Exercise consistency and balanced nutrition are the two key elements to health and fitness. Establishing a fitness game plan that incorporates both consistency and clean eating will set you up for fitness success! Achieving the body that you envision yourself to have is strategic. Without strategy, there is no direction, and without direction, making fitness a lifestyle will appear to be too difficult, overwhelming and unachievable.

This week let's focus on cardiovascular and resistance training and nutrition. First, evaluate the week to come and determine what will be a realistic exercise frequency and duration goal. Knowing your schedule and personal obligations will enable you to plan your workouts to fit into your busy schedule, rather than having fitness disrupt your schedule. Setting realistic fitness goals for the week will alleviate unnecessary stress and enable you to achieve the body you desire to have without guilt and frustration. Make it fun and obtainable!

Second, once you know your schedule for the week and the times you will be heading to the gym, plan your meals and nutritional game plan. Food is energy, and without energy we will not be able to accomplish what we need to do throughout the week, and here in lies the vicious cycle of disappointment and tasks left unfinished. Without proper nutrition we will not be able to focus. We will move sluggishly. Fatigue will be inevitable. We then will feel overwhelmed by the many things that require our attention throughout the week. To dos will be hanging over our heads. And as the day begins to come to an end, it will be exercise that will be pushed to the side and we will tell ourselves that tomorrow we will make it to the gym. However, tomorrow may be even busier, nutrition will be even more inadequate, and the gym again will be the one thing that has to be neglected.

Lets stop the vicious cycle! Truth? It's not just the gym being neglected, most importantly, it is yourself!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Plain and simple. Yes, we all have so many things to do these days. Time is of the essence, however, to most of us there is just not enough time to do it all! I completely understand and am right there with you, struggling myself to get a workout in, and I work in the gym!!!!!!! I too have found myself ravishingly hungry in the middle of the day, focus loss, clean eating put aside, energy depleted, goals unachieved. It is easy to do so without sufficient preparation. However, when you know your work, family and exercise schedule and obligations for the week, and you have prepared your meals for the day to properly nourish your body, the days will seem less daunting. You will have more energy to do all of things you need and want to do. And you will actually feel healthier!

Making fitness a lifestyle is strategic. Strategy is a plan of action designed to achieve a particular goal. Today, design your exercise and nutrition game plan for the week to come. Prepare yourself to achieve long term results! Enjoy the process of your health and fitness. Make it fun and most importantly realistically achievable!