By Harold Irby | Personal Trainer

Sandy started her weight loss journey with 56 pounds to lose. Although when you see her now, you’d never believe that she was overweight. Today, the lean and attractive mother of two walks confidently with a spring in her step and a smile on her face. Given her amazing transformation, it’s easy to see why she’s so confident and happy.

But back when Sandy first came to me, she was fed up and constantly stressing about her weight. She was sick and tired of feeling unattractive, embarrassed and discouraged. None of the diets or exercise plans that she tried worked. Sandy felt hopeless about ever regaining the attractive body that she once had.

As I got to know Sandy, she told me about the way her body changed after her pregnancies, how the weight continued to add up over the course of a few years, and how each pound rendered her more frustrated and hopeless. 

So, we came up with a simple plan - which was the first step towards regaining a body that she felt excited about again. 

The simple habit that started it all…

Aristotle once said, “You are what you repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit.” His words aptly apply to fitness. For Sandy, dropping 56 pounds was not the result of an act, but of a habit. 

The simple habit that she adopted was to place her gym clothes on her nightstand before going to sleep each night. 

That’s it. 

Every morning the first thing that she would see was the tidy stack of clean gym clothes. So her first act of the day was to put them on. Naturally, now that her gym clothes were on, Sandy would then go directly to her workout.

By starting her day in such a positive, fitness-oriented way, Sandy was then able to continue making healthy choices throughout the day, ending it by putting the next day’s gym clothes on her nightstand before bed. 

Did she have any hiccups along the way? Certainly. There were days that would start out great, but then she’d get off track sometime after lunch. Discouraging as the occasional setback was, she kept on putting her gym clothes out each night. 

By starting her day out with such a positive fitness experience, Sandy was able to make a habit out of fitness. As a result, she lost 56 pounds and regained her confidence and sunny disposition.

What about you? What habit could you adopt that would keep you on track with your fitness goal? It shouldn’t be complicated. Maybe you’ll start putting your gym clothes out each night, like Sandy. Maybe you’ll make healthier recipes each week packed with some veggies for mini meals to eat throughout the day. The point is to pick one simple, fitness habit and add it to your daily routine. Don’t wait –start a new habit today.

Harold Irby is a certified personal fitness trainer and Mr. Michigan body building champion with over 20 years of experience in weight training, body building, sport specific training and strength conditioning. Harold has worked with many professional, college and high school athletes as well as celebrities and business professionals seeking a healthy and fit lifestyle through his personal training and fitness center Xtreme Advantage. 

Photo credit: Getty Images