Fit For Life: Follow The Right Path

Sunday, April 15, 2018

Matt Espeut, GoLocalWorcester Health +Lifestyle Contributor

In order to be successful at anything in life, you need to follow the right path to get you there.

Along this path you will make some mistakes, encounter some distractions, and meet obstacles you must overcome.

You may come to several forks in this path that requires you to make decisions and give some thought as to which road to take.

The road to health and fitness is no different than the road to financial success or anything else worthwhile doing.

So, before you set out on this journey, you must make sure you are carrying some ION'S in your pocket or you will deviate from this path, take the wrong direction, and never reach your destination.

Inspirat-ION: one must be inspired by something or someone to want to seek out this journey. Even when you are doing it for health reasons, someone you care enough about inspires you to stay healthy or if you have a person you want to emulate, that is an inspiration to get moving. Whatever reason you have to take care of yourself began with a thought, an idea, and an inspiration.

Motivat-ION: the first one gives you the idea, but motivation is needed to carry out the task. This one grabs you by the collar, pulls you off the sofa, and pushes you into the gym. I am the mud run that's a month away, or the buddy that tells you he can bench more than you, I'm the guy with the abs in the movie that makes a girl gasp when the shirt comes off.

I’m also the guy hanging around your waist making the scale cry. So basically, I'm responsible for whatever gets in your head and says c'mon man let’s do this.

Determinat-ION: In order to succeed you must be determined not to fail. You must have a purpose as to why you are doing what you are doing and pursue your goals with ruthless determination. This takes getting your mind programed that nothing will distract you or stand in your way. Snow day, too bad I’m hitting the gym. Holiday or birthday party, too bad I’m sticking to my plan. Without determination, every little thing will derail you from your goals.

Execut-ION: Once you get inspired, motivated, and are determined to carry out your goals, the final and deciding round is execution. You can imagine being in shape all day long, be motivated to join the gym, actually have the determination to make time to get there, but all those noble deeds will be undone if you do not execute properly.

You only get paid for done, regardless if you are at work or at the gym, the only thing that will propel you forward is finishing what you start, and the only way to finish and get things done is through proper execution.

So, let's go over these steps to success one more time.

First, we get inspired and that plants the seed.

Then we need to find a way or reason to start this task, whether it's a fitness routine or trying to improve your income, something must motivate you.

Your follow through will depend on how much determination you have and how much drive and passion you are willing to invest. The end result will be based on your way of executing the situation. Put these IONS in place and you will pave your way to success.

When you apply these steps, success and good things will happen to you.

Matt Espeut, GoLocal's Health & Lifestyle Contributor has been a personal trainer and health & fitnesss consultant for over 25 years. He is the owner of Fitness Profiles, a one on one, and small group personal training company, as well as Providence Fit Body Boot Camp, located at 1284 North Main St., on the Providence/Pawtucket line. You can reach Matt at (401) 453-3200; on Facebook at "Matt Espeut", and on Twitter at @MattEspeut. "We’re all in this life together – let’s make it a healthy one.

Related Slideshow: The 7 Best Health and Fitness Apps

Here is a list of some of the most obsession worthy health apps.

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MapMyRun

MapMyRun is the number one selling running app for a reason: it is easy to use, offers community support if you want it, and tracks and stores your exact routes for you. If you are training for a race or a serious runner, users say that the extra perks in the upgraded paid version are well worth it.

Made for iPhone, Android and Blackberry

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MyFitnessPal

MyFitnessPal seems to be the clear favorite amongst everyone polled. It is helpful not only for the fitness tracking aspect, but everyone polled mentioned how much they loved the food/diet aspect as well. From carb counting for diabetics to recipe ideas to complement your fitness goals, users love this app.

Made for iPhone and Android

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JeFit

JeFit is another fitness app that has rave reviews. It not only tracks progress for you, but offers a huge database of workouts. While many apps offer community support, JeFit allows you to sync workouts with friends who use the app, offering a (real) virtual buddy system.

Made for iPhone and Android

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Strava

Strava gets the highest mark of all the cycling apps. While it is also great for runners, the cyclers seem particularly inclined towards the fierce competition that can be ignited by this app. You can track all of your rides via GPS, then you can compare your efforts to those logged by others in the community on the same stretch of road. You can also join ongoing challenges that can net you great prizes (in addition to bragging rights).

Made for iPhone and Android

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YogaStudio

YogaStudio gets the top vote for Yoga apps. It has a lengthy collection of full class-length videos available at your fingertips. Unlike many other apps, this one also allows you to customize your own video yoga class. All of the poses are done by qualified yoga instructors, and you can find classes suitable for all levels of yogis.

Made for iPhone only

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SimplyBeing

SimplyBeing meditation app offers the best of both worlds. You can choose to run this app as a background for your meditation with soothing music or natural sounds that run for a set amount of time. Conversely, for those of you who have trouble focusing during meditation, you can choose a soothing voice-guided meditation.

Made for iPhone and Android

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Fooducate

Fooducate is an app all about educating people so that they make healthier food choices. Although not perfect, this app is easy to use (you can even take pictures of bar codes to instantly find foods in their database). It gives food a letter grade, tells you the pluses and minuses, and gives you better ranked alternatives. You can also use it as a weight loss tool by tracking your daily calories.

Made for iPhone and Android