How to Achieve Your Fitness Goals in Four Easy Steps

A lot of us may find that our fitness routines may not be giving us the results that we want. We put in all the time and effort, but the results we want just don’t come. We usually burn out and give up on our fitness routines. However, what if it isn’t our fitness routines fault? What if we are going about achieving our fitness goals in the wrong way? Here we have compiled four easy steps to help you achieve your goals that can easily be incorporated into any fitness routine.

 

 

Define your goals

You have to know what you want to accomplish before you start your fitness routine. How would you truly know if you are getting what you want out of your fitness routine, if you did not have something definitive to work towards? Picking your goals may seem easy to most. However, it can be quite difficult. If you say you want to get more toned, get in better shape or to run faster, how do you know when you have truly accomplished these? You want to make your goal more definitive, such as losing twenty pounds or lifting ten more pounds. If you want to push yourself even harder you could also try adding a time limit to your goal. However, you do not want to push yourself too far too fast because you do not want to set yourself up for failure. Also on the flip side you do not want to make your goals too easy to reach. You may become bored and slack off if you go this route.

 

Devise a plan

Once you decide on your goals, you need to devise a fool proof plan to ensure that you can achieve everything you want out of your fitness routine. You can not just run around the gym whenever you feel like it doing whatever you want because you will end up getting nowhere. Your routine will need more structure than this. You should SCHEDULE THE DAYS when you plan to exercise. No need to worry about which muscle group you will focus on each time you workout, because your 9Round Trainer will tell you exactly what to do every day you come in! This way you can ensure that you are getting a well rounded fitness routine. It is also important to take the time out of your day to plan your meals. You want to have the proper diet to go along with your well rounded fitness routine in order to get the best results possible. Don’t sabotage all your good efforts in the gym with bad nutrition habits. Follow your 9Round Nutrition to a tee!

 

Make it a habit

Once you get past the planning stage, you should find yourself making better habits and getting rid of any of your old bad habits. Once you plan so many trips to the gym or a certain time you like to workout, you should find your body is automatically preparing itself for your workout ahead of time. You may even find yourself heading to the gym without even thinking about it. You should also be looking forward to eating your healthier meals and not craving the junk food you use to eat as much. These cravings will still be there but not as often or as strong as before. Eventually you will go grocery shopping and head straight for your healthier foods and skip the junk aisle all together.

 

Hold yourself accountable

It is up to you to achieve your goals. You can not blame anyone else. You need to find a way to hold yourself accountable. Some people can not go it alone and feel more apt to exercise if they have a partner depending on them. Most people need the structure of a fitness center or the help of a personal trainer to get them to stick to their fitness routines. Most people also cannot afford a personal trainer every day! 9Round includes your trainer at no extra charge. Motivation out the yang! All you have to do is show up! How’s that for a solution?

 

It can be frustrating trying to reach your goals and seeing little or no progress. However, you have to stick to it. As long as you set reasonable goals, devise a plan you can easily stick to and understand that it is going to take time to see the results that you want, you will succeed. Just remember that even though it may take a while to see the results that you want, in the long run it will definitely be worth it.

– See more at: http://www.9round.com/blog/how-to-achieve-your-fitness-goals-in-four-easy-steps/

What Is the Most Difficult Part of Exercising at the Gym

We all want to look and feel better, and we know the best way to do this is through exercising and maintaining a proper diet. So, why is it so hard for us to visit the gym, and yet so easy for us to make up a million excuses to avoid the gym? It can be a scary and overwhelming place for many fitness newbies, but we need to conquer these fears and do what is best for us. We need to look down deep and find the motivation and the willpower to stick with our fitness routine.

 

 

Get through those doors

The hardest part of most people’s fitness routine is walking through those gym doors. It can be hard to find the time in today’s hectic world to schedule and set aside the time needed to workout. We tend to use any excuse we can to say that we are too busy to workout today, like kids, jobs or even our social lives. However, you know you need to workout to stay healthy, so you need to schedule the time needed to go and stick with that schedule. It may help to remember the reason you decided to spend money on a gym membership in the first place. What were your goals for starting a fitness routine? Was it to lose weight, tone your body, build muscle, improve your health or recover from an injury? Whatever the reason may be, you need to get through those gym doors to achieve it.

