10 Must Have Strategies to Have a Successful New Year’s Resolution 2by:Zlata Sushchik 21. Do Not Go On a Diet 22. Throw Away Your Scale 23. Go Public! 34. Build Your Team. 35. Write Down Your Goals.36. Set a Realistic Goal 47. Know Your “Why” 48. Swap the Whites 49. Drop the Sugar Bomb 510. “As you think you shall become”- Bruce Lee 5Jumpstart Your 2015! 5Goal Setting Worksheet 7Resources: 9

10 Must Have Strategies to Have a Successful New Year’s Reso-lutionby:Zlata SushchikIt’s that time of the year - New Years Resolutions are upon us. According to the Univer-sity of Scranton, Journal of Clinical Psychology, only 8% percent of people actually suc-cessfully achieve their New Years Resolution goals.

According to the study the #1 resolution on the list is, you guessed it, weight loss. The goal of staying fit and healthy isn’t that far behind and comes in at #5.

These numbers are kind of shocking, right? Only 8%?

Have you previously set a New Year’s Resolution goal and never followed through? Do you want to make your New Year’s goal a reality in 2015 and need a place to start?

If you answered “yes” to any of the questions, congratulations, you are in the right place. Here are 10 must have strategies to help you take your health and fitness to the next level in 2015.

1. Do Not Go On a DietDon’t go on any specific diet, don’t buy into any shakes, pills powders, crazy detoxes or start a 30 day juice cleanse. Instead, realistically assess the situation. What kind of ha-bitual changes can you made that wouldn't feel like a big, time consuming, “ughhhhhh” kind of chore? Don’t add more unrealistic things to your busy to do list. Here is where you can start:

If you skip breakfast- make a protein power smoothie in a blender. It takes 30 seconds and you are properly fueled for that day. If you are having lunch, go for a salad and not your usual sandwich. You like cookies and diet coke for a snacks? Substitute with tea and bananas instead.

Trust me, habitual changes are more likely to stick long term than another fancy diet that flips your world upside down. Small changes lead to big results.

2. Throw Away Your Scale

The #1 reason my clients quit working out and eating healthy before, is because they never saw the scale numbers move. It’s frustrating, I get it. After a few weeks of killing yourself at the gym and eating like a rabbit, you want the scale number to go down! However, there is a better way to track your progress. I recommend to take progress photo’s front, back, side in the same outfit and in the same light every two weeks. Here is why the scale is not an accurate measure of the success. If you are working out and eating healthy, your body starts to reshape. You start to put on lean muscle and lose fat. Most likely you are losing it from your stomach and your back first. You never get to see visual changes because you are so focused on what the scale says. Muscles occu-pies less space then fat but weights the same amount. Don’t be mad you didn’t lose a few pounds if you put in the work, reference back to your photos and they will tell you the real truth.

3. Go Public!Post your commitment on social media and tell your family and friends about it. There is an enormous amount of accountability if you check in at the gym or publicly announce your big goal on Facebook. By the way, feel free to tag me to tweet me, I’ll give you a “like” @zlatasushchik because hard work deserves all the attention in the world. Also, next time you decide to post a picture eating cheeseburgers at In- N- Out you’ll think 2x.

4. Build Your Team.Here is a secret fit people will never tell you - we aren't always stoked to run 7 miles or smash a work out at 5 am. We do it because we have the right support system in place.

Most likely we once have or had a trainer who taught us what, how, when and how much to at the gym. I highly suggest getting help from a coach or a trainer who will keep your accountable and motivated to achieve your goals. At least for the first 3-6 month of the year. If you could do it alone, you would have done it a long time ago.

We also have fit friends who will throw us a lifeline like a text message, voicemail, and call us out on skipping out on the regular gym routine. Our families know not to wave cookies in our face, cook a healthy meal when we are coming over and never make a negative comment about our gym commitment.

Build a support system around you to match your goals, wants and needs because that’s what will ultimately make you successful long term.

5. Write Down Your Goals.According to the University of Scranton Study, people who write down their goals are 10x more likely to follow through on them. I suggest writing out goals on a piece of pa-per and hanging it up somewhere you can see it every day. You are more likely to stick to your commitments if they are in front of your face. Day in and day out, you will tend to make choices and decisions that serve your goals.

6. Set a Realistic GoalHere is the trick, saying I am going to lose weigh this year is not a good goal. Why? It’s not measurable. Here is an example of a measurable goal:

I am going to lose 30 pounds this year and keep it off. This means I have to lose 2.5 pounds per month.

Can you lose 2.5 pounds per month? Of course you can! But doesn’t losing 30 pounds seem really overwhelming at first? If you go all out the first month of January, kill your-self at the gym 6 times per week and eat nothing in hopes to lose all 30, how excited are you going to be to live that kind of lifestyle all the time? Make sure to set realistic goals and create a schedule to fit health and fitness into your busy life right now. Set a goal and ask yourself what kind of commitment, resources it’s it going to take. As they say, steady Freddy wins the race.

Reference goal setting sheet - Appendix A.

