By Dustin McRae

As we near the end of the 2018 Florence’s Biggest Loser competition, it is important to start looking ahead on how to continue on a journey to fitness and overall health.

Just because the competition is over does not mean the journey should be over. A lot of work has been put in by both the contestants and all involved to help improve overall quality of life in the pursuit of wellness.

The question now: Where do we go from here? When the training sessions are over and there is no longer as big of an incentive as the program itself, how do you find the motivation to continue on this journey?

First and foremost, remember why you started in the first place. Everyone has a different reason for beginning Florence’s Biggest Loser, or a fitness journey in general, and it is important not to lose sight of why you started in the first place. Whether it was because you were encouraged by a family member, or you wanted to do it because of internal motivation, try to focus on the reason you wanted to begin in the first place.

Also, remember how hard it was to start the journey. Although the workouts have not gotten much easier, your overall fitness level has. Motivation can be found in different areas, but being able to look back on workouts and see how much progress you have made is a good way to stay on track.

Second, take what you have learned from your trainers and put it into practice. This has not just been a competition to put you through workouts because we have nothing better to do. It is also not because we like to torture people, although that is what many of my group members believe!

A great deal of the training sessions have been geared toward teaching different ways to structure workouts so you can replicate or either change different parts of it to continue on when you are no longer in a group setting.

Last but certainly not least, remember the friends you made during the program and hold each other accountable. Start a group that meets a few times a week and continues to work out together. If you know someone is waiting on you, it is much harder to bail on your workouts.

Also, just because your trainer is no longer your trainer, it does not mean he or she is not willing to give you advice. If you find yourself struggling to stay on track, it can help to have someone in your corner to help guide you back on the right path.

Don’t forget, it is a marathon, not a sprint. You won’t wake up one morning and be completely changed, but you will continue to wake up feeling a little better each day. Continue pushing on through the journey, because one day you will look back and say one of two things: I am glad I continued what I had started, or I wish I had continued the habit.

Everyone has been doing awesome, and I hope to continue to see people on the path to health and wellness!

Dustin McRae has been a nationally certified personal trainer since March of 2014. He played baseball and ran cross country in college before graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree. He is pursuing his master’s in kinesiology from A.T. Still University. He has been a trainer at the McLeod Health & Fitness Center since 2014 and loves to work with athletes as well as individuals at various fitness levels. This is his fourth year as a trainer for Florence’s Biggest Loser.