Every Monday, That's Fit's very own "charged up" wellness guru Laura Lewis presents The Passion Principle, a weekly guide that will help you achieve your greatest potential through words of inspiration, cutting-edge ideas and action tips you can use in your every day life!

Do you REALLY want to achieve your health and fitness goals? Tell the truth now. When I ask the question, what is your fitness goal, do you really know? If you do, do you actually "feel" it in your heart? It turns out the hearts of champions are made up of some very unique qualities. You too can activate those qualities. If you are tired of failing over and over again, then maybe it's time to activate the champion that lives within you.

One of my favorite things to say when teaching fitness classes is "You've got to change your mind before you can change your matter." I believe it's true that you will never achieve your goal of performing 30 push-ups, losing those last 10 pounds or even breaking a world record if your mindset is not in the right place. How do you shift your mindset? Many of the worlds top performers not only in athletics but also in other pursuits, such as the arts, sciences, literature and business to name a few, all seem to have the secret to reaching the pinnacle of success. Is there a secret to achieving a high level of excellence? You betcha. Seven of them as a matter of fact, according to Terry Orlick, a mental training consultant to some of the world's greatest exceptional achievers including top Olympic and world champions.

After studying exceptional performers in a wide variety of pursuits, Orlick came up with a model he found to be consistent across the board to those who were winners or champions in their categories. His model, the "Wheel of Excellence," has clear-cut "spokes" that make up its entirety -- seven elements or seven "spokes" in all. He found in all super achievers that each of these elements were evident and appeared to fuel each of their journeys towards success.

The Wheel of Excellence -- The Seven Secrets to Success

• Commitment. Pure, bonafide commitment to yourself. Your mental mindset is all about being the very best you can be. To be committed to do what it takes, whatever it is, to achieve your goal. To give it your all. To relentlessly pursue your goals. To excel and succeed, you must be fully committed to "winning." Are you committed to your goal?
• Belief. Believing you CAN do it is the second element of excellence. Kerrin Lee Gartner, an Olympic Champion skier defines belief as "the focus is so clear that you shut your thoughts off and you trust yourself and believe in yourself. " According to Orlick, you have to believe in your own potential, your goal and in the meaning behind that goal. If the pure belief in your own abilities does not exist, then you will never be able to achieve your goals. Do you believe in you?
• Full Focus. A winner knows how to concentrate and focus intensely in the moment, blocking out distractions, false beliefs, and connects totally in the task at hand. To achieve the highest of high in your performance potential, being intensely focused serves to blast you towards success. How focused are you?
• Positive Images. Champions "see" success beforehand. Creating scenarios where one actually envisions success and visualizing them daily is an essential ingredient in the recipe for success. Scenarios may include not only the glorious moments of a "win" but also successfully overcoming problems or challenges that may come up. Do you see your own success?
  
• Mental Readiness. Learn all that one can. Honing one's skills. Getting mentally ready. A champion is all that and a "bag of chips" as we like to say in Texas. Pure preparation and dedication to excellence is consistently present from the moment goals are set. Are you mentally prepped?
• Distraction Control. Concentration is king in high achievers. Having the ability to block out all distractions even in the midst of inevitable "human" moments. "When you experience lapses in concentration or setbacks during a performance, the goal is to quickly regain a fully-connected focus" says Orlick. How many times have you fallen off the wagon due to distractions? A winner gets right back on and let's the momentary lapse pass by. An elite classical musician once said, "Every once in a while we'll miss a note...I try not to think of it. It's gone." My famous last words are "It is what it is, it was what it was ... now get on with the original task at hand!"
• Constructive Evaluation. Superstars, champions and elite performers all have the ability to learn how to excel by evaluating their mistakes. Reflecting upon what needs improvement not only in the details of performance but also in the big picture. Is any element of the wheel out of balance? Is focus an issue? Distractions? Positive imagery? Getting very clear on what areas need to be adjusted so the next time around, failure can be avoided. Can you learn from your mistakes?
  

The Bottom line: Getting your mind right by implementing and honing the qualities found in the "Wheel of Excellence" can make you a winner, whether you are battling bad eating habits, attempting to set a world record, or heck, just trying to look fantastic in your shorts this summer! You can do it if you think like a champion.