Today’s post comes from Pamela Hernandez, ACSM Certified Personal Trainer and an ACE Lifestyle & Weight Management Coach. This month, Pamela gives tips on how to build a fitness foundation that will help you to become confident and strong. Follow her healthy weight loss and fitness tips on twitter: @thrivefit. She is ThriveFit on DailyBurn.

I didn’t start my journey with a New Year’s Resolution, although I am sure many of you will.

The New Year was well behind me when I made the decision to live a different life. It was early spring when I started down the road to a healthier and fitter me.  It was nothing to do with the season or the calendar that made me decide that something had to change.

It was how I felt, both body and spirit. Physically, I was experiencing frequent low back pain and I had zero energy. Mentally, I was depressed and lacked self confidence. I had known I was overweight and had been feeling these things for some time. I tried some of the fad diets (anyone else remember Stop the Insanity and Susan Powter?) and fat burning pills (but forgot to read the diet and exercise fine print) without success. It had taken those failed experiments and the passage of time to get to a point where I knew I had to change for good. I simply reached a point where I said Enough.

I didn’t change overnight. I took several small steps,  ones that anyone who has is ready to say Enough can take.  My beginner basics were:

• Consistent exercise, both weights and cardio.

I bought a copy of Weight Training for Dummies to learn how to lift properly.  I made a commitment to ride the exercise bike on days I wasn’t lifting. Find what you like and get moving.

• Eat small meals 5-6 times per day that include lean protein.

Don’t get too caught up in ratios of protein, fat and carbs to start. As a beginner you just need to focus on the calories in verses calories out, quality food and balanced eating.

• Weigh yourself once a week and only once a week.

The natural day to day fluctuations of your body weight can drive you nuts if you step on the scale every day.

Find someone in your life to support you in your journey.

The start of my journey coincided with the beginning of my relationship with my husband. He was, and still is, my champion every step of the way. Don’t try to go it alone.

These were the foundation on which I built my life of health and fitness upon. While they are simple, they are some of the most important things anyone can learn who is trying to live healthy and fit. You must have a solid foundation before you can progress to bigger and better things.

Right now, as many of you are working on keeping the New Year’s Resolutions you have made, I want you to focus on keeping it simple.  I want you to lay your foundations with the basics of exercise and nutrition.  Don’t get caught up in the hype, the promises of miracle diets with tedious food plans and complicated training schemes.

Don’t get me wrong, there will be a time further down the road for more advanced workouts and more detailed meal planning. But right now, on the threshold of your transformation, focus on getting the basics right.  If you can do that, then you will be successful at every stage of the journey to come.