Take tiny steps.

You've got your overall goal – to achieve a fit, healthy, strong and slim body but this is simply your destination. What you have to decide is how you're going to get there. Compare it to taking a trip from London to Paris. Your first step is to leave London and there are several ways you can choose to do this (by car, by train, by air…) along with different times you can set off and a plethora of route possibilities to consider. It's the same with improving fitness – in my last blog post I talked about the importance of knowing where you are on the map when you design your plan, of establishing exactly where you are right now. So let's just take a look at the fitness aspect of your wellness programme. Assuming you know your current fitness level – how will you go on to improve it – are you a gym bunny, a football fanatic or a would-be runner? Whatever you decide to do, you must schedule every little step involved in your daily planner. So it might read something like this:

Day Monday

Time 8am
30 minute session
Where - from home
What - 10 minute warm up brisk walk then a further 10 minutes of alternate jog 1 minute, walk 2 minutes. 5 minute cool down walk to finish

Day Wednesday

Time 6pm
30 minute session
Where - Swimming pool
What – practise slow crawl with lots of rest breaks

And so on. Baby steps.

Know what's not working.

Nothing in life goes smoothly from A to B without a few hitches along the way. As you begin to follow your wellness programme the important thing is not to feel a sense of failure when things don't go entirely according to plan. Don't get demoralised. If you find your beautifully designed exercise sessions really difficult to achieve then simply acknowledge that, right now, they are a little too challenging and then make some adjustments. It's not failure, it's feedback. It's very important that you experience success with your plans so if it's not working, then fix it.

Ditch the links.

You will find that certain habits and actions are not conducive to you sticking to your goals. They have to go. If you have in the past forged a habitual association between driving and snacking then I don't need to tell you that this may sabotage your dreams somewhat. Create a new association. Could you listen to plays or educational cd's in your car? If you do this often enough you will automatically reach for the audio button whenever you jump in the car.

Forget about the Jones.

Don't keep comparing yourself unfavourably to other people. Yes, the guy at the gym may be in better shape than you but the only difference between you and him is that he started on his plans earlier. And if you're five feet two inches with pale skin but long to be tall, dark and willowy like your neighbour then get real! The only barometer to compare yourself with is earlier versions of yourself. Look back to the days when you would get out of breath simply changing channels and marvel at how far you've come.

Incentivise.

Just as the boss of a company will often offer incentives to his staff in order to motivate them to reach for various targets, then you must do the same. What will be your reward if you stick to your programme for one month? For one week? Have substantial treats such as a spa visit along with smaller 'well done' tokens such as going to the movies.

Follow these ten steps and this may be the most successful route to fitness and health that you'll ever experience.