by Ghislaine Mahler

New Years resolutions mean new behavior! Human beings are made of habits, and of course when we make a resolution, at the beginning of the year or at any other time, we must change our habits. If we already did what is required to have the result we desire, we would be there now!

Generally, two to three weeks into creating a new habit is when we start slacking off ... how are YOU doing? Are you seeing yourself starting to procrastinate, skip a day here and there ... Is your commitment starting to fade?

The mind is a funny thing, isn't it? What I generally call our Inner-Critic is that part of our mind whose job it is to make sure we stay exactly where we are right now! "Stay small, don't change a thing!" If you've read my book Mastering Your Inner World, Your Doorway to an Empowered Life, you know that I have named my Inner Critic "Fred." Naming him makes it very easy for me to get into a conversation with "him." So, what name can you give that critical voice in your head? This process, which seems so simple is actually very powerful and it will enable you to take charge of your life. When choosing a name for your Inner-Critic, please do not choose the name of one of your parents or your childhood caretakers. You must understand that this part of you is in you, it is not someone else outside of you.

When Fred acts out and becomes a bit loud in my head, I just tell him: "Fred, do I need to remind you again that you are not in charge? You are welcome to bring me constructive ideas and suggestions, but keeping me small doesn't cut it for me. So, go take a hike, will you?" That sounds polite, but sometimes I am very direct and authoritative with him, because in the moment that is what is needed.

To be successful with your resolutions, you must change your behavior and habits. That means you must change the dialogue going on in your head all day long. To change that dialogue, you must first become aware of it. Here are the steps to achieve that awareness:

1. Start paying attention to your thoughts. What kind of conversation are you having with yourself when you think of your big resolution? 2. Tell yourself the truth, now! Sometimes you may be tempted to push away those thoughts because they aren't the thoughts you want to have. But how can you change your thoughts if you do not first acknowledge what's there, inside you, right now? So become willing to tell acknowledge your thoughts, even if you don't "like" or "approve" of them. 3. Practice every day developing your self- awareness. If you find yourself procrastinating, just "witness" your thought process, that voice that tells you "oh, that's okay, you can do it tomorrow," or "well you can't do that now, look at all these other things you have to do that are way more important!" 4. And, please do not beat yourself over that newly developed awareness, that's just another trick of your Inner-Critic. Know that you are in a new process that is going to bring you into a solution-mode. Just be kind and loving to yourself.

Change starts with developing awareness. Without awareness, you just continue running on a treadmill, using all your resources and going nowhere. Being in that place of awareness with something you don't like about yourself is probably uncomfortable or even painful, but know that you will be there just for a short while, and this step will definitely lead you to real and lasting change. So, go for it

About the author:

Ghislaine Mahler is an international certified Life and Executive Coach, a Personal Transformation Trainer and Author. She has dedicated the past 20 years to helping thousands of men and women lead their lives and create success from a place of inner-strength, confidence, authenticity, passion and joy. She is the author of "Mastering Your Inner World -- Your Doorway to Creating an Empowered Life." www.ghislainemahler.com

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Would you like to discover your attractive, healthy, and energetic body? The most effective way to achieve the results that you want is to follow a fitness program specifically designed to suit your body. Five steps to transforming your body in record time will begin the body transformation and prepare you to look good feel great!

The 5 steps are:

1. Define your goals, motivation, and commitment.

It is important to spend some time at the beginning of your fitness journey to decide what your health and fitness goals are. When doing this you need to be very specific, do you want to lose 10kgs, fit into your old clothes or turn back the clock and start feeling great again? Next, is to decide what your motivation will be to achieve these new goals. Would you like to change your body shape, are you looking for love or feel the sense of accomplishment that comes with gaining a happier life? Ask yourself, how committed are you on a scale of 1-10? A firm nine or ten accompanied by a positive attitude will reign in serious fitness results.

2. Evaluate where you are right now.

By completing the first step we know the direction that you want to go however it is important to evaluate where you are right now to ensure your goals are realistic. Your weight, body fat, strength and fitness, girth measurements and BMI must be measured to find out what level you are at physically. Also a current photograph helps cement the decision to transform your body by showing you exactly what you look like and what features you would like to change.

3. Design a COMPLETE program to achieve your goals.

A comprehensive health & fitness program MUST include each of these six components to ensure success. 1. Nutrition- the foundation of all health and fitness.

2. Supplementation- to fill in the voids in your nutritional program.

3. Resistance Training- to increase lean muscle mass and metabolism.

4. Cardiovascular Exercise- to optimise fat loss.

5. Flexibility- to prevent injury and promote recovery.

6. Coaching- knowledge, support, and accountability.

4. Take action and implement your program.

This is the most important step of all. Like anything in life nothing happens without taking action. I recommend that you commit for 21 days, this route breaks unhealthy habits and helps you to develop new healthier habits.

5. Regularly assess your progress and update your program.

Regular assessment helps track your fitness goals and defines what you would like to improve. If you fail to do this it leads to plateaus and frustration. Taking responsibility for your actions ensures your continued progress and ACCELERATED success. This is where having a trained expert review your progress and program can identify the necessary course corrections to keep you on track. How long does it take to achieve results? Give yourself a good 90 days to see and feel significant results.

Taking the time to read this article shows that you are willing to take the initial steps towards accelerated fitness. So why not begin the journey to make a happier and healthier life?

These steps were recently presented to a group of 20 Brisbane residents at a charity event called How To Make 2009 Your Healthiest and Best Year Ever! The night raised $400 for the High Sight Expedition to create awareness for the Prevent Blindness Foundation.

About the Author:

Chris Tuck is the owner a of company called Supreme Fitness Personal Training based in Brisbane, Australia. He has lost 12kgs in 10 weeks himself and now continues to help others to achieve the fantastic results they want. For more great information on how you can create your perfect body go to www.supremefitness-personaltraining.com/freereport.html for a FREE REPORT "20 Secrets to losing weight for life!".

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