Hello Lehigh Valley and Happy New Year! As we welcome 2015 together, millions of people make the same resolution year after year for weight loss, “I want to lose X amount of pounds this year.” Can we explore that a moment? Is it really about that number on the scale? Think about the feeling of fitting into those jeans just right, having more energy and yes, being healthy! It is a fact, being active and fit will prolong good health and your life. That is in itself motivation, who doesn’t want to prolong and increase their longevity. Below are 5 suggestions to help you on your 2015 New Year – New You Fitness Journey.

MINDSET: Find your drive! You need to be motivated, forget the numbers, how about setting a goal to become more healthy and fit? From my observations, weight loss goals are surprisingly ineffective for sustaining exercise motivation over the long term. Instead of a weight-loss goal, consider fitness performance goals, which may help you stay more motivated to exercise not just this year, but for the rest of your life.

GOALS: Be realistic! It is inevitable that you will face plateaus. Remember, we are human and that this is a process! Dedication and hard work is required every day. Also, every new day is a new opportunity! Most of the time resolutions fail because we set goals/standards that are too high. To make lasting changes, there are three things you can do to make your resolutions work all year long: Adjust your attitude, change your lifestyle and come up with a plan for success.

PLAN FOR SUCCESS: Put pen to paper! What activities and healthy choices will you commit to making? How will you complete them? This does not have to consist of running 5 miles a day or starving yourself. Start slow, get comfortable with yourself, and then start to push your limits. Get to know your body, its’ physical activity abilities and start eating more fruits and veggies. Drink more water and toss the cola. Take a 30 minute walk or jog. Get to a fitness class. Call a friend and join a gym! Support from others drastically improves your success rate! Find a trainer; hint, hint! 😉 Personalize your plan. What will you stick with that will work for you and flows easily with you schedule?

TAKE ACTION: Let’s do it! Keep a record of what you eat and your daily exercise progress. This will help you record how much you eat and exercise and if you need to cut down on the amount of food you eat or add more exercise to your daily regime. Long-term success requires planning, discipline and finding ways to motivate yourself daily.

BELIEVE IN YOURSELF: Sometimes we all get down or are too hard on ourselves. Breathe! Give yourself a break. If this were easy, everyone would do it. While reshaping your body and losing body fat is challenging, meditation or flooding your mind with positive thoughts can make the challenge much more manageable.

You will not always want to exercise! Try a new perspective and take a different look at exercise as:

• A break from a stressful day
• A boost of energy and improved mood
• The only time you’ll have to yourself all day
• A chance to get totally physical and let your mind rest
• A chance to reward yourself and your body.

Remember it’s about perseverance, persistence and not perfection.

Please take the time to read Natasha Heckman’s inspirational transformation.

“I was one of the lucky ones growing up, skinny and didn’t have to work for it, ate what I wanted, when I wanted. Until I hit my early 20’s. Within the year I turned 24 (2004), it all changed and the weight just packed on so quickly that I didn’t have time to figure out why before putting on 40 lbs within a 4 month period. After confirming that I wasn’t pregnant, and then following Doctors suggestions to come off birth control as it could cause weight gain, I continued to gain. I did my own research and had some testing done and was finally diagnosed with PCOS (PCOD) and was told point blank that not only does this syndrome (disease) cause weight gain, but it would make it 2 times harder for me to lose weight than it would the average person. Devastated by this news, and buy my new larger body, I attempted some fad diets that I couldn’t stick to, worked out here and there, but with no results, in time I lost motivation. My disease became a crutch for me, an excuse not to waste my time trying. Soon after I was diagnosed, I had my son and put on 30 more lbs and eventually made my way up to 235 lbs (I’ve been 5′ 4″ since I was 14 years old). I was huge, obese and quite frankly hated myself.

