5 Tips to Fitness Success - Slim-Down Challenge Week 4

Welcome to week four of our HowDoesShe Summer Slim-down Challenge. Chyna is back with 5 tips to fitness success that will have us seeing actual results!

5 Tips to Slim-Down Success

It’s already week FOUR of the How Does She Summer Slim-Down Challenge! You know what that means…… we’re another week closer to SUMMER! For anyone who is tired of the ups and downs of their fitness journey; for anyone who is ready to make a change; for anyone who wants to see results- this post is for you!

From both my own fitness journey as well as observing and helping other through theirs I have narrowed it down to 5 MUST DO’s when looking to seriously find success in being happy and healthy with your body.

1. Wake up with Positivity

Sound simple right? Begin each day with positivity! Whether its a reminder on your alarm clock, a motivational quote on your mirror, a motivational picture on your fridge… Keep this transformation top of mind as you start your day. Surround yourself with messages to encourage and uplift you. Your attitude is in your control- so why not begin every morning knowing you are going to get one step closer towards your goals that day?! I have found that reading something encouraging and inspiring each morning really helps center me on how I want to live out that day. Also- taking a look at a motivation picture will help me get my butt to the gym and have those eggs for breakfast rather than a sugary bowl of cereal! Once you force yourself of these habits each morning it becomes routine! This little attitude changes lead to little lifestyle changes which lead to BIG results in the long term.

2. Switch It Up

One of the least effective ways to see results is by doing the same exercise routine each day. This is called getting stuck in a rut! It is how we often plateau on our fitness journey. For example, someone can run 4 miles every day for months without hardly noticing massive improvements in their overall body shape and strength. This stagnation is caused by your muscles adapting to your training. Not only will switching up your routine help break through these frustrating plateaus, but by constantly changing up your training techniques your muscles will not have the opportunity to become conditioned to any one type of training and will remain on a consistent path of progress. This is why longer cardio doesn’t alway lead to results or weight-loss. Sometimes mixing up your cardio with 30 minutes of weight training, incline walking, sprints, plyometrics, etc can be the best thing for you.

3. Find Community

Achieving fitness success on it’s own is hard enough… doing it alone? Nearly impossible! Many people don’t understand the power of positive and likeminded community. I highly encourage you to find workout buddies, meet a few people at your gym to keep you accountable, or even join an online community group to encourage you along the way. You do not need to become best friends with anyone, but once you write your goals down and let others know what your are trying to achieve… it becomes even more real. Knowing that it isn’t solely your willpower getting you through, but that other people are counting on and expecting success from you will lead to a new level of motivation. I encourage you to follow me on Instagram @ChynaRae21 for any tips, advice and encouragement you want along the way!

4. Stop Comparing!

I cannot emphasis enough the importance of figuring out what works for YOU. So many women get stuck in the mindset of comparing their journey to everyone else’s and this can be the quickest way to failure and discouragement. Everyone’s body, goals, metabolism, etc. are entirely unique. You can not look at one girl and think that since “she is doing this diet I will do it too in order to look like her”. No! There are two things wrong with this mindset. 1) Just because her diet works with her body definitely does not mean that will lead to success with your body- everyone’s body and metabolism react to diets differently which is why it is crucial to track your foods and see what works and what doesn’t with your own body. 2) If you are always looking to be like someone else you will honestly never find that happiness. It is important to have your goals be entirely inward driven. Do not try to look like someone else, but rather tell yourself that your goal is to look like and feel like your best self.

5. Stop Waiting for Tomorrow

Admit it… we’ve all been here:

My diet starts tomorrow…I’m going to change my lifestyle starting Monday…. After I get through these busy weeks at work I will start exercising… the list goes on.

The truth is, if you aren’t ready to make a choice and make a change right now, when will you ever be? It does not mean everything needs to change overnight, but it does mean that you can make positive choices NOW to help slowly transforming your body and your mind to the best version it can be. It is hard to let go of old habits but it does not get any easier with waiting; in fact, it gets harder. It’s time to stop with excuses and stop with the waiting. Rather than going home to and sit watch TV tonight.. head to the gym. If you can’t do that, try adding a few exercises from the Summer Slim-Down Challenge in the commercial breaks! It can be as simple as that! There is no reason not to start making choices right now. This month’s choices are next months body.

If you’ve missed playing along with our Slim-Down Challenge, you can see what we’ve been doing below. You can jump in any time and join us in getting fit and healthy this summer.

Week one