11 Ways to Get Your Health and Fitness Back on Track

 

It happens to all of us: things are going really well on your new healthy living plan, you’ve been seeing progress and are really proud of yourself for how far you’ve come. But then, you’re suddenly off track.

It started with a weekend family getaway and then you came back and had a friend’s going away party and a family BBQ and then a girl’s weekend and so on and so on, and things just spiraled out of control, leaving you completely off course with your healthy lifestyle plans, not to mention, feeling a little bit disappointed in yourself for falling off the wagon.

But don’t worry!

While feeling disappointed and upset at yourself is normal, more important that obsessing over what happened and how bad it was that you let yourself get there (stop that!), is how well you get back on track.

Let the past be the past and now use these 17 tricks to help you set things straight for the future, starting now!

START TODAY - No excuses

“I wish I had started my weight loss plan later,” said no one ever. Start today. Not tomorrow, not on Monday, just start right now. It’s easy to keep giving ourselves the excuse of “well it’s Wednesday, and I need to start on a Monday,” or “I already ate bad today, so I’ll start tomorrow.” Starting is the hardest part, and we all start somewhere. Instead, start right now, and stop putting it off and making excuses. In two weeks you’ll be so glad you did.

Go big or go home

Don’t agree to starting with baby steps, or doing one thing today and one thing next week. You’ve done that before, and now that you know how to do it and how to be healthy, you just need to jump right in with two feet!

Clean out the house

If you’ve let snacks, chips, ice cream, candy etc. accumulate in the house over your last few weeks of bad habits, get rid of them. If they are there, you will eat them, and that is not part of your plan. The best way to success is to throw them out!

Start saying no

If you fall off track the most when you go to social gatherings, meet friends after work for happy hour, or go over to a friend’s house for a BBQ, be selective and strategic with which ones you go to. It’s okay to say no sometimes when you know it will be the one that will push you over the edge and lead you to have too many treats, or too many drinks.

Find an accountability partner

You may have been able to do it solo before (way to go!), but now, you are getting serious and it’s okay to ask for help! Find someone you can work out with or doe weekend meal prep with who will keep you on track and kick your butt into gear on days when you are being lazy

Make it a priority

Stop putting your health, your fitness, and your goals on the back burner and after everything else. Make them a priority, put them in the schedule, treat it like an appointment you can’ miss, and make sure everyone knows it’s not really negotiable. This goes for your workout sessions, your time at home to cook and your time on the weekends to make healthy snacks for the week.

Don’t give yourself the option to fail

Set yourself up for success. When it comes to working out, this means pack your gym clothes the night before and take them with you to work so you can go straight to the gym on your way home. It means, moving your alarm clock away from your bed so you can’t hit snooze. It means staying away from foods or situations that are a trigger point for you and tend to set you off and make you crave more.   Be your own best support and don’t set yourself up to fail.

Get up earlier 

Getting up just 15 minutes earlier can do wonders in setting you up for a healthy day. Maybe it is the extra bit of time to ensure you get in a good workout, or the time to make sure you have a good breakfast and make a healthy lunch. Or maybe it is just the extra 15 minutes you need to not be rushed in getting ready and to feel good about yourself as the rockstar you really are.

Go to bed earlier

Don’t underestimate the power of sleep. Sleep is when the magic happens, including everything from muscle recovery and rebuilding, to immune system boosting, to detoxification. There’s a reason you don’t feel your best when you’re sleep deprived, and you can’t expect to get to your healthiest best self when you’re not sleeping enough either.

Start meal prepping 

If you’ve done it before, you know what it entails (and how great it is!). If not, start blocking off a chunk of time on Saturday or Sunday afternoons to make some meals and snacks ahead for the week, or at the very least to chop up veggies and fruit and do freezer smoothie packs to make your life easier in the week ahead. It will save you many trips to fast food restaurants on your way home and prevent you calling for your pizza delivery.

Drink more water

It may seem redundant, and like the thing that everyone tells you, but it’s true. And even if you think you are drinking a lot, drink more! It will fill you up, give you more energy, clear your skin, not to mention boost your digestion and help rid your body of the toxins accumulated over your last few weeks of less than ideal health habits. 

By: Laura Peill – (Check out her blog Chronicles of Passion & Facebook)