Become A Healthier You Inside and Out In the New Year - Tips To Jump Start Your Level of Fitness

Although January signifies the beginning of frigid weather and shorter days, it also brings you the opportunity to reflect on the year that has just past and offers a perfect time to evaluate the level of fitness that presently exists in your life. If you look back to the past with feelings of frustration or dissatisfaction, you are not alone. Thankfully, each year brings the opportunity for positive change. Change is not an easy process; if it were, we would all stroll through our lives rolling from one stage to an even better one with no difficulty at all.

The fact is, however, that change is a process that takes time, commitment and a tremendous amount of support in order for it to be truly accomplished. In implementing any positive change in our lives, perhaps the most crucial factor to keep in mind is to think of the possibility of such change in an optimistic manner. According to Dr. Martin Seligman, who is a pioneer in the field of Positive Psychology, thinking optimistically is a highly effective way to increase wellbeing. There is direct evidence that positive emotions predict health and longevity. The reason behind much of Seligman's finding is that optimistic thinkers view obstacles as temporary. They recognize that it is not the circumstance in our live that make us happy or sad, but rather our perception of those events that dictates how we feel and move forward. By choosing to look on the good side of any challenge and electing to believe in ourselves and our ability to conquer, recover and be resilient, there is nothing that can keep us down permanently. This is viewing life through the glass half full mentally. Studies have shown that optimistic thinkers:

• Are more successful at work
• Have better health habits
• Have lower blood pressure
• Have feistier immune systems
• Experience more life enjoyment
• Have more friends
• Live longer than pessimist thinkers

With such optimistic encouragement to fuel you, here are some tips to help you become a healthier you inside and out in this New Year!

1. Make a commitment to the type of changes you wish to implement in the New Year. Set aside some quiet time to reflect on what it would look like if you were totally satisfied with the level of fitness in your life. This is unique to each of us. After you clarify what your fitness goals are, write them down in a health and fitness journal. Use this journal to record your progress and your feelings during this process of change. This serves to both clarify your emotions as you change and grow and also to get a clear view of the progress you are making. Since permanent change often occurs slowly, such journal entries help us see the progress we are making.
2. Plan what type of exercise you would like to implement. Make your goals specific so you can clearly follow them. Look at your calendar each day in advance and make "an appointment" to exercise and reserve a time for it. An example of this would be, "Monday, January 2, 2006, 8:00AM- walk briskly for 40 minutes."
3. Take one step at a time. Each day is a new day with a fresh opportunity to progress towards your desired goals. Keep in mind that the process of change takes time and patience in order for it to be truly accomplished. If setbacks occur, use your resilience to reevaluate what you could do differently to get yourself back on track.
4. Allow yourself variety in your exercise routine by mixing up the type of exercise you do each day. By alternating the form of the exercise you choose to do, you not only add variety and keep your workouts exciting, you also develop and strengthen different muscles by cross training.
5. Get support to help you maintain the positive strides you are making during your new journey towards positively changing your life. This could be accomplished by hiring a personal trainer, working with a nutritionist, using a life coach, or simply by recruiting your friends and family to assist you as you change. Such support systems are extremely beneficial in providing encouragement, motivation and also to keep you accountable as you take the steps necessary to help you become a healthier you inside and out!

Elizabeth Savino is a personal Life Coach and the owner of Sole Life Coaching. She specializes in Women in Transition. For more information on changing in a positive direction and empowerment techniques, you may contact her at esavl@aol.com or visit her website at elizabethsavino.com.

Qualifications:
Elizabeth Savino has had articles published at selfgrowth.com 11/05, 12/05, at ezine.com 11/05, 12/05, Mercer Woman 1/06 and in the NJAWBO Newsletter in 2005. Elizabeth Savino is a personal life coach and founder of Sole Life Coaching. She specializes in women's issues and working with young professions. With the support, guidance, and motivation of a life coach, individuals gain clarity about what direction they would like to move to live a more fulfilling life. Elizabeth assesses the individual life of each client to help them gain insight into what areas they would like to work on improving. They then formulate an action to reach the client's specific goals.

Elizabeth is a graduate of Bowling Green State University. She began her career teaching students with special needs. She chose to put her professional career on hold to devote her time and energy into being a role model and teacher to her own children. Elizabeth also used this time as an opportunity to pursue interests that she felt passionate about.

Elizabeth spent much of time researching the benefits of positive psychology on human destiny. She became increasingly aware of the power that human beings innately have to create their own destiny. Elizabeth felt a need to help others create positive changes in their lives. As an avid runner and participant in several marathons, Elizabeth has encouraged others to make a commitment to the disciplined task of training for similar races. By the example she sets in her own life and her dedication to pursuing goals that promote a life of passion, she has inspired others to take similar steps towards achieving positive changes in their lives as well.

Upon first hearing of the concept of life coaching, Elizabeth hired her own life coach. The strength and support she gained made a great impact on her. Working with her own life coach as a mentor, she completed a formal training program to become a certified life coach. She studied through Mentor Coach and CoachU to earn her certification as a Certified Life Coach. She is also a member of the International Coach Federation.

Elizabeth currently resides in Pennington, New Jersey with her two children, Jacqueline and Victoria, and her husband, Robert.