Fitness & diet tips for starters

It’s the start of a new year, journey, moment in your life and it is time to get in shape, but more importantly stay in shape. The key to everything is first to tell yourself that you are going to do this and you have to be fully committed. Every single part of you has to be on board with this, your body, your soul, your mind, your heart. You're gonna do this, level up your life baby. You need to want to make that positive change in your life. Our time is so limited, and don't you want to live for as long as you can? Or at least feel good in the limited amount of time you have on earth. 

One of the best feelings in the world is waking up and looking in the mirror and seeing results. Finally realizing that all that work you have been putting in day in and day out has finally been working. You wake up confident. What a hell of a start to the day, it truly sets the tone for the rest of your day.
 
Another time / point in my life where I was thankful I was in shape was when I was having such an off day, just an overall shitty day, it happens to all of us, and i went to the gym to blow off some steam, looked in the mirror pepped myself up and killed the workout like absolutely moved around those weights, they had no chance. Those weights should just go to a new gym (shoutout LA Fitness). After that workout I told myself "you know what...even though everything before my workout was shi**y, at least I'm out here improving myself and working on bettering myself." I don't know about you but I always have the most confidence in myself leaving the gym. I feel absolutely unstoppable after a solid workout. As a result of this awesome workout, my mood instantly changed, the sun came out and the rest of the day we were cruising after that. They always say it's the small things in life that bring you the most joy, but it is also those small actions, decisions, and sacrifices you choose to make each day that will bring you the most joy later in life. If you can make those sacrifices now, today, no matter how you are feeling...it always pays off in the long term. The most joy, especially when referring to fitness, is when you start to see results. Another point is, working out your body (and your mind) are great ways to kickstart your day and conquering the day. If you are having an off day (it happens to all of us) take an exercise break. Chances are, it will really clear your mind and put you in a better mood. Don't let life and outside circumstances get the best of you and impact your mood or ability to perform...instead, take the initiative and take control of your day. 

Having a routine, a fitness schedule, and structure in your life are very important aspects to have in your life. This way, you always know what is expected of you. If you set these expectations now, and commit to them, you will be more willing to go when you know what is expected of you. You need to come up with a plan, a schedule, a routine, whatever you want to call it. You need to be committed to sticking with it so why not make it as easy as possible? Working out needs to be a habit and a priority in your life. It simply needs to be a part of your life. A couple tips that will help you accomplish this is by going at the same time everyday or training on the same days of the week and also having the same rotation no matter what. Ex. After Chest I always train Back or after Chest the next day is always Leg day. 

Make the gym a priority. Whether thats you're on vacation (its okay to take one or two weeks off a year at the gym), a new city, visiting a friend, a busy schedule, planning your work schedule, college schedule...whatever it is. I remember when I would pick classes for college, rather than always focusing on picking the best teacher or class i'd pick the best time and would plan out my schedule so i always had a couple hours in the morning to train on certain days so that they wouldn't conflict with hockey. My workout split was burned into my mind, and my daily / weekly schedule because I truly made it a priority in my life. I enjoyed it and made it a part of who I am, an identity of mine. Let me emphasize this point one more time: Working out, exercise, fitness should simply be a part of your life. It should be something thats on your schedule every week and something you make time for which is why you have your week of workout schedule planned every week for the next year (not year but at least for a few months).

Let me repeat this: Exercise should be something that becomes a part of your lifestyle and if it's not, start right now because it's a part of living a healthy lifestyle. This doesn't mean only going to the gym and lifting weights. This should be anything active that you enjoy doing. Hiking, running, swimming, skiing, weight lifting, there are so many identities you can choose from. If you love running, call yourself a runner. If you love lifting weights, call yourself a body builder. If you love tennis, call yourself a tennis player. We conform to the identity we identify ourselves as. Just like how you need to go to bed every night, or you need to go on twitter before bed, or you need play Call of Duty or NHL or FIFA or madden every day? Well, exercise is now a part of your lifestyle, because you now Identify as an athlete so you don't even give yourself a choice to not do what an athlete does. Some sort of exercise should be a part of your life, it should be a part of who you are! Going to the gym, crossfit, spinning classes, yoga, cardio, running, walking, boxing, soccer, whatever it is, you should always be excited to go do these things. As a matter of fact, you should look FORWARD to these things every day, and if you dont, then start because you are making it a part of your life, only if you want to live a more fulfilling life. You should push yourself out of your comfort zone, and try new things. Truly enjoy what you’re doing and understand that you don't know what you like or don't like until you try new things. If you hate running on the treadmill but some fitness influencer told you it's the best way to lose weight, but you love doing the stair master why the hell would you ever run on a treadmill?
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Make it something to look forward too. On top of all the positive physical health benefits can do for you, it also does boost your mood and confidence in yourself. The best part of every day for me is when I am at the gym, or when I'm at the hockey rink. I truly enjoy boxing but not to the extent I do with hockey and lifting. But I still do boxing because that is something i've always wanted to pick up and learn and id much rather do boxing then do HIIT training on the treadmill because i hated every second on the treadmill. Not a big runner. SIDE NOTE: there is something to be said about doing things that you hate and are hard but you do it anyways. What I referring to here is to find something that you enjoy so that you will keep going. So that you will look forward to it.   

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