Anyone can lose weight quickly by following a short-term diet and dedicating themselves to an exercise challenge – but what matters most is maintaining a healthy lifestyle long-term.
The secret to success in achieving your fitness goals and avoiding yo-yo dieting is establishing lifelong healthy habits. This ultimately means that a good routine becomes your ‘norm,’ that the decisions you make and activities you do without even thinking about it are the right ones for a strong body. The ‘struggle’ can actually be eliminated completely because your body resets back to good choices – IF you put in the work to create that pattern.
Habit #1: A healthy morning ritual
The struggle: Dragging yourself out of bed.
I love mornings! Don’t come at me – I can teach YOU to love mornings, too! Here’s the trick – that first hour of the day is ‘me’ time. Sure, I have to arrange my schedule around work like everyone else, so I get up an hour or two early and direct my focus on important habits that allow me to have the life I want. Sometimes this means doing fasted morning cardio, before anything can come up to make me miss this valuable training. Other days, I work on meditation to envision the life I want and solidify belief in my abilities to create that reality. This is perhaps a big topic for this one small blog, so your take-away should be to set your alarm early (and NOT to hit snooze!) if you want to truly achieve great things and make real progress towards your goals (both fitness and otherwise). I know, BELIEVE ME, the first few days can be hard. Getting up early is not easy, but your body adjusts quickly and you’ll soon wonder how you ever lived without seeing those beautiful sunrises.
Habit #2 – Reduce caffeine
The struggle: It’s just so good, though.
While we are talking mornings, let’s work to perfect your waking hours. What’s the first thing so many of us reach for? I have certainly been guilty of this myself – I get out of bed, head straight for the kitchen and get the coffee brewing. But did you know that the body’s cortisol levels are highest in the morning, and introducing coffee actually interferes with that? Waiting at least 45 to 90 minutes before sipping your first coffee (and reducing the extras you pile in) will go a long way to helping you keep a fit physique.
Habit #3 – Exercise before 10 a.m.
The struggle: You want me to cut back on coffee and exercise first thing?
Get up and get moving – you can do this! You will be surprised at how quickly you WANT to exercise once you force the habit of training in the morning. My client recently shared that she missed one morning cardio session and felt ‘off’ all day – and this was after just two weeks of working with me. It is a fantastic way to get those lovely endorphins flowing. I often say that your results will motivate you to continue, so trust me and give this a try for four weeks. As always, you can reach out to me if you need additional motivation or specific instructions, but simply getting up and going for a brisk walk, run, or bike ride will burn away calories and boost your metabolism for up to four hours.
Allow yourself time to adapt to these changes and watch for all the ways your body and life improve! Weight loss is a given, but reduced stress, increased mental focus, and enhanced mood are also in your future.
Author Bio
Coach Julie Germaine is an NFLA-certified fitness expert and prenatal trainer, and an NASM-certified nutrition specialist. She is also a fit mom to an active toddler and a 2x world-class fitness champion who has been featured in and contributed to numerous fitness, fashion, and lifestyle magazines and other media. She has loved helping men and women lose belly fat and maintain their incredible body transformations as a virtual coach since 2005. www.juliegermaine.com