Peer Pressure Can Be Your Body’s Best Friend

AT THE BEGINNING of every new year, many of us put “Get into shape” at the top of our resolution list. Normally, though, our good intentons don’t last beyond Valentine’s Day before we begin to slip back into old habits. Melaleuca suggests a way to prevent that.

If you have failed to keep your resolution, don’t quit for good. Just make sticking to your goals your friends’ job too.

Here are some tips on how to get your friends to help you out:

Share Your Triumphs and Struggles

Use Twitter to share all your ups and downs. Be honest. Follow your favorite fitness guru, weight loss diet, or health expert to get regular updates on the latest workout routines, healthy recipes, and daily motivation to keep you going. Retweet helpful videos, photos, and tips for your friends and family who are working to shed a few pounds too.

Create a Private Group

Utilize the Groups function of Facebook and invite friends and family to join you in your quest for fitness. Establish weekly or monthly goals and set up simple competitions with rewards for those who reach them. Post your success stories, health tips, exercise videos, funny dieting jokes or photos, and anything else that will help you and your friends stay committed. Take the encouragement to heart and post plenty yourself.

Track It All on Your Phone

It used to be that tracking your caloric intake involved carrying a notebook around with you throughout the day or trying to rely on your memory for an accurate account of meals and snacks. Now counting calories is just an app away. Snap a picture of the bar code on a bottle of juice or manually type in items from the menu of your favorite restaurant. Making healthy meal choices and tracking what you’re eating while you’re out has never been easier.

You don’t have a smart phone?

No worries. Many portable MP3 players can track your workout and upload the data through a wifi connection when you get home—even if you don’t have a data plan. They can also be helpful during meal planning.

If you really want to reach your goals, get your friends to help out. They will be happy to pitch in … and remember, “Where there is a will, there is a way.”