The 7 Habits of Chronically Fit People: Wrap-Up

[This takeoff on The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People began April 10.]

Ex-ballet teacher and personal trainer than I am, I couldn’t let this series end without a take-away for you. It’s a review, as well as a one-pager that you can print out and refer to from time to time.

Good luck on this never-ending journey to a fitter you. Enjoy the journey; as I know you can once you start to reap the benefits.

Habits #1 (Seek opportunities for natural movement.), #2 (Begin today … and every day is a new today.) and #5 (Love your body.) are givens. You need them like a fish needs water.

The others are all negotiable. They need to be reexamined periodically and adjusted as needed. Life priorities (#3) change as circumstances change. “Think thin/thin” (#4) may be achieved, so that you want to change it to “think maintain/maintain”.

As the physical fulcrum shifts, you may need to find gentler ways to “energize” (6).

After one month, you get to ask yourself, “Am I having fun yet?” If you’ve found activities and a food plan that you’re comfortable with, the answer will be yes. If not, you get to try a switch.

Maybe three months or a year from now, you’ll be bored with the South Beach plan or decide your knees shouldn’t be subjected to high impact running or aerobics anymore.

There are always healthy alternatives. The nicest thing about The 7 Habits of Chronically Fit People is that no one plan works for everyone. Don’t feel locked into anything that doesn’t move you closer to the priorities you wrote down for Habit #3.

From this day forward, consider yourself one of the fortunate and chronically fit.

The 7 Habits of Chronically Fit People

• Habit 1: Be Active – rev up your basal metabolism with natural activity
• Habit 2: Begin with Today – and set small achievable goals
• Habit 3: Put First Things First and the First Thing is Not Food – it’s something much more rewarding than food
• Habit 4: Think Thin/Thin – organize your life around your priorities
• Habit 5: Seek First to Love Your Body, Then Act as if You Do – do it for you
• Habit 6: Energize – get moving – your actions speak louder than words
• Habit 7: Find the Balance – the physical balance shifts so keep adjusting

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Tags: 7 habits of … , healthy weight maintenance, achieving a healthy weight, love your body, put food in perspective, choose healthy food, eat healthy for life, exercise and weight control