Get prepared for your weight loss jur-nee...

If you're anything like me you will have had a few what I like to call 'come backs'. You know, sort of like Thorpey back in 2007. It may be a post-holiday 'get back on track' or maybe a major rethink after years and years of inactivity. Or maybe you've never exercised before and you're breaking new ground. Either way, the process is pretty much the same.

Step 1 – measure yourself!

Get on the scales and get out the tape measure. That's right. Cold hard and clinical. Weigh yourself first thing in the morning AFTER you've been to the loo and BEFORE you've eaten or drank anything. This is what I like to call your 'dry' weight, and it's the way to do it every time you weigh yourself. Then grab the tape and measure your chest, waist, hips legs and arms (see page 30 of Crunch Time for the correct way to do this).

Step 2 – if you haven't already got one, get a Calorie Counter

You can't work out how what's going on with your weight if you don't know how many calories you're taking on each day. In The Michelle Bridges Australian Calorie Counter (in bookshops from March 2009) I've detailed all the foods that you DO want to eat, and plenty of those that you DON'T!

Step 3 – grab your diary, organiser or whatever!

Here's the most important appointment you have all day – the appointment with YOURSELF. Your training time. More important than your work, your kids, your partner, because by looking after yourself you can be more productive, live longer and be happier so that you can support these people for longer. You will be able to offer a BETTER VERSION OF YOURSELF. I can never understand men and women who sacrifice their health for their children or their partners. 'Oh, I don't have time for myself because I'm busy looking after the kids blah blah blah..."

So you'll consciously shorten your life and increase the risk of spending your later years in chronic disability, burdening the very people you were trying to support? Any lights coming on here…?

Make sure the time you put aside is realistic and achievable. Then stick to it.

Step 4 – get support.

Enrol your colleagues and loved ones into your plan. If they shit-can your efforts, they ain't your friends…

Step 5 – guerilla raid the kitchen.

Your kitchen is ground control in your weight loss and fitness goals. You will always eat the food that is most easily accessible, so don't sabotage yourself by surrounding yourself with crap. Start at the fridge and work your way around the kitchen ditching all the dumb food that you can see. Soft drink, biscuits, allegedly nutritious breakfast cereals – you know the ones I mean. Then replace it with good quality whole food.

Step 6 – get a NEW You journal.

You can download a NEW You journal from this website, or there's one in the back of Crunch Time. This is your bible – be diligent in your record keeping because nothing motivates like success, and the journal will tell you what a rock star you've been!

Step 7 – complete a seven day food diary.

For seven days you must write down everything you eat and drink. Everything. And don't go on a diet so that it looks better than it is. You need to know exactly what you've been eating in the past, because that's what's got you where you are now. And don't NOT eat something that you normally would because you know you'll have to record it. You can download the one that I like to use with my clients to see how it looks, or make up your own.

Then using the calorie counter, add up the number of calories you eat each week and divide it into the average number per day. Compare this to your Basal Metabolic Rate and you'll know if you've been taking in too many (or too few) calories. I don't think I've ever seen someone's Seven Day Food Diary that doesn't tell the story immediately of where they're going wrong. If your diet is all over the place, yours will be the same.

You now have all the information you need to get started. The next step is to get started on your exercise program.