7. Know Your “Why”Just wanting to fit into a certain size pants isn't enough. What happens when you fit into those pants? You stop working out and eating healthy because you achieved your goal. Woo-hoo, but what happens next? You gain it all back plus some. While it’s great to fit in your clothes, that kind of motivation doesn’t last a lifetime. Not to mention, thats when you start going to non sustainable, dangerous measures to lose weight.

Think about what motivates you to live a long, lasting, healthy lifestyle? Playing with your kids? Having energy to achieve your goals? Confidence to take advantage of op-portunities when they come your way?

A vanity goal is great, but health is wealth and knowing your real “why” will serve as a foundation for a lasting lifestyle change. Beer, cookies, cakes, wine, cheese become secondary wants because you have greater a need for long- term health.

8. Swap the WhitesStart slow. First, switch your favorite white flour foods to gluten-free grains and flours.I am not telling that you will never ever ever ever be able to have bread or pasta ever again. Make smart choices. Eliminate bread when you go out to eat, swap white pasta for brown rice pasta or maybe try gluten free options. Bread, pasta, bagels and other while flour foods are not only highly dense in calories, but they also cause a blood sug-ar spike and may cause bloating. Here is something else to consider, resent studies show that 1 out of 133 Americans has celiac disease or gluten sensitivity. http://www.celiaccentral.org/celiac-disease/facts-and-figures/

If you feel tired, cloudy, bloated, have indigestion it can very well be caused by a gluten sensitivity.

9. Drop the Sugar BombLiquid calories can be downright frightening if you are trying to watch your weight. Av-erage mocha (non fat milk, no whip) is around 250 calories, 12 oz soda has around 11 tea spoons of sugar, which accounts for about 150 calories, and an average glass of wine is about 120 calories. That is 625 calories out of your daily caloric intake just on drinks. Another thing to consider is that sugary coffee, soda and wine, spike your insulin level and that is why you experience a crash mid day or mid afternoon. To minimize the likelihood of crashing around noon or 4 pm, swap your favorites for black or green tea.

10. “As you think you shall become”- Bruce LeeYour health starts with your mind. According to Cleveland Wellness Clinic, each person has an average of 60,000 thoughts a day! Amazingly, 95 percent are the same thoughts repeated every day. On average, 80 percent of those habitual thoughts are negative. Do you think if you receptively call yourself a failure, you think you are fat and that being fit is hard, you can be successful with your goals? No way! Shift your way of thinking into a positive and every time you come up with a reason why you can’t do something, say that you can. In actuality, it’s that simple. Be ware of your thoughts, say nice things to yourself, be kind and start loving yourself now. With this being said, here are 3 posi-tive affirmations to help you create a positive mindset around a New Years Resolution:

I believe in myself and I can do anything I set my mind to

I set my goals and follow through with them

I am strong, fit and confident in myself

In conclusion, please note, I didn’t tell you to cut out all sugar, start a 30 day juice cleanse or spend 2 hours a day at Crossfit. That is not what it takes to live a healthy, happy and sexy lifestyle. The key to success with any resolution is to find something you can stick with long term and enjoy life. Consistency is key.

I firmly believe that you can achieve anything you set your mind to. I see it over and over again with men and women in my coaching practice who lose 30-50-100 pounds in record timing. Just remember you health and your life are in your own hands. The only reason you can achieve something is the story you keep telling yourself over and over. Trust yourself to walk into 2015 with a positive mind, “yes, I can” attitude and make small changes that lead to big results.

Jumpstart Your 2015! If you are ready to jumpstart your New Years Resolution, join me and other top celebri-ty experts who share their secret strategies to help lose weight, get fit and feel confi-dent in 2015. These exclusive interviews will only be available for a short time and you

don’t want to miss them. You can find out more here www.newyearsresolutionsummit.-com

Be sure to check out a goal setting sheet for January to help you with achieving your goals!

Goal Setting WorksheetOverview: • The secret to getting whatever you want out of your life and business is clearly defined

goals combined with commitment and public accountability • Following this process WILL create progress and then get you into momentum • To start consistently achieving your goals start small and work your way up

SEXYFIT Goal Setting Process: • Set 5 goals for the next month of January • Post them on Facebook to create public accountability • Write a letter to yourself. White as though its February 1st, 2015 and you already achieved

them • Post your goals visibly at home and read them every morning. Be sure to read your letter

too. • Write 3 personal positive affirmations

Goals:

1. ___________________________________________________________________

2. ___________________________________________________________________

3. ___________________________________________________________________

4. ___________________________________________________________________

5. ___________________________________________________________________

Letter to yourself: __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Positive Affirmations for January: 1. 2.

3.

Resources: University of Scranton, Journal of Clinical Psychology, (2014). New Years Resolution Sta-tistics. Retrieved on December 24th from http://www.statisticbrain.com/new-years-reso-lution-statistics/

Celiac Central, (2014). CELIAC DISEASE: FAST FACTS. Retrieved on December 24th from http://www.celiaccentral.org/celiac-disease/facts-and-figures/

Cleveland Clinic Wellness, (2014). Stress free now. Retrieved on December 24th from http://www.clevelandclinicwellness.com/programs/NewSFN/pages/default.aspx?Les-son=3&Topic=2&UserId=00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000705