How to Make Fitness a Lifestyle: Destroying Boundaries and Setting New Standards

If you’re reading this article you’re someone that either takes fitness very seriously, or you’re someone that is toying with the idea of changing their life for the better.

Ask yourself this question: have you ever began a fitness or diet regimen in the past only to fall off track months after the transformation? Many people, regardless of their age or geographical location, have motivation to drastically improve their internal health as well as their physical appearance.

But when we take a look at the scientific literature, we find that many of these people gain the weight back and start skipping their gym sessions. Why is this and how do we fight against it? Located below are the steps we must take to not only get into great shape, but make those productive actions become a part of our daily lives.

Addressing the Mental Aspect of Fitness

When we sit down with friends and coworkers to discuss gym routines and diet plans, our conversation fills with images of bodybuilders, athletes and people that live on minute-to-minute schedules. Is this the only way to conquer our fitness goals and get into better shape?

Before we sign up for a gym or head to the grocery store to buy certain foods and supplements, we need to tackle our mental baggage. We must first eliminate the idea that fitness is something reserved for select people with great genetics or thousands of dollars to spend on products. Instead, we must realize that the only way to transform our body and mind for the better is through daily discipline.

Rather than committing to a brief period of time in which we will remain disciplined with our diet and workout routine, we must decide that our daily actions will be inline with our fitness goals.

Our bodies are unique in the sense that they take time and effort practiced over the course of months and years to truly change for the better. We must understand that life-changing success and amazing transformations can only occur by practicing daily habits for an extended period of time.

Eliminate Unnecessary Food Items

Have you ever had a moment during a diet phase where you had junk food sitting around the house? You may have told yourself that you will practice self discipline to ignore the cravings and hunger pangs that will inevitably come, but you falter in the end.

The way that we eliminate this behavior is through a process of elimination. Rather than relying on our mental strength to ignore the cookies or candy in the cabinet, throw them out with the trash!

In psychology this term is often referred to as “burning the ships.” In a sense, this means that we must eliminate all obstacles and distractions so that the only available option to take is the successful one. Although this process may be tough in the beginning, it’s the only way to experience life-long results.

Tip: try these 11 healthy foods to start the day

Baby Step to the Finish Line

When we look at great architectural creations, we often get lost in the beauty and wonder that surrounds these monuments. But the process of building these structures is rather simple: perform small actions over an extended period of time until the job is complete.

By placing one brick every day, we can build a sturdy house in the course of a few years. This process perfectly illustrates the type of mindset that we must adopt when we go about achieving our health and fitness goals. Rather than giving 200% effort for a few weeks, we must practice daily disciplines that steer us towards the finish line.

In the following weeks, make a promise to yourself that you will eat one or two healthy meals throughout each day. Your first instinct may be to question this process: “if I only eat a few healthy meals, my body won’t change that much!” While you are correct in your assumptions, this process will begin to build the habits that are needed to maintain life-long discipline.

Our brain is hardwired for habitual behavior and performing the same routines on a daily basis. When you first begin your diet and exercise routine, the tasks may seem monumental and drain all of your mental energy — that’s fine! But when we continue to trudge through the mud and ignore the part of our brain that tells us to stop, we form strong neural pathways that create habits.

Have you ever noticed that certain weights that used to feel extremely heavy are now light? Much in the same way that our biceps and triceps get stronger when introduced to outside stimulus, our brain can grow stronger as well. The key is to consistently push past those emotions of anger, fatigue and hopelessness. Trust us: even though the journey towards a healthier lifestyle may feel daunting at first, some day it will feel easy!

Live Right Outside Your Comfort Zone

Once you’ve begun to notice yourself eating healthier and getting into the gym, it’s time to push the boundaries. True champions and fitness experts have all realized that true growth and success lies just beyond the boundaries of their current comfort zone.

As stated earlier, our brain can adapt and mold itself to deal with external variables in our environment. That 20-minute run that used to make us feel like death may now feel like a light warm up before our actual routine. The meals that used to taste like something a rabbit would ingest have now become your go-to snack. This is the brain adapting and molding your interests and behaviors.

This mental state is beneficial, but it also cause more harm than good. The enemy of success is mediocrity! Your goal, once you’ve established a foundation of healthy habits, is to push past your current limitations. Although we do not encourage you to injure yourself or make radical diet changes, we recommend that you look for new milestones to achieve.

Science has now shown us that regular routines can help lead a stress-free life, it rarely produces substantial results. An experiment conducted by Robert M. Yerkes and John D. Dodson found that controlled stress on test subjects pushed them to new levels of success. When we regularly put ourselves in these stressed states, we perform at impressive levels and cause growth at a rapid rate. Located below are a few telltale signs that you’re pushing your boundaries in a productive way:

• Increased heart rate during your workouts.
• Slightly anxiety about what to do next.
• Small feelings of doubt that creep into your mind.
• Nervousness about your boundaries and limitations.
• Negative self-talk that you may not be good enough.

You know that 35-minute weightlifting session that you perform three days a week? Now lets go for 45 minutes! This 10-minute change will cause your body to get uncomfortable, but not so much that we will experience injury. When we live right outside of our barriers of normality, true growth can begin and our health and fitness levels will soar to new heights.

Outside Help

Success, contrary to popular belief, is not a path filled with loners. Instead, teams of people come together and rally behind worthy causes so that winning becomes easier. One company, IsaaXcess, has formed an entire business around giving people the products they need to get to the next level.

On top of this, IsaaXcess gives you access to thousands of people around your area that want to see you succeed and crush your goals. The way that this is achieved is through a process of accountability and outside praise.

In psychology, the power of being held accountable has produced fascinating results. While many of us associate accountability to something negative, it often acts as an outside reinforcement to push us past our limiting beliefs and feelings of laziness.

With IsaaXcess, you’re given the tools and the community that will lift you up when you fall, push you to new heights and make your fitness lifestyle something that’s new and exciting. Rather you need high-quality protein to put on lean muscle, fat burning solutions to remove unwanted trouble areas or a friend to help you along the way, IsaaXcess and Isagenix has you covered!

Join a community of thousands of like-minded individuals that want to help you and see you soar to new heights. Remember that the journey towards a healthy body and mind starts with the first step. Let us help you along the way!