Put your ducks in a row

TRAINER X

I am knackered! I have spent the last 48 hours painting and sanding and scraping and taping so that my daughters can come over and see just what a wonderland their stepmom and I have turned their bedroom into (shhh, don't tell them!). I am by no means Da Vinci when it comes to painting, but I do know that there are certain preparations that need to take place, and if you don't follow the rules, the paint will be everywhere except where you want it.
So, this morning I woke up extra early for a Sunday and made sure I got done what I needed to, or I'd be Grumpy Van Gogh for my chores ahead. Looking at my tasks at hand, I realized that I would need to move furniture, tape off window sills, put a drop cloth down, etc. { Of course, I knew that I’d be dashing my weekly column off the second I finished, and wouldn’t you know…I found a way to turn my work of art into a fitness lesson! }
Today I'll discuss some of the finer points of planning and how it can turn your body into the work of art you've always wanted.
Make sure that the rooster shows up for work. If I had a nickel for every time someone told me that they ``forgot to set their alarm,'' I would be typing on a platinum keyboard. Why are these people changing their alarms or shutting them off in the first place? No weekends off, people!
Make it a habit of getting up whenever you alarm goes off and then making sure that it's set for the right wake-up time tomorrow. Getting up and observing the same exact morning ritual is one of the biggest mitigating factors to success in anything.
Pack your gymbag and lunchbox before the bus comes. This is another priority; I can't see how people leave their houses without knowing what they'll eat or if they'll work out. Those two reasons are why heart disease is the No. 1 killer in the United States; nobody plans on exercising or knows what or when they'll eat.
I will just say this: If you plan on exercising before work and leave with your food packed for the day, you'll add years to your life and save a ton of money on take out.
Have a plan when you get to the gym. Don't dilly dally and gossip with every Tom, Dick or Harry that you come across; put your headphones on before you leave the locker room and don't look anyone in the eye as you beeline to the cardio deck. After that, hit a quick whole body circuit and tackle your day.
Remember, if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. No way around it folks, so quit reacting and start acting.
Darin St. George is a personal fitness coach at Gold's Gym in Natick. Visit his Web site at www.myspace.com/darinstgeorge.