With the bulk of the winter behind us, it's time to shed the layers and see what is underneath.  Some of us have been gym and boot camp regulars all winter, while others have really struggled with a routine.  Spring is a time of renewal, so we all get a chance to clean house when it comes to our fitness routine.  And unlike New Year's Resolutions, this re-evaluation has special circumstances -  we tried.  Even if we only thought about moving or eating better, we have to give ourselves credit for considering a change.

Now we have a second chance to succeed.  We just have to look at our goals through a different lense and question everything.  It's as simple as these three steps.

3 STEPS TO SPRING CLEAN YOUR ROUTINE

• Assess your current routine:  Pull out a piece of paper or open a note and type in these questions:  What was my fitness routine for the past 2 weeks on a daily basis or what have I been eating for the past week in detail?  Then answer honestly, but just the facts.  Don't worry about right or wrong answers and don't judge yourself.  Then below that, write these questions:  What worked?  What didn't work?  What did you like?  What did you not like?  Don't think about how you are going to change or what you want to change before you answer each question honestly.  Then put this note aside.
• Assess your goal:  Did you even have a goal?  If so, write it down in detail. Ask yourself the following questions about whether your goal was SMART.  Were you specific in your goal and could you break it down into smaller steps?  How did you measure results?  Was it something you could physically achieve?  Was it realistic to achieve in a given time period?  And what was that time period?  Just write the answers even if they are, "I didn't have a time period".
• Decide how bad you want it:  You have to ask yourself, how bad do you want it?  This is the game changer.  This is the lense we have to pick up and hold over our routine and goals.  We have to decide how bad we want to achieve the goals we set.  Because this will determine what we are willing to give up and the degree that we are willing to make permanent changes.  Everyone has to determine this for themselves.  And this is usually the single reason why we don't reach a goal.  We just don't want it bad enough.  It's a hard truth to face, but once you realize it, you can make all kinds of routine changes that will be successful.

After all this, if you still can't get started or if your goal is still out of reach, consider hiring a coach.  Sometimes the help we need comes from someone else and all we have to do is ask.