If you’ve ever thought about getting and staying fit, then there’s a good chance that you’ve tried and failed dozens of times before. Whether it was a lack of motivation or the fact you simply stopped caring, it’s not uncommon to fail a few times before you find even a little bit of success. In some cases, you may have successfully lost a lot of weight, only to put it back on for one reason or another.

Unfortunately, there’s really no secret to getting and staying fit. However, there are a couple of truths and realities that we need to cover if you want to keep the weight off for good.

You can’t stick to the same routine forever

While humans are built to love routine things, it’s important that you keep things fresh and interesting. This is especially true when it comes to your diet and the exercises you do. Simply doing the same exercises and repeating the same things over and over again won’t help you very much. This is because your body eventually gets used to it and it no longer has a strong positive effect on your body. Alternatively, you’ll get bored of doing the same thing over and over and you’ll start to lose motivation.

This is why it’s important to mix up your diet, do different exercises every day and ease your way into a rotating routine where you randomize your workouts while still working on the same body parts.

You have to make it a part of your life

You should also remember that fitness isn’t something you do on and off for a few weeks. You need to be consistent, hence why it has to be a part of your life. For example, you can’t just start taking the stairs for a couple of weeks and then revert back to using the elevator. The stairs should be your default option and the elevator should be reserved for emergencies.

It can be hard to break out of your comfort zone and adopt healthy habits into your routine, but doing so can greatly improve your fitness levels and also help you build confidence.

The first step to change is the most important one you’ll take

Wanting to change is admirable, but we also need to remember that the first step you take is going to be the most important one. Getting off on the right foot will have a huge advantage in the long run, so it’s important to establish good habits that will carry you far in your fitness journey. For example, counting calories with fitness apps is a great foundation to help you learn how many calories you actually consume each day. By doing this, you’ll learn the importance of calories, you’ll learn which foods have lots of calories and you’ll also learn what to avoid.

This is just one example of a good first step to take if you’re serious about your fitness. You have to learn by establishing solid fundamentals instead of trying to jump into the deep end. Ease yourself in, start slowly and give yourself room and time to improve.