It all comes down to choices. If you want to lose weight, have all-day energy, build muscle, enjoy the way your clothes fit you, or improve your overall health, making better, healthier, fitter choices is the way to go. But where do you begin? I say, anywhere! Once you get a little positive momentum, no matter how small, it starts to move the needle in the right direction. One good choice tends to make the next good decision come a little easier. With that said, in no particular order, here are 101 better choices you can make TODAY. Don’t read this without taking action on at least a couple of them. Skim this list and pick a couple you want to try. The first one will be easy because… Read something positive and informative. Done! Get up 15 minutes earlier Drink 8z of water as soon as you wake up When going out to eat, ask for half of your entree to be boxed up ahead of time. Drink 1 cup of water before every meal Drink 1 gallon of water a day Replace your sugary drink with a sugar free seltzer water or water with some fruit in it for flavor. Drink your coffee black instead of with cream and sugar Stop drinking coffee after 10am to help you fall asleep better that night. No more food or alcohol 3 hours before you go to sleep. Stop work 2 hours before sleep Stop looking at backlit screens 1 hour before sleep Hit the snooze button ZERO times Add some curtains to darken your bedroom. Read or listen to audiobooks in the evening instead of watching netflix. Take a 10 minute walk outside after lunch and/or dinner. Start reading (ideally not on an electronic device) for 30 minutes a day Read or listen to an audiobook about health/fitness/motivation. I like “Younger Next Year” for staying fit and healthy as we age. I like “Chasing Cupcakes” if you’ve struggled with your weight and with getting out of your own way. I like “The Comfort Crisis” for developing a tougher mindset about adversity. Make a rule to not drink alcohol during the week Make a rule to only drink alcohol one day per week Drink at least 1 cup of water between alcoholic drinks. Schedule something social with friends that doesn’t involve alcohol. It could be a scenic walk, bike ride, paddleboard, game night, movie, or something else fun. Fight the afternoon slump with some sugar free electrolyte water instead of coffee. Take a multivitamin. Take a fish oil pill. Take a greens powder with probiotic. Take a vitamin D pill. Have a protein shake after your workout. Schedule your workouts on a recurring basis. You will own that time and that time will own you. This simple step does wonders for workout consistency. Schedule your workouts from week to week. The same principle, once it’s an appointment on your schedule, you’ll take it seriously. Use a daily planner. In addition to your phone calendar and your to do list, use a paper daily planner to break down when you will do what each day. Your meals and your workouts need to be part of this daily plan. I set my day up the night before. It helps me fall asleep having gotten the plan out of my head, and it helps me stay on track during the day because I’ve already figured out the most efficient way to get everything done. Strength train 3 days per week Don’t skip your warm up Once you have proficiency with the exercise, progress your weights so that you are lifting as heavy as you can handle while still maintaining good form. Give maximal effort for 3-5 minutes of high intensity cardio at the end of your lifting session. True max effort for 3-5 minutes trumps 20-40 minutes of medium effort work. Foam roll for 5 minutes before your workout starts Prep your protein shake so it’s ready for you to drink as soon as you are done with your workout. Do press ups at the beginning and end of the day to counteract the lower back stress of sitting. Do The Five Minute Journal in the morning and evening. Have a daily gratitude practice. This could be writing down 3 things you are grateful for first thing in the morning like the 5 minute journal, or it could be taking 2 minutes to talk about what you’re grateful for with your spouse, or something else. Declutter one room in your house so that it functions better for you. Get a stand up desk Use a knee pad and kneel at your desk instead of sitting Get a bluetooth keyboard and a laptop stand for your computer. You want the keyboard to be where it’s comfortable to type and you want the top of your screen to be eye level. Have a conversation with your boss about what you need to be able to make time for your workouts, make healthy choices, and perform at your best. Ask them how you can help them. Have a conversation with your spouse/family/roommates about what you need to be able to make time for your workouts, make healthy choices, and be at your best. Ask them how you can help them. Say “no” more. If “no” feels too harsh, try “I can’t do that” or “I can’t give that the time it would need”. Make a plan for how you will keep a toxic friend, coworker, boss, or family member from negatively affecting you. Make an appointment with a therapist. Life will give you some bumps and bruises. The various online therapy choices give you affordable options to talk through some things with a professional. You’ll be glad you did. Cut out all alcohol for 1 month. I think every single person should do this at least once a year. You can take stock of how you feel after 4 weeks and then make a conscious decision about what your relationship with alcohol will be going forward. Join a community of other people who are getting in shape. Eat one big salad per day. Add a serving of fruits or veggies to every meal Cut out added sugar for 1 month. This is honestly easiest if you do it at the same time you cut the booze and it is helpful for the same reasons. Cut out “junk food” for 1 month. What is junk? You know what it is. Eliminate it during the same month you cut booze and sugar and see how you feel at the end. Food log for at least one week. Did you eat better just by being forced to be aware of what you are eating? Was there anything you didn’t eat because you didn’t want to