How To Set Fitness Goals And Stick To Them

7 Tips From Our Guests

• Have realistic expectations. "People come in with expectations that are way too high ... thinking right off the bat that they're going to be ripped and shredded, or they're going to lose 20 pounds really quickly, and they don't develop the right habits right off the bat," says McGuire.

• Set small victory goals. "The first week you come in, your goal should be, 'I'm coming to the gym this week three times.' Anything above that, you lead yourself to a potential disappointment and you're gonna fall off," says McGuire. "If it's two times, it's still a good number. You came to the gym. You won."

• Don't worry about the people around you. "No one's looking at you," says Galvin. "Everyone's so focused on themselves."

• If you're looking for a personalized program, be wary of what you find online. "The issue with a lot of things that are online that are quick fixes [is] they're not really personalized to you," says McGuire. "If you want to talk about a personalized program, you're going to want to reach out to a professional, not just trust online resources."

• Try different workouts, and stick to what works. "Try a bunch of different exercises, a bunch of different classes. Try yoga, try metabolic conditioning, try just going to the gym and going on the treadmill, try boxing," says Galvin. "Just give everything a shot before you say, 'I don't like exercise,' because chances are you're going to like one of those things. And actually, that should be your goal, to find an exercise that you somewhat enjoy and then stick with that."

• Maintain a healthy relationship with fitness and food. "Instead of just saying, 'I'm not going to eat any food,' just eat a little bit less," says McGuire. "It doesn't have to be this huge commitment, just little steps in the right direction. Fitness should be something that is enjoyable, it shouldn't be something that you punish yourself with. It should be a cohesive relationship, where you enjoy yourself in the gym and gain strength and gain confidence, as opposed to using it as a means to punish yourself for something."

• Embrace healthy body image messaging. "I think the first step is just being grateful that you have a body that's able to go to the gym and just appreciating that you're able to do it like do these small feats," says Galvin, "and again, not comparing yourself to other people in the gym, because everybody has their insecurities, every has their hang ups. You might look at somebody and think that because they're in great shape, they're super happy with themselves; you don't know that. It's all about being happy with yourself and appreciating your body for what it is and not making comparisons."