5 Must-Haves To Get The Body You Want No Matter Who You Are!

Did you ever notice that the more you learn about something, the more aware you become of just how much you actually don't know about it?  Take fitness and nutrition, for example.  Over the past year, I have learned so much more than I ever knew, and yet the more I learn, the more I realize how in-depth these topics can get.  It's truly mind-boggling.

There are a few things, however, that no matter what stage you are at in your journey - whether you are a rookie starting a new diet/exercise program, a seasoned fitness enthusiast or somewhere in between - that are just basic principles that will help you to reach your goals.  Easy to understand, but also easy to forget about, once you start trying to cram all that other, more complex information into your brain.  So these are a few things that you NEED in order to get where you want to be:

1. A Positive Attitude - It sounds corny, but you would be surprised how far this will get you in life.  Ever notice how draining it is to be around someone who's a Negative Nancy ALL THE TIME???  You can accomplish so much more if you channel your energy into having a more positive outlook.  If you start a task expecting to fail, chances are: you're going to.  But if you go into it with an open mind and the ability to see the brighter side of things, you're increasing your chances for success, exponentially.  This will also ensure that, should you experience a setback (notice I didn't say failure!), you can get right back on track and keep going!  

2. A Good Support System - I have been fortunate enough to have this right from the start.  Once they realized that this was something that was important to me, my hubby, family, and friends have been there for everything from moral support, to offering baby-sitting services so I can get to the gym, to stock-piling green tea just for me (thanks Dad!). I do understand what it's like, however, to have people in your life who form sort of an "anti-support" system - the nay-sayers who seem to secretly (or not so secretly!) want you to fail and always turn their nose up at your healthy lifestyle choices.  It is hard to get past this - especially if these are people that are important to you - but it can be done.  This just means you will have to actively seek out positive, like-minded people to be your personal cheerleaders. Whether it be through the internet (as I've mentioned before Facebook and MyFitnessPal are great resources for this) or someone you know from the gym, look for people who have similar goals so that you can support & motivate eachother.  Once you do this and continue pushing through to reach your goals you may even notice a funny thing happens: those nay-sayers will sometimes have a change of heart and become your biggest supporters!

3. Knowledge - With all of the information available to us through TV and the web, this can actually be harder to obtain than you would think! There are tons of myths and misconceptions floating around when it comes to weight loss, muscle-building and general nutrition/fitness, and it can be a full-time job trying to filter through it all to get to the truth.  But if you make a real effort to become knowledgeable about what you are trying to achieve and how to go about it, it will make all the difference!  The best and most relate-able example I can think of is abs.  If you are like I was a year ago and go by infomercials or what celebrity personal trainers tell TMZ, you believe you either have to pay 42 payments of $19.95 (plus shipping/handling!) or do 10,000 crunches a day to get flat abs.  Do a little more research though, and you'll actually find that those washboard abs everyone's after are more likely to pop up with a few tweaks to your diet than from killing yourself doing every belly busting fad workout imaginable. Yep, the truth is that no matter how much you build up your abdominal muscles, you won't see any of that hard work if there is still a layer of bodyfat covering it.  Having this information enabled me to change my approach and saved me from hours of very frustrating and fruitless labor.  They weren't kidding when they said knowledge is power!  :)

4. Hydration - So, if you are a human being residing on the planet Earth, chances are, at some point in your life you've been lectured on proper hydration.  I have too.  It wasn't until recently, though that I finally listened - and I mean, very recently. Even with my exercise and diet in check, my downfall has always been not getting enough water - mostly out of forgetfulness, or sometimes just laziness.  I would have 1 or 2 cups of green tea and call it a day.  I didn't realize just how detrimental this was until I unknowingly fixed the problem.  I was suffering from symptoms of chronic dehydration without even realizing that there was such a thing.  To me, dehydration meant that you got a dry mouth and a headache, and if it was bad enough you would die.  Well clearly, I wasn't dead, so I thought nothing of it.  What I didn't realize is that if your organs, muscles, brain, etc. aren't getting enough water, you can also suffer from symptoms such as fatigue, anxiety/depression, forgetfulness, inability to concentrate, water retention, achy joints, weight gain, excessive hunger and cravings for sugar and carbs - all of which can obviously have negative affects on your health and fitness goals, as well as other aspects of your life.  It wasn't until I got my mental clarity back from correcting this that I put it all together.  There are tons of opinions out there about how much water is the proper amount, but here are a couple of resources to check out if you suspect you are in need of a little more H20, too! 
 ---> BeWellWithMichelle: Stressed and depressed or dehydrated?
 --->  MattyFusaro: How Much Water Should I Drink A Day?
 --->  Human Water Requirement Calculator

5. Realistic Expectations - When I say this, I mean it more in terms of time frame than actual goals.  Too often, we place limitations on ourselves because we think that if we set our sights too high, we're only setting ourselves up for disappointment.  So, yes, while it may be true that not everyone has the genetics to look like a Victoria Secret model or Arnold Schwarzenegger, I would be hesitant to say don't shoot for it if that's what you truly want.  I have seen people make amazing transformations with a little hard work and determination!  What you should be aware of, though, is that these transformations don't happen overnight - at least the long-term kinds.  Be sure to set up a realistic time frame that you hope to achieve your goals in.  While this may be frustrating sometimes (because obviously, who wouldn't want to wake up tomorrow morning with their ideal body???) it is imperative that you realize that it will take time.  Setting up some short-term goals is always helpful because it will give you a sense of pride in what you've accomplished on the way to that long-term goal.  If your goal, for example, is to lose 50 lbs., set short-term goals at 5 lb. increments, so you can have a little congratulatory party for yourself when you meet them!  And don't beat yourself up if you do experience a setback - because REALISTICALLY, no one is going to be 100% perfect 100% of the time.

Hopefully, this has shed some light on some of the most key elements to helping you meet your goals, whatever they may be.  They are things that have been instrumental in me reaching mine and will continue to be so as I change and strive for new things.  So obviously, I would love to hear if this has helped you in any way, because that's the purpose of this blog, of course, but if I am being completely honest, I am also writing this for myself.  Because let's face it - sometimes life gets hard and everyone needs a little reminder that all you need to do is go back to the basics!