Hello, and welcome back to this week’s edition of “Fitness Corner”.  My name is Darrin Miller and I’m the fitness staff writer for UNB.  Keeping with UNB’s release of the swimwear catalog and the launch of Summer, Eric Ganison of Mens Board Model Management has snapped a pic of me this week wearing a vintage leopard skin thong bikini created by Magic Silk, which features a build in “package lifter” adding that “wow factor” to your physique.

Last week we embarked on our journey of visualization and self-affirmation and I provided you a series of 12 inspirational posters for you, complete with a tag line and an image.  If you do not care for the images provided, 12 identical posters, which are void of images, are included.  Click here to download your inspirational posters.

These posters, coupled with the photographs, are very instrumental in completing workouts for which you are not motivated.  Now I know what you may be thinking at this point.  “I don’t want to hang stuff like this up.  What if someone sees this stuff?  They are going to think I am the most self absorbed, conceited, and vain person on the planet.”  Oh contraire, you are simply focused on achieving your fitness goals and effectively conditioning your mind to help you achieve your desired physical conditioning.  You need to be steadfast in your high opinion of yourself.  In the words of Michel de Montaigne, “I care not so much what I am in the opinion of others as what I am in my own.”

Visualization aides not only focus on where you want to be.  Other visualization aides can simply be reminders to yourself or records of where you are in relation to where you want to be.  For example, another visualization technique, more of a reminder actually, is the “note in the wallet” technique.  The theory is simple-have a safety check prior to expending resources.  For example, the most common meal eaten outside of the home is lunch.  In fact, many people eat lunch out everyday.  Anytime that you eat out you are already putting your good diet habits at risk.  Mentally you are away from home and free to eat whatever you want.  However, you will need to pay for lunch and to do that you must open your wallet.  Therefore, tape a small phrase on the inside of your wallet that is visible as soon as you open the wallet that will keep you focused on your good diet habits.  This phrase could be something like:

• “No sweets Porko”,
• “Fruits & Veggies are where its at”
• “Eat more chicken”,
• “No cookies, cakes, or pies; until you trim those thighs”

In addition to motivational photographs and one-liners, there are two actions you must do to help stay mentally focused on achieving your fitness goals – “actual visualization” and progress monitoring.  When I say “actual visualization”, I mean exactly that.  Observe yourself as you workout.  Notice how the muscles you are working begin to quiver as the workout progresses.  Watch the sweat roll down your face as you grimace pushing yourself as far as you can.  Observe your chest heaves as you breathe heavier and heavier pushing for that last repetition.  Notice the sigh of relief, the exhale of air, the smile of satisfaction on your face as that exercise is completed and you are ready to tackle something else.  Watching yourself workout will help you fully experience your workout and make you proud of how hard you are working toward reaching your goals.  Watching yourself go through your workout will not only help you experience your workout on a more intense level, but allows you to:

• concentrate on maintaining proper exercise form and posture
• observe the movement of the muscles you are working and truly envision how that body part is getting firmer, stronger, and more toned