It may not be easy starting a new fitness routine, but here’s a secret: if you’ll give it two weeks of consistency, your body will actually start to crave it! So, stop using all these excuses and get over all your fears. You need to get through those gym doors and start making yourself a better you. 

– See more at: http://www.9round.com/blog/what-is-the-most-difficult-part-of-exercising-at-the-gym/

My Top 5 Motivational Fitness Tips

We have all been there. There are just days or weeks or maybe even months that we can not seem to drag ourselves off of the couch to go workout. It happens to everyone every now and then. So, how do we overcome these feelings? It is, of course, different for everyone because we are all motivated by different things. We are going to take a look at some of the more common techniques people use, and you can decide for yourself if they will work for you.

 

 

1. Keep a fitness log. You can not measure your success based on the scale alone. If you keep a fitness log, you will be able to see every type of achievement you make, such as working out for longer periods of time without getting breathless, making time to visit the gym more often and being able to lift more weight. You can also keep track of your eating habits and body measurements.You may drop a dress size or two and not lose any weight, so this can be a real big deal to a lot of us. However, you have to be diligent in filling out your fitness log.

2. Never compare yourself to others. Everyone of us is different. We all come in different shapes and sizes. We can not change the fact that some of us may be skinnier or taller than others or that they can workout longer or lift more weight than us. Besides, in a gym everyone is working out at a different fitness level, so you do not know how long or how hard some else may have been working on their body. The best thing to do in this situation is to focus on yourself. Pay attention to the changes in your body and your fitness routine, and you will be much happier.

3. Find a friend. It may help you stay on track if you have someone else encouraging you or depending on you. You could create a nice support team for each other. As I said before, we all have those days when we do not feel like working out, but if you have a friend waiting for you at the gym most of us would feel more inclined to go. It could also make a monotonous fitness routine a little bit more fun if you know someone else will be there with you going through the same thing.

4. Make it fun. Of course, you do not want to get up off the couch if you are doing the same old thing over and over. You need to switch it up and add a little excitement to your fitness routine. You also do not want your body getting use to your fitness routine. You will almost always stop seeing results if this happens. There are many different fitness options out there if you are getting bored. You could try kickboxing, crossfit, dancing, rock climbing or water aerobics. The options are endless. If you choose something you are interested in doing then you will start looking forward to your fitness routines.

5. Have a little patience. This can be extremely difficult for most of us, but you need to remember the saying Rome wasn’t built in a day. This is also true for your fitness routine and your body. You can not expect to see major results after your first few workouts. It may take multiple trips to the gym before you start seeing any results. However, you need to remain consistent and stick with your fitness routine if you want to achieve your goals.

 

Going to the gym can seem to be a daunting task for many of us. Hopefully some of these tips can help you stick to your fitness routine. You will never know if you do not try them, right?

– See more at: http://www.9round.com/blog/my-top-5-motivational-fitness-tips/

Fitness Quotes: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

When we go on any of the multiple social media sites out there, we are sure to come across people posting about their fitness routine with a cute little fitness quote added to it. These cute little quotes are meant to either inspire or shame us into achieving a better body, but what if you come across a quote that you just don’t agree with or really upsets you. It can be frustrating working out every day and trying to compare yourself to others. It is important to never let anyone make you feel bad about your fitness habits if you are truly giving it your all. Today I will look at some of the more popular and destructive quotes out there and give you my two cents on them.

 

 

1. “Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels.” Kate Moss made this saying popular. However, I would venture to say that her eating and fitness habits are not all that great. Besides, is my goal to be bony and skinny? Not really….how about healthy , toned & happy?  Never get too extreme, because that is when you really start losing ground in your fitness routine.

