WRITTEN BY LINDA DOYLE, PERSONAL TRAINER.

HAPPY NEW YEAR! The horns have blown the cheers have been made and NOW it is time to get serious. This time last year you made some serious fitness resolutions. You know the one’s… getting more sleep, not drinking as much, going to the gym and losing the extra weight.

Begin your journey to a new you!

Forget the Fad Diets

This year is no different. The resolutions don’t seem to change much year to year, they are just wrapped in a different color as the NEWEST fad diet that is bound to help you finally drop the weight. They all do the same thing, cut calories and cut them BIG!  After all that is the way to lose weight. If your weight loss goals are short term these fad diets might work for you.  If creating a strong, healthy body with sustainable weight loss is what you are after then it’s time to change your approach.

The data on the results of restricting too many calories is everywhere,  the weight is regained! It is not 100% understood as to why this happens but there tends to be many factors that come into play, from not sticking with it, restricting too many calories the body thinks it is starving, hormonal changes, the list goes on. Let’s face it our bodies are smart, when we cut calories crazy things take place, your thinking gets cloudy, energy levels drop, starvation mode kicks in and every morsel is saved.

Begin a Living Healthy Lifestyle

So does that mean we have to stay over weight and watch our health deteriorate?  No, absolutely not. It just means we need to look for a better way of doing things and not just simply cutting calories.

• First we need to focus on eating nutritious foods instead of counting calories. Nourishing your body with healthy delicious foods will keep you satisfied and keep cravings away.
• Next we need to bring exercise into the mix. Weight training is key here as it increases the delivery of nutrients to skeletal muscles where it is burned instead of being stored as fat.
• The last step is understanding this is a long term lifestyle change.  What good is it to have a body you like on the outside if the inside is unhealthy, if you never have energy, if that feeling of hunger and never being satisfied haunts you?

Creating a Healthy Body inside and out is a Lifestyle Journey not a destination.  IF your goal is to change your body, then change the approach. The answer is NOT cutting calories and starving.

The answer is:

• Eating healthy to nourish and support your body
• Adding weight training
• See this as a Long term goal & journey
• Stop repeating what has NOT worked in the pass
• Work with a trained Body Transformation Specialist

This year make the resolution to achieve a healthy body! For more information on health and fitness visit our fitness blog!