*This blog post initially started as a private email to a small group that I am training right now, but as I got into the meat of my advice I realized this could help even more people, such as my blog readers. The short story of my group is that they have just completed 4 days of their 28 day challenge…

Well you have completed 4 days and from the updates I’ve received it seems that 3.5 pounds is the average weight loss so far, which is really, really good.  I know at times during the day it’s a struggle, because you either feel hungry or your head and mind feel fuzzy.  This is normal and is your body’s reaction to detoxing from both high amounts of starchy carbs, and just crappy nutrients that come along with the typical food intake.  Be strong and just know that this is good for your body and that it’s actually healing and shifting gears in regards to a more efficient metabolism!

What’s more important right now, and for the next 24 days is to establish a supportive routine.  So let’s dissect this a bit, and not confuse this with habit.  You see, the simplest difference is that a habit is more frequent repetition, while a routine is a regular course of procedure.  A supportive routine requires disciplined focus, which gives you a higher percentage to achieve your goals because the habits developed from this routine becomes a normal part of your life.  More importantly, those habits developed from this supportive routine becomes good habits.

But before you create a new, supportive routine you must first be aware and identify what’s currently going on.  The easiest tool to use is a fitness journal that you can track food intake, workout routines, and current behaviors.  When you track all of those components you can make the necessary changes to the components that need improvement.

I suggest tracking everything for 3-5 days. Of course, more days tracked the more data you have to identify what needs to be improved. Here’s a list of components and the details you’ll need to track:

• Food intake and times you ate
• Water intake
• Workout times and details of the workout including exercises, sets, reps, weight and how you felt during the workout
• Mood
• Scale weight. This is a touchy one, because you’re weighing yourself everyday which for some people will really mess with their heads if there’s a huge fluctuation from one day to the other. But here’s why it’s important – if there’s a fluctuation then you need to observe what foods were eaten the day before, what was your workout like, did you get enough sleep, did you drink enough water, and what was your level of stress?  All of these play a role in how your weight can fluctuate from a few to a lot of pounds during the week.

Now is it starting to make sense?

Ok, so with all this data you’ll then need to dissect it all and start incorporating these strategies:

• Write down your top 3-5 fitness and fat loss goals. After each goal identify just two things that you know you can immediately implement to move you closer to achieving them.
• Identify 3-5 situations, or behaviors that are most challenging for you. After each one write down your new supportive behavior that will help you move closer to achieving your goal.

Example: Current behavior – “I can’t stop eating ‘xyz’ food”
New behavior – Get rid of all trigger and non-supportive food items from your household and restock with healthier alternatives that                                                  you know you can adhere to.

Once you address the above, then ask yourself these tough questions and write down (very important) your honest answers to them.

• Why is this so important to you?
• What is the cost of achieving your goals?
• What is the cost of not achieving your goals and the experience you will miss?
• What will happen when I achieve the results I desire and what does that success look like?

Why address these questions? Because, answering them will no doubt agitate you to a point (and a good one) to help you find the main reason you want to make a positive change to your health and fitness. All change must first start with taking inspired action, and answering these questions honestly will provide you with that inspiration to finally take action in the right direction.

The number one cause of failure in most peoples lives is never taking action. We create these comfort zones to a point that it paralyzes us to step out of that comfort zone and really go after our goals with a vengeance. We all know that whatever the health and fitness plan is, that we must follow it, but seldom do. This is an unfortunate waste of time and energy.

So put the above tips to use TODAY to start working towards your goals TODAY!

To your fitness success,

Rommel

P.S. – I’d love to hear why your goals are important to you, so if you don’t mind putting yourself out there for further accountability let me know your goals in the comments section below. Looking forward to reading them!