2. “Push past the pain.” You have to know your limits and how far you can push without injuring yourself. If you feel a little tired or sore the next day, you can be sure you did a good job at working those muscles, and you need time to let them heal before you push that hard again. However, if you are in hunched over I can’t ever move again pain, you know you went way too far past your limits. You can easily hurt yourself if you do not know the difference. Pain is your body’s way of telling you to ease off a little, and if you ignore this signal, you may find yourself missing a few workout routines or even worse visiting your doctor. So, be careful and when your body sends you signals, pay attention.

3. “No excuses.” Does this mean you always have to workout? There are actually many times when you should not workout. You could be sick or injured or just plain tired. It feels good to take a break every now and then, especially if it will help you stick to your fitness routine. Many people like to give themselves a reward day or time off from their fitness routine to help ease the monotony of doing the same thing over and over. Your body may not always feel like exercising, and it is your decision if you do not feel healthy enough to exercise that day or if you feel as if you deserve a little break.

 

Fitness quotes are all in fun, but I would hate for someone to have unrealistic ideas or even hurt themselves because of one misleading quote. You need to remember to consult your doctor or personal trainer if you want to know the cold hard facts and never take a social media quote as face value. These quotes are meant to be fun and cute not all of them seem to be the perfect fitness advice.

– See more at: http://www.9round.com/blog/fitness-quotes-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/

How to Play It Safe in the Summer Sun

You can feel it in the air. Summer is almost here, and soon everyone will be enjoying the outside world once again. Many of us may even take our fitness routines outside to enjoy the weather and the scenery. We can start swimming and hiking again, not to mention running and walking outside is now an option. While there are many benefits to getting some sun, you need to ensure that you do not get too much. There is a very thin line between a good amount of sun and too much sun, and you need to understand how much you can tolerate before you actually do your body some major harm.

Get the recommended amount

It is actually good to get some sun. We can get Vitamin D from the sun, which can help boost our immune system and bone strength. The sun gives us energy, which can also help us achieve a better night’s sleep. It also helps us with our mood because it increases the amount of serotonin, one of the body’s feel good hormones. It comes as no surprise that there are rehabs available for people who seem to be addicted to sun bathing these days. The sun can make your mind, body and spirit feel so much better. Most researchers believe that you should get about fifteen minutes of sun a day without sunscreen, but be careful that you do not overdo it.

Pick the proper sunscreen

You need to pick a sunscreen that will block UVA and UVB rays. These may also be labeled as broad-spectrum UV coverage. You may also need to choose a sunscreen that is waterproof or sweatproof depending on what you are doing. You should look for a sunscreen that contains zinc and also check the label to make sure that the sunscreen does not have any chemicals or other ingredients you may be allergic to. You should try to stay away from sunscreens that contain Vitamin A and PABA (Para-aminobenzoic acid) because they are harmful for your skin.

Make sure you get every spot

It is easy to forget to put sunscreen on certain parts of our bodies. I would always forget to put it on the tops of my feet, and you know what would happen. My feet would be the only spot sunburned. The most common spots that people seem to miss are the ears, scalp and lips. Many doctors feel as if this may be one of the major reasons we are seeing a rise in skin cancer cases. If you are going to need sunscreen it is best to remember to buy some sort of lip balm with an SPF factor of at least thirty and some sunscreen spray for your scalp. If you do not want to spray your scalp you could try wearing a hat when you go out.

Stay hydrated

Anytime you spend a prolonged period of time in the sun you need to stay hydrated. You have to make sure you drink plenty of fluids to remain hydrated. It can be a frightening experience if you become dehydrated and will most certainly ruin your fun and relaxing day. There are many symptoms you should look out for, such as becoming dizzy, being unable to breathe or fainting. So, in order to enjoy your time in the sun always have water at hand to avoid these symptoms.

It can be fun being able to go out and enjoying the nice summer weather. However, you need to remember to play it safe and take special precautions when you are in the sun and high heat. It could put a damper on any type of event you are planning and cause serious problems in the long run. Just remember to play it safe while you are enjoying your outside summer routines.

– See more at: http://www.9round.com/blog/how-to-play-it-safe-in-the-summer-sun/