I lived this way for 10 long years, with no intent to ever get back to a healthy weight, it just wasn’t feasible (that’s what I told myself). Fast forward to March 2014, 34 years old, 221 lbs, my dad challenged me, one last attempt to get me to try to lose weight, he feared for my health. I figured, hey, can’t hurt to try, I made little diet changes, cut out soda and started counting calories, I was losing…very slowly…7 lbs in 2 months, at this rate it would be years until I met dad’s challenge, if I didn’t give up before then. May 2014, Tess contacted me, she wanted to help me meet my challenge and make my goals. Terrified, but determined, I accepted her offer and took her on as my personal trainer. Tess put together a fitness plan for me, a plan that pushed me, pushed my endurance, and pushed my strength. Weeks went by and I was doing things I never thought I could, I was beginning to feel strong, people were beginning to notice and weight was coming off faster than I could ever have imagined. August 2014, 3 months into training with Tess, I was down 30 lbs, I felt great and got up the nerve to test my new-found strength and endurance and entered a 3.32 mile mud run, after a couple muddy miles and a few obstacles, I was feeling great and could not believe I was doing it, and then obstacle 8 stopped me dead in my tracks when I came off a wall, severely spraining my right ankle. I was done with the mud run, and feared it would greatly affect my training and weight lose goals.

I gave myself a week and a half break and could lay around no more, I called Tess back in, I was ready to get back into my routine. She did not baby me, we modified what we had to, but she continued to push me, by October I was working as hard as I had before my injury, careful not to re-injure my ankle. Since she has continued to push me beyond what I thought my limits were and I’ve continued to lose more than I thought I could. As my trainer she has given me praise for my accomplishments, as I meet my goals, one by one.

I have now been training with Tess for 8 short months, she has put so much time into me, my fitness, my health and my goal. I have lost 48 lbs in those 8 months, lost 10% body fat, and gone from a size 18 to a size 12. In less than a year, Tess has helped me do the impossible, to shed pounds I thought were attached to me permanently. Tess has changed my life, she has taught me so much in less than a year…without her and her knowledge and dedication, I would still be on the border of diabetic, I would still be obese, and I would still hate my body every time I looked in the mirror.

I hope that my story can encourage others. You CAN do it, don’t let health issues, injuries, the lack of time or bad habits stop you from becoming strong, fit and healthy. Tess can show you the way, I am living proof of that. I only wish I had  her to train me 10 years ago, I wasted 10 years of my life on excuses, don’t waste any more time becoming a more healthy version of you.”

 

“If you are really serious about getting fit and healthy, I definitely recommend Tess! Absolutely NO WAY I’d be this far, this soon, without her expertise and dedication to me!! You have to put in the work, but she will certainly show you the way, and it’s not a generic path, she takes you on a journey that is right for you, your body type, you’re goals!! I can vouch to that…it worked for me!! Prior to training with Tess, I had religiously gone to the gym 4-5 days a week, an hour each day…in 9 months I lost 7 lbs. I’ve been with Tess 8 months, have not stepped foot in a gym, and lost nearly 50 lbs already. If that’s not proof, I don’t know what is.” – Natasha Heckman

Q. Curious to know what she did/ offered you [Natasha]. Ex. Meet u regularly? Make meal plan? Workout with u? I just never really understood their role. Great work btw! Such an inspiration for sure!

A. She put together a fitness plan specifically for me, my needs and my goals. She came to my home 3 times a week at first to personally train, instruct and workout with me. She also gave me homework for days in between our sessions. As I met my goals, learned what worked best for me and progressed, our sessions gradually lessened to 1 meeting a week. Everyone is different, every plan is different…she works with each individual differently. Some need someone to constantly hold their hand, for me, I became independent. I am motivated enough to put in the work on my own. I still enjoy and need to work with her occasionally. I can always learn more, and she pushes me in a way I cannot on my own, but she no longer needs to hold my hand … she taught me well!!smile emoticon She did not find it necessary to plan out a specific diet for me, as I had a diet plan in place before I started with her. She did however encourage me to start taking multi-vitamins. Again, she personalizes each plan according to whomever her client is. I suggest talking to her if you want to learn more. She is a certified personal trainer. She knows what she’s doing. I am MORE than satisfied with her services (and friendship). I said it before, and will say it again, I could NOT have done it without her!!”

By: Tess Barrall