2010 Essence Music Festival is a little over 6 weeks away and alot of us are already getting our outfits together. I am truly excited to see Janet Jackson and a host of others for this 3 day event that I absolutely love. Another thing that I USED to deal with around this time of year was wondering if I’d be able to find that bangin’ outfit due to my warehouse shape…lol. Fortunately, I’m in better shape than I was around this time last year and I know I still have a far way to go; so for the next 6 weeks, let’s work together to get rid of those few pounds.
So if you want to shed those last minute pounds by the time Janet, Alicia, and Mary hit the stage, check out these great tips to get you ready for the party with a purpose.
Fail to Plan….Plan to Fail
Courtesy of Special News Online
Set up a plan AND a goal to work towards throughout this process. Take it from me; working out with no set goals is a really lame way to go about working towards your accomplishments. Mentally, if you never set a goal, when you come to the end of a week or month, there’s no let down nor pick me up because there were no expectations. Set goals so that way you can monitor and track the effectiveness of your workouts to determine what is working well and what needs to be modified. Set up a plan that is realistic and doable for you in the regards of eating, activity, and time. Take 1 hour out of your day to write out a weekly or monthly workout plan including cardio, strength/resistance training along with warm-ups and cool downs as well as a healthy low fat/low calorie eating plan to give yourself a guide. Also, check in with that guide on a daily and weekly to evaluate how well you’ve been executing your plan. I’ve actually set up an entire MS Excel workbook of all of my workouts and meal plans to help me stay afloat. Tracking tells you the truth about your dedication to your fitness goals so make yourself proud every day. During the summer, I’ll write suggestions to different ways of staying healthy with your eating and your workouts. We can do this people!
Get Up Off Of That Thang…
Photo Courtesy of Jennifer Zdon of The Times-Picayune
What good is a plan with no execution? Several times people take the time to write a plan yet never carry it out. I know, I’ve been there myself. Plan and plan and plan but didn’t have the moxie to actually do it. Will power totally depends upon you and won’t be found on a website, fitness dvd, in a bottle or in an energy drink. Granted, it could be a little inconvenient and uncomfortable for the first few days but after a while, it won’t be such a chore. Once that runner’s high sets into you and the results of your dedication begin to manifest into your body you will begin to look forward to your workouts. However, all of this begins with one step. Just take that first step to changing not just your summer but your life and you’ll feel so much better. 
Use Confidence See You Through
The beginning and ending of the aforementioned is to simply believe in yourself. Too many times we’ve tried and failed and it seems like it’s just no use. I’m sure we’ve all wrote the plans, executed the workouts, and after about
Photo Courtesy of Matt Sayles (AP)
2 weeks just suddenly fell off. The reasons can vary, but one thing is certain; you want to be pleased with what you see when you look in the mirror. To be honest, the more you dislike it, the hard it is to do better and make a change. Why? Because rather than it being a change for the better, it becomes a situation where your life depends on it and if it doesn’t change quick enough; you feel there is no hope, thus you find yourself in the same place again next summer. Love yourself, believe in yourself, and feel confident TODAY. Love yourself enough to know when you need to change things around for the better and go from there. It won’t be easy; ask anybody whose gone from a warehouse to a brick house. Nothing in life worth having is easy, but optimal health and great physical fitness is indeed worth it. Believe in yourself, you can do this.
So take these 3 simple rules into consideration as you work towards your fitness goals as well as getting ready for a wonderful weekend of music, empowerment, and fun. For those of you still looking for tickets, Ticketmaster.com has single show as well as 3 day passes on sale. Hang in there, you’ll love the end result. See you at the show! \o/
