Health & Fitess is a Process

In 23 days, I will mark my one year journey into fitness and health.

To become healthy and fit in today's world with all the junk food around us, one needs to have the right mindset and most importantly realistic goals. I constantly read comments from people who say they want to lose 10kgs in 11 days, or fit in a outfit that's twice smaller than theirs overnight. That's just not realistic.

I have always been some sort of an active person when I was younger, loved biking, engaging in different physical activities and whatnot. But then you grow up and you wonder how did the time pass by so fast and you became so fat, eh? Well, there is no time like today to start your journey.

I feel into a state of depression last year - like majority of the people in my country (UAE) probably due to the stress around us, from work, to school, and to monetary issues. I was literally vegetating in my bed all day long, eating junk food, watching too many TV shows, but then one day it hit me - this is NOT who I am. This is NOT what I want to be like in the future. Although I was never "truly" obese or overweight in the sense of the word, my mind was. I have put on a good ol' 7kgs of fat and literally felt like sh*t every single day. I hated myself. Hated how clothes looked on me.

So one day I just got up, and took one step and then another. I didn't even start exercise at first, but my goal was to add a simple activity a day that requires more movement from my part and then I took on exercising 5 days a week. If anything, I am still taking baby steps even after one year. This is how it is & this is what worked for me and still is. I believe you cannot rush into changing yourself overnight - it is unrealistic.

How to set realistic goals?

1- Identify the problem
2- Understand what causes it
3- Make one small change every week
4- Keep reaching one goal at a time

It's as simple as not having fries once a week (in case you're like me and love fries to death =P), and build up to not having it twice a week & so on. 

Following these simple steps will help you reach your bigger goal, be it lose 10kgs, wear a certain dress size, or even just feel better about yourself.

You cannot dance your way into fitness, it is a process and it's a process that takes time. Determination and self-motivation can take you farther than anyone ever could, a personal trainer or a life coach. Only you can take that journey, and that journey is well-worth it once you start to see changes. Most importantly do it for you and not anybody else.

Who's the author? Simply putting it, an Emirati gym freak who loves heavy weight lifting (or considers it to be at least.)