Jump Start Your New Years Resolution

With only a couple weeks until we ring in the New Year, there's no time like the present to begin making healthy changes in your life. Instead of losing ground this holiday season, get started now by starting the New Year a couple steps closer to your goals.

Set short term goals. Visualize how you want to look and feel on New Year's Eve. Get specific about what you want to accomplish. Write it down. Be realistic and have a way to measure your success, or lack thereof. Review your strategy often and set up rewards for yourself along the way. Those who fail to plan, plan to fail. Write down one goal you are absolutely committed to accomplishing in the weeks to come.

Put holes in your excuses. You already know that the holidays are an exceptionally busy time of year where you can easily find yourself coming up with multiple excuses for not exercising. Put a stop to the excuses before they arise by going back to the reasons you want to exercise in the first place. Think of the results your exercise routine will bring, and stay determined to stay the course.

Plan ahead for obstacles. Put a stop to the negative talk and objections that may arise. Exercising is for your personal benefit and it’s worth the time. If you know you have several holiday parties coming up, try to plan an extra exercise session to offset the pigs in a blanket or extra alcohol that you may indulge in. For a small investment in time you will yield large returns. If you don’t take the time for your health, you will have to take even more time for sickness.

Weigh the pleasure versus the pain. Think about where you will be at the start of 2003 if you discontinue exercise and give into your cravings. Now think about where you will be in a month if you continue to exercise regularly and stick closely to your meal plan. Which scenario creates more pleasure and which creates more pain? Maintain your resolve, and you will be rewarded.

Nothing tastes as good as being fit feels. While a second trip to the buffet might give you momentary pleasure, keep picturing where you will be on New Year's Eve if you continuously give in to holiday temptations.

Avoid being sabotaged. Don't be sabotaged by friends who will try to persuade you to have a taste of everything the caterer delivered. If the office is filled with gourmet baskets, bring your lunch and keep fresh fruit at your desk. Find a solution for every tempting distraction and give it your best effort to stay on track. Getting to bed too late can also sabotage your morning workouts so try to stick to a regular schedule.

Focus on the present. If you happened to miss an exercise session or two and over did it at the office luncheon, remember that today is a new day and you have the opportunity to get right back on track! This is about making your life better. Don’t feel that if you wander off your program temporarily that you should wait until January to restart. There’s no time like today, no matter what happened yesterday, or the day before or even at breakfast. You will not lose your entire level of fitness by missing a few workout sessions or overeating at a holiday party.

Imagine the results. How you picture yourself is a self-fulfilling prophecy. Day dream in detail with a realistic expectation of how you would like to look. Athletes picture themselves performing their event over and over again in their minds until they finally perfect it. If you see yourself as soft or sloppy, you will perpetuate that by simply believing it! Picture yourself standing tall, with a chiseled chest, and confidently striding forward, strong and lean on New Year's Eve.

Take small steps. It’s difficult to stop smoking, start drinking 64 ounces of water and exercising five days a week simultaneously. Three weeks is enough time to see and feel improvements, but not enough time to completely transform your body. Progress slowly. If you create a few new healthful habits during the holidays, you will have that many less resolutions on your list for the New Year and will be that much more prepared for others.

Be patient. During the holiday season, it may take longer before you start noticing that you have more energy. Your clothes are looser and you aren't getting short of breath carrying the garbage to the curb. The important thing is to stay as close to your meal and exercise plan as possible and still enjoy your most favorite holiday traditions which may include your favorite foods.

When the New Year rings in and everyone else is jumping on the scale for the first time realizing they gained 10+ pounds during the holidays, you’ll be a few steps closer to your goal.

I can guarantee there will be temptations to indulge everywhere you turn. Have a plan. Choose the best way to enjoy the holiday season and still be closer to your goals on New Year's Day.

You hold the greatest power of all -- the ability to design your own life. You can wake up every morning and decide to exercise, give yourself a raise, and lift your own spirit, or you can pick other, less rewarding, options. The choice is yours.

Kelli Calabrese – MS, CSCS, 2004 Personal Trainer of the Year. Kelli is a Clinical Exercise Physiologist and 20 year fitness industry leader. She is the author of Feminine, Firm & Fit – Building A Lean Strong Body in 12 Weeks. She has 23 fitness, nutrition and lifestyle related certifications and is available for personal training, online training, iPod workouts, phone coaching, grocery shopping tours, seminars and media appearances. Kelli’s personal mission is to provide individuals with the tools to make health, fitness and wellness a permanent part of their lives.

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