Many people fall into the cliché of the “New Year, new me” resolution to shed the extra pounds as the month of December wanes thin, but, as the year actually begins, most people lose focus.

Erik Wilkins, founder and owner of Efficient Results Fitness and Nutrition, LLC, sees most people come to the gym to make changes with a lack of mental preparation, which leaves them to inevitably fail of course. He added the key to success in fitness is preparedness and clear, reasonable goals.

“They do it to please everyone else, so they fail,” said Wilkins of vain attempts to get fit, “Being in the fitness business, those are some of the things I see.”

Wilkins stated around New Year’s, on average, he sees around 100 new people beginning in January, but after March only around half of the same people are present.

He tells his trainees to be sure and have plans for what they specifically want to accomplish, eat healthy and exercise regularly and to set reasonable short-term goals that they are capable of reaching.

“When they get discouraged, they quit,” explained Wilkins.

He added when most people try to get healthy they often try to do too much too soon, which can occasionally lead to an injury. Trying to do too much cardio or lift too much weight before they arephysically on that level will hinder your progress indefinitely. He also emphasized the importance of starting slow and even having a cheat day once a week.

On what is reasonable to expect from an individual, having a personal trainer and a personalized meal plan shaped to your dietary needs can increase productivity at the gym.

“If you can lose 10 pounds in a month, that’s fantastic, but the weight comes off easy first and is harder to lose when your body plateaus,”

Although Wilkins stressed that fitness and health start in the home, going to the gym regularly for fitness classes can help members stick to their goals as they develop meaningful relationships with their personal trainers, fitness instructors and with fellow health nuts.

“The relationships they build is like a team,” Wilkins shared.

Wilkins began his interest in fitness and nutrition when he joined the army in 2002. During his spare time in the service, he earned multiple Army Physical Fitness Badges in order to aid his fellow soldiers to reach their goals with proper diet and exercise and was constantly reading up on fitness and diet articles in popular health magazines for men. By 2008, Wilkins had become a certified personal trainer, an overseer of the commanders Army Weight Control Program and a unit fitness trainer, which let him train soldiers who had trouble passing fitness tests required for the military.

At Efficient Results Fitness and Nutrition, LLC, located on 104 East Monticello Street, their mission is to provide the means, expertise and motivation that will help people of all fitness levels achieve his or her individual wellness goals.