log it? Remove junk food from your house. If you want a treat, you at least have to go and get it now. Log your food and shoot for a daily target for protein and calories. You can do this with our Quantity Meal Plan or you can do it using an app. I like Noom over my fitness pal lately. Their recommendations seem to be better for long term health and fitness. Check your screen time usage on your phone. Set limits on your phone for app usage. Get completely off social media for at least one week per year. No scrolling, no news. See how you feel. “Unfollow” anything on social media that ruins your mood. Put your phone in “night mode” all the time to help your eyes. Charge your phone at night in a different room from where you sleep. This prevents you from grabbing and scrolling if you’re having trouble sleeping. Buy an alarm clock if you use your phone as your alarm. If you would like to lose weight, make a list of the top 3 factors that caused you to gain the weight. Make a plan for how you will change those 3 things in a sustainable way. Talk to a Personal Trainer about your health and fitness goals and the best ways to accomplish them. My calendar is right HERE. Walk 10k steps per day. If walking everyday starts to feel boring, add some weight in the form of a small pack, aka “rucking”. Take a hike on the weekend. Start small if you aren’t experienced. Listen to music/podcasts/audiobooks to unwind in the evening instead of streaming TV. You can do chores while you do this to square things away for the next morning. Put some overnight oats in your fridge in the evening. Prep your workout clothes for the next day before you go to bed. Prep your water for the next day before you go to bed. Get a personal trainer to show you how to workout and make healthier choices. Audit your credit/debit card statement. What spending is going towards things that aren’t really a priority for you? What spending is making you less healthy, fit, or happy? List your financial priorities and list the things you are willing to cut in order to have plenty of money for your priorities. Want money for a personal trainer? All you need to do is identify spending that isn’t important. Looking at your actual card statements will help you see all the little purchases that are easy to forget about. Trust me, they add up. Audit your time. Where are you wasting too much time and energy? What are the priorities of your time and energy? Are you allocating your time in accordance with those priorities or are you allocating your time in accordance with the priorities of netflix, hulu, facebook, and tiktok? Set a hydration timer that reminds you to drink water. Use a marker to show what hydration level you should be at by what time on your water bottle. Ask yourself what advice you give that you aren’t following. I’ve been personal training for 10+ years. There is always some piece of advice I am not following myself but could. Add fruit or even some veggies to your protein shake. You can buy a universal blender and some quart mason jars if you don’t want to buy an expensive single serving smoothie blender. If you’re off track, text a Coach for help. If you’re a member, text us on the member’s only line. If you aren’t, text me at 603-837-6363. Make your bed. Unfollow 5 things on social media that negatively affect your mood and follow 5 inspirational figures. Follow On Target Fitness! Make 1 simple, healthier nutrition choice and stick with it for 1 week. The simpler the better. Replace your plastic tupperware with glass if you like to microwave your leftovers. Bulk cook your proteins in a slow cooker or insta pot. Bulk cook roasted veggies in the oven. Measure your salad dressing, nuts, cheese, rice, quinoa, and oatmeal to prevent over consuming. Those items are perfectly healthy in the right serving size. Prep your healthy lunch the night before so that it is ready to grab in the morning. Allocate 2 hours on Sundays for meal prep if your weeks are particularly busy. Put your multivitamin near something else you do every day so you don’t forget to take it. Pack your vitamins for travel. This will help bridge any nutritional gaps that may occur and will set the tone that you still need to stay reasonably healthy even if you’re traveling. Order a soda water with lime in social settings that involve alcohol. No one will know the difference. You don’t need to drink just because everyone else is. Buy a new pair of walking/running/hiking shoes. Having the new shoes will make you want to put the miles in. Get a fitness tracker like a whoop, garmin, or other smart watch that measures sleep and heart rate variability. Make it a game to have better sleep and readiness scores. After you’ve learned what you needed to learn, take a break from your fitness tracker for a bit. Just live your healthier life without a piece of tech measuring every single heartbeat. Carry a water bottle with you everywhere you go throughout the day. This combined with drinking some water as soon as you wake up will ensure that you have a decent amount of water throughout the day. Put your meal times in your schedule just like other appointments. Skipping meals or eating at weird times won’t help you. Sign up for a fitness challenge or program. The 100 Workout Challenge starts at On Target Fitness July 1st and is FREE for members. Establish some accountability for your healthy choices. This can come from a personal trainer, a broader gym community, or just friends and family. Write down your weight loss success story at the start. When everyone says you look amazing and asks you how you did it, what will be the keys to success you will share with them? That's it! Pick the 3 you are going to take action on TODAY : ) When you’re ready to talk with a personal trainer about your goals, fill out the form at the top or bottom of this page and I will take care of the rest : ) Serving Portsmouth, Kittery, and the broader Seacoast community, we help people finally get in shape, feel confident, and have all day energy, even if getting everything done is a constant struggle.
