THE YEAR IS HALF OVER, AND IT’S TIME TO TAKE A LOOK AND SEE HOW FAR YOU’VE COME. IF YOU HAVEN’T ACCOMPLISHED YOUR NEW YEAR’S GOALS, IT’S TIME TO GET ON THE BALL AGAIN

We have now entered the second half of the year and it is only six months to 2010. It’s time to reflect on the progress of our new year’s resolutions.

Are you on track with your goals? If you wanted to lose 30lbs, are you down 15lbs already? If your goal was to have done 200 workouts, have you completed 100? If your goals were financial, to make an extra €10,000 this year, are you on track?

It’s amazing how quickly time passes by, especially for those who do not measure or quantify progress.

Peter Drucker, a management theorist and author of 31 books, says that what gets measured gets managed. In the gym it is a common sight to see people exercising with no goal in sight. I’ll talk to prospective clients who have tried every weight-loss programme out there. When I ask them how things are going they’ll tell me that it’s great but rarely do they quantify anything.

Very few trainers, or people interested in health, actually measure their efforts. If you are following a plan to lose fat, are you actually losing fat or are you losing muscle, and I mean at a rate that is acceptable for your efforts?

I know where my progress towards my goals in training and business stand because I measure them. I have key performance indicators so I can continue to grow and serve clients.

Measure your results. Are you on track or does your programme need adjusting? Do you measure your body fat weekly, the weights you lifted, or the number of workouts you completed?

In life you either have a result or you have an excuse. Humanitis excusitis is a tragic disease that is rampant in society today. Top of the excuse pile is “I don’t have time,” but everybody has the same number of hours in a week so this is nonsense.

The next common excuse is that health and weight loss is too expensive. Getting in shape is only expensive if you are wasting money on miracle weight-loss pills, cosmetic surgery and bogus diet aids in the quest for those elusive six-pack abs. If you want to know what’s really expensive, tally up the cost of legitimate expenses like natural fresh food, gym memberships, fitness education, dumbbells and so on, and compare that to your doctor’s bill when you’re sick.

Another excuse is the lack of support. This should not be a problem. In an era where social networking is an active part of society, with Twitter, Facebook and all sorts of fitness forums, you can have access to training partners online as well as the advice of mentors. In 2009, support partners and friends are just a click away.

The body shape of your dreams is in your hands if you choose to grasp it. The marvels of biological research have shown that the obesity epidemic has only developed over the past 50 years. Everyone has a genetic blueprint but it is when genetic predisposition meets lifestyle and environment that the genes express themselves.

If you have a family history of heart disease, is it smart to smoke, eat junk, and be a couch potato? Well of course not, and it’s the same with obesity. If you have a tendency predisposing you towards obesity, you’d better be the person doing the most exercise, not the least. You’d better be the person paying the most attention to your nutrition with the healthiest lifestyle. But unfortunately it’s usually the opposite.

Most people throw up their arms in frustration saying, “What’s the use, I was dealt a bad hand, it’s not my fault.” Sorry. That excuse doesn’t fly with me. If you are wearing it, at some point you ate it so you need to change your lifestyle. Research says genetics are a factor, but a tendency is not a destiny!

So as we enter the second half of 2009, it’s time to take stock of your efforts. Has your current return been worth the investment? Do you need to adjust and try something different? Or do you just need to work harder? Half the year is gone, so will you make changes today or will you wait another 25pc of the year to pass, or 50pc and before you know it, it’s 2010.

To get started you need to refine or set goals. Setting well-formed goals is the master skill of success. Goals need to be specific and in writing. An easy goal for fitness enthusiasts is just to commit to working out 100 times for the rest of this year. That equates to training every second day. You should also commit to three litres of water a day, three main meals a day, and a snack twice a day.

A combination of strength training and intervals are the best solution for fat loss and a drastically changed body shape. How will you prove it to yourself? Measure your body fat weekly and monitor and improve your weights or repetitions at each workout.

Make the changes today or will you wait another six months to pass, then another six — and before you know it it’s summer 2010 and the list of excuses is as long as your arm.

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