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Why Having a Fitness Plan is Critical

Est. Read Time: 3 mins

Benjamin Franklin once said, “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.” For most of us, planning is second nature. We plan to be at work on time…plan to pick up the kids after school…plan to run errands over the weekend…plan to watch a favorite team on TV. But what are you doing to plan to get into shape and stay fit?training-828760_1280

The easiest way to jumpstart your fitness program is to set realistic, tangible and measurable goals. Too many people say, “I want to get into shape.” That goal is too vague, and unclear objectives are the primary reason why more than 73 percent of people who begin a fitness program do not stick with it.

Start with thinking about your short- and long-term goals.  What do you want to accomplish overall? Do you want to lose 15 pounds in two months or lose several unwanted inches from your waistline? Perhaps you want to increase how much you bench by 30 pounds or improve your cardio endurance by running a 10k. Once you’ve identified your long-term goals, you can now set realistic short-term benchmarks such as losing a certain number of pounds each week, running a few hundred more meters or gradually increasing the weight you are lifting.

Now that you’ve set realistic goals, you can come up with a plan to achieve them. If you are not sure what you need to do, seek the guidance of a knowledgeable healthcare professional (physician or nutritionist) or fitness trainer. They can help you develop a plan that can help you achieve your goals.

As you implement your plan, remember that nutrition should be an important part of your program. In fact, eating the wrong foods can prevent you from making any significant progress. With a little planning and preparation, you can eat healthy, nutritious food that will enhance your overall health and well-being.

Simple changes in what you eat can make an enormous impact on how you feel. For example, you can avoid that tray of doughnuts and bagels in the break room and instead pack your own meals. This way you can snack on yogurt, nuts and fruit if you get the urge to snack. You can also pack a simple lunch consisting of grilled chicken breast, rice and vegetables that can be cooked a few days before!

Better health, fitness and well-being don’t have to be elusive goals!  Create your plan to today and stick with it!

Kevin Branco is a personal trainer and the owner of Main Street Gym in Hellertown.Kevin Branco Head Shot He’s a 2004 graduate of Saucon Valley High School–where he lettered in football, track and field and basketball–and a 2008 graduate of Kutztown University, where he was a PSAC scholar-athlete and was awarded four varsity letters. Kevin has been recognized with The Morning Call’s Best of the Valley-Personal Trainer award (2014). He was recently inducted into the Lehigh Valley Sports Hall of Fame.

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About the author

Josh Popichak

Josh Popichak is the owner, publisher and editor of Saucon Source. A Lehigh Valley native, he's covered local news since 2005 and previously worked for Berks-Mont News and AOL/Patch. Contact him at josh@sauconsource.com.

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