok, this is another crucial one and why most people give up before they see results. Patience is an ingredient that will make or break your results. Changing your body, like growing a baby in you, takes time, and you can’t force it to happen faster.
Our world thrives on instant gratification and distraction, and those two things will send you running on the never-ending hamster wheel.
THERE IS NO QUICK FIX!!!! There I said it, the faster you believe this, the better off you’ll be.
Everything that promises you instant, quick, easy results is a lie, an illusion like a con artist waiting to take everything you have and leave you with nothing.
Patience is a daily practice, and it goes with your mindset, you see how important your mindset is? You have to practice being patience in the most annoying circumstances as this will train your mind. It could be sitting in traffic or waiting in line; you have to let the urgency to get mad leave you and switch your mind to this is helping me practice stillness.
There’s the foundational key to starting your journey, now onto the little reminders.
- No matter how small the choice may seem, counts if it leads you to your goal. I struggled with for years; if I wasn’t 100% on my meal plan or training that day, then it didn’t count. I am here to tell you, and everything counts if you had to choose to meal prep over going to the gym that day because you didn’t have time to do both, that is still amazing. Let’s say you are burnt out and tired, and you choose to get some extra sleep instead of doing your workout that day, if it helps you focus and feel better, it counts. I always say to my Fit Club Babes that every rep counts; each rep builds on the next rep, and repetition is what gets you results.
- Results come from consistency, as long as you show up and give it your all, you will reap the benefits. There is no magic pill. Its all in the daily showing up. This does not mean you have to train seven days a week 2x a day, this means you follow the program you picked, and if you miss a day or something happens, you don’t stop, pick up from where you left off and keep going.
- Your results will not disappear from 1-2 days of missed workouts or 1 or 2 meals that are not on your plan.
- Take rest days; this is so important. Your body repairs itself when you are at rest, that’s when the change takes place. In the gym, you put your body under stress and tare the muscle fibres, and when you get to sleep and take a day or two off from the gym, your body changes.
- Take this time to build a healthy relationship with yourself. Be kind to yourself just as you would like a friend or a loved one, your body respond to love well.
- Do what you love with balance with what you need. If you love cardio, then do a program that has cardio, so you are excited about working out. But if your goal is to tone your body, you will need to incorporate weighting. If you love weightlifting, then have a program that has lots of lifting splits. But if your goal is to lean out, make sure you incorporate some HIIT or cardio 1-2 days a week. All my programs in the fit club allow you to choose this option.
- Dont take this journey alone. We are not meant to be alone, and sometimes are circumstances or our circle of friends may not understand our goals or new healthy choices. Getting connected with other women, likeminded, is vital on your journey. Having a community will help keep you focused, motivated and, most importantly, people to share in your trials & success. That’s why I created the FIT CLUB BABES we are a community of women that are working on our health & fitness goals, and we are doing it together.
There you have it! My best advice & tips for success along your journey.
Leave your questions or comments below.
xoxo
Your transformation coach
Hannah