It's not too late...

Swimming

Lie flat down on your front. Lift the head, right arm and left leg up behind you. Drop down then lift head, left arm and right leg. Repeat x 20.

This time of year can actually be the most disheartening time of year if you are one of the millions of people who have bought into the latest diet fad. Have you spent your January and February trying to stick to celery juice in the morning? Hating your weekly HITT sessions but convinced they are the only way to burn that body fat, only to get to March and feel you are no further forward in your journey to your health and fitness goals?

Now is the time to stop worrying, stop beating yourself up, and make some proper resolutions. Not a New Year fad, not a form of exercise you detest, now is the time to get real, and make some lifestyle changes.

Spiderman

In a full, front plank on your hands, keep your back and arms still, and lift your left leg up. Bend the leg and try to touch your left elbow with your left knee. Alternate with the right side, and repeat x 20.

If diets worked there wouldn’t be so many different best sellers every year – one of them would have worked by now! The key is to stop setting yourself unrealistic goals, forcing yourself to do something you hate, and depriving yourself of enjoyment. Food and exercise should be enjoyed. Healthy food can be delicious as well as nutritious. Exercise can be a walk with a friend or a yoga session. It doesn’t have to mean burpees.

The key to long term success, as I always tell my clients, is to focus on the here and now. Concentrate on making healthy choices, and make sure they are enjoyable. If you love pasta, eat it, just don’t eat a double portion with a creamy, cheese sauce every night! If you hate running, try cycling or tennis. Find something that you realistically feel you can fit into your life. A healthy weight and physique comes through making healthy choices, not by pushing yourself into a cycle of feeling hungry and hating exercise. That will never lead to successful, lasting results.

Eat real food: chicken, salmon, rice, vegetables, all the colours of the rainbow. But make it food that you enjoy. Find an exercise you enjoy, one that you can see yourself doing in ten years time. Walking a dog, golf, yoga, these are all fantastic forms of exercise. Start with an easy home workout if you are intimidated to try anything outside or at a club.

Life is much more enjoyable once you get off the heartbreak cycle of yo yo dieting and exercising. So give up new year resolutions, and start life resolutions. Good luck and enjoy!