Yep! It's That Time Again!

Well, it's official, 2009 is here! And it's so exciting, isn't it? Have you set up your resolutions yet? I got mine set up, and at first, the top of the list was "Finally reach and maintain my weight loss goals." So then I got to thinking about how many times that or something weight related has topped my list of resolutions. Yikes! What a wake up call! So I'm changing it up this year. My resolutions are these:

• Complete one round of ChaLEAN Extreme (Jan 1 - Mar 25, 2009)
• Complete a second round of ChaLEAN Extreme focusing on her advanced/maintenance phase Lean for Life
• Complete one round of P90X
• Complete one round of P90X adding in P90X+ workouts

So instead of writing down my typical "I will lose 30 pounds this year," I'm writing down what I'm going to do to get there. When I finish up those rounds of ChaLEAN Extreme and P90X, I will be in the shape I've been striving for because that's what those programs are designed to do. Give it a try, you might surprise yourself!

Okay, so there's the resolution list, now comes the hard part: following through. That can be tough. Team Beachbody's motto is "Decide. Commit. Succeed." We're all really great at deciding what we want to do, but the other two are a little bit harder. So here's a task for you that will help you do more than just decide this year. Think about past years when you put down those resolutions and then didn't stick with them. What were the excuses you used? Here are a few from my list:

• "I'm tired."
• "I don't have time."
• "But I really want to eat that Snickers bar." (Now fast forward five minutes). "Well, I already ate a Snickers bar, I might as well forget about this diet stuff."
• "I don't care."

Okay, so you have your list of your very own common excuses. Now, while you're in that motivated frame of mind, write down some statements to counteract those excuses. For example, "I don't care." Well, if I really didn't care, then I wouldn't be thinking I don't care. I just wouldn't care - there'd be no hesitation. Keep these close to you throughout the day - pop them onto your iPod, in your day planner, on the refrigerator - and when your committment starts to falter, you can give yourself a boost.

Happy New Year! It's definitely time to break out of those old habits, and create new healthy ones. Good luck!