Four Fitness Tips

I've been going to the gym on a regular basis for a year and half now and the results are paying off. It was a resolution of mine a while ago to gain some weight and "buff up," so far, I've managed to stick to it. The following tips have more to do with mindset and habits rather than what workouts to do at the gym. My personal workout schedule will be posted later on. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me.

Statistically, the odds are against you if you intend to keep your New Year's resolution. If you're one of those people who have trouble keeping that "Get fit, get healthy, get that summer body going" resolution here are four easy tips.

1) Make it realistic. - Too often I hear people setting unrealistic standards for themselves both in terms of resolutions and weight lifting. Bite the bullet and be humble for a while. Remember there's nothing wrong with starting a bench press at just the bar. We all have to start somewhere.

2) Get a friend to help - This applies especially to the "get healthy" resolutions. Find a friend who goes to the gym regularly and ask if you can tag along with them. And make sure you take the effort to get there on time. It may be hard, but make sure the friend pressures you to get to the gym and to put forth the effort while AT the gym. The goal is to have both of you motivating each other to stick to it.

3) Reward yourself - Along with your New Year's resolution, set milestones along the way. Every time you reach one, reward yourself. Make the rewards meaningful, so you have something to give you that extra push to keeping your resolution.

4) Keep going - Forming a habit can take a while anywhere 21 days to 6 weeks. Keep this in mind for those oh-so-hard good habits. With that being said, the hardest time to keep a training schedule at the gym is during your first two weeks. Survive that, then aim to never miss a workout session for a month, then two months. Keep on expanding it. If your goal is to body build, don't be afraid to take a week off every few months to let everything rest and completely recover. Do make sure you return to the gym though or all that hard work will be for nothing.