Cheryl Keaney, For the Times Herald 5:01 p.m. ET April 14, 2017

Using photographs or inspirational sayings are a couple ways to keep yourself on track for a fitness regiment.(Photo: Getty Images)

How often have you found yourself really motivated and gung-ho about getting in better shape and losing weight, then the next thing you know that feeling is gone?

You were doing great eating healthier, exercising more and consistently, and then the next thing you know youre picking up a pizza for dinner. What happens to our motivation and why does it go down the tubes? What can you do to help you keep your vision and stay motivated?

I think what often happens is that we lose sight of our goals, and we lose sight of why we want to achieve our goals. When you lose that vision, your motivation gets lost right along with it. There oftenare realizations like, Oh yeah, I was supposed to go for a walk this morning or Yes, Ill take fries with that.

Recently I have experienced my own struggles with maintaining motivation, and have noticed time and time again my clients struggling with it as well. Being that I was a competitive bodybuilder, I thought back to the days when I was on very strict diets and maintained high levels of discipline and motivation to achieve my goal of competing.How did I do it? Whats different now? I kept a vision of my goal and of myself being on that stage on competition day. That vision, that reminder of that goal day in and day out fueled my motivation and desire to achieve my goal. I always had my goal in mind when it came to making choices when I slept, what I ate, when and how often I exercised.

Keeping that vision of achieving my goal helped me stay on track and make progress towards my goal.

Imagine someone having a goal of building their own home. Do you think they just wake up one day and forget that theyre building a house? No, nor did I forget that I signed up for a competition that was only weeks away. I was putting David Campbells quote into action every day, Discipline is remembering what you want.

What can you do to accomplish this, to simply just remember and keep your goal and vision fresh in your mind?

Write down your goal and post it at home and work. Use a food and exercise journal to plan and schedule your days, and also how you feel. There is something about writing down your goals that allows for it to sink more into your subconscious mind than just having one in your mind. Its too easy to forget your goals if you dont have them written down. Signing up for a race or competition is also a great way of literally putting your vision in writing, for your signature is committing you to the goal.

Vision boards are a great way to keep your goals in mind. Cut out motivational quotes and pictures that remind you of your goal and what you want to achieve. When I competed, I had created a poster of pictures of female bodybuilders I was inspired by, along with motivating sayings. You also can look up motivational quotes and images online and save them to your desktop or phone, or print them out to post at home or work.

Plan, plan, plan and put it in writing! Get a calendar or planner and use it specifically for planning your workout days and what you are going to do. When its written down, you see it, and youre more likely to stick to doing it. Even better, choose a motivational calendar so you get an added dose of motivation.

Keep your goals in mind every day, in everything you do. Keep your vision, to believe and achieve, and you will.

Cheryl Keaney, the founder of Buff Bodies Bootcamp, is a personal trainer and fitness/nutrition specialist. Visit her website, http://www.got2workout.com. Contact her at cmkfit@gmail.com.

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Keaney: Tips for staying motivated for a healthy lifestyle - Port Huron Times Herald