You should know by now that there is no quick fix when it comes to fitness. If you want to see your body and your health change, then solely adding acai juice into your daily routine is not going to be the answer.

Instead, you have to think about it as a lifestyle change. There are multiple components that go into living a “fit” life, and you need to tackle each one to get on the right track.

With that said, what exactly does a “fit” person's life look like?

Today, I want to give you 7 steps that you can take which will help you create a fit and fulfilling life. Perhaps there are a few on this list that you can incorporate into your own life starting today.

To do what it takes to build a new lifestyle, you must first believe that you are capable. This is most important when the changes you are making do not show immediate results.

Creating a “fit” lifestyle does not happen overnight, just as the lifestyle you lead now has taken years to create.

So, as you set out on your quest, you need to believe that your efforts, no matter the immediate results, will eventually lead you to success. If you do this, then any failure is just a road bump, not a dead end.

Exercise is not about punishing your body, it’s about healing it.

If you always see the gym as a place to beat yourself up, then it’s going to be hard to make exercise a lifelong habit.

Instead, make the goal of going to the gym about feeling better when you leave than when you arrive. You should feel energized, not exhausted. You should have LESS pain, not more.

Never see exercise as a means to an end; rather, think of it as a daily dose of physical and mental medicine.

If you are struggling to get fit, chances are, you take every opportunity to miss a workout. Your nose is runny, your foot has a cramp, you have a project due at work.

Fit people do not make excuses why they can’t workout. Rather, they find reasons they can’t miss a workout.

Runny nose? Exercise helps to boost immunity.

Foot hurts? Blood flow helps to recover.

Stressed at work? Exercise helps focus the mind and makes you more productive.

They take this ammunition and then find the time to exercise. Don’t ever think that your life will all of a sudden allow for a perfect exercise routine.

You have to make time, and then find every excuse to keep your commitment.

You cannot expect your body to function properly if you do not give it what it needs.

Optimal nutrition and sleep is not about being “healthy” (a word which can oddly take on a negative connotation), but rather, it’s about allowing you to live a better life.

Any time you make the choice to eat poorly or skimp on your sleep, you are choosing to have a bad day.

You are choosing to feel lethargic, bloated, and ill-tempered. You are choosing to hurt your body and your mind, and you are choosing to lead a lower quality of life.

Choosing to eat and sleep well, however, leaves you feeling energized, motivated, and will help to create optimal fitness.

Of course if it was as simple as just doing it, everyone would eat well and get enough sleep. If you really want to make this happen, it is not enough to just think to yourself “okay, this time I’m really going to do it!”

Instead, figure out the roadblocks that keep you from having the diet you want and work to remove those.

Part will be having the right foods around, but part will also be about keeping the fun foods (I don’t like to think of food as good and bad…it’s just about aligned food to your goals) out of the house.

There will be countless other reasons why you eat the way you do, so take the time to really understand the forces that keep you the way you are before trying to make a change.

If you don’t change the force, then you are going to have a hard time sticking to your new plan.

Having a goal is not so much about the goal itself, it’s so that you have something to track to make sure that your actions are actually working!

This is why you should never get too attached to a goal. Instead, use it as a benchmark for knowing if what you are doing is working.

Take weight loss for example. If you are trying to lose weight, but the results are not coming, all you know is that there is still something holding you back.

This does not mean that you will never lose weight, or that you are a failure, or that it is too hard. It just means that the steps you have taken have not gotten you there yet.

The key is to use this information to inform your decisions, but not to get overly obsessed with the goal.

“If at first you don't succeed…try, try again.”

We have all heard this before, but how many of us can actually say that we live by the phrase? If there is something you want, go after it, and in time, you will reach your goal.

The good news: almost all things that you could want, someone has done before. And if someone has done it before, then there is no reason that you cannot.

Even better news: 99% of fitness-specific goals have definitely been done before.

And even if it is something that has never been done, know this…every day there are millions of people doing things that have never been done before, so there is no reason why you cannot be the first at something as well!

Possibly the most undervalued action you can take to get and stay fit is to ask other people to help. Whether it’s your family, friends, or finding a coach to help you stay on track, everyone needs support.

We often are embarrassed or ashamed when we struggle, but what you must realize is that we all struggle.

We all have areas of our lives that we wish we were better at, but only those who seek and lean on others for support are able to overcome those struggles.

Just think about your taxes. While some people do their own, it is a whole heck of a lot easier to have someone else do it for you. Why? Because you are not an expert.

In the same way, you may not be an expert in exercise, or nutrition, or behavior change, so it might be helpful if you seek out people who know what you need to know. If nothing else, having someone to keep you accountable to your goals can go a long way.

When it comes to getting fit, there are a few key ideas that you need to know if you are going to make fitness part of your life. Some of the most important include:

1) Believing in yourself

2) Respecting your body

3) Making excuses TO workout

4) Eating and sleeping according to your goals

5) Tracking your progress

6) Never giving up

7) Asking for help

The real question becomes, which of these ideas do you feel ready, willing, and able to incorporate into your life?

You don’t have to do all of them right away to start feeling better, but you do have to do something.

Now if you decide that “asking for help” is the right place for you to start, we can help.

Right now we have a way for new members to get started without a long-term commitment. We want to give you a way to check out exactly what we do before you decide if it’s the right fit.

So, if you are looking for help, I would invite you to check out our 28-Day Kickstart Program where you will get the exact exercises and diet you need to start feeling better, while having a coach to support you along the way.

In this program you will get:

• Full fitness and goals assessment
• Personal training sessions to teach you the exact exercises you need to get the results you want
• A simple meal plan to help you lose fat and build lean muscle
• 1-on-1 success coaching to help guide you as you work to change your diet, exercise, and lifestyle habits

Click here to learn more and take back control of your health and fitness today!

Mint Condition Fitness empowers people to take control of their fitness and fully enjoy the life they have built.