Weight Loss Tips for a Summer Bikini Bod

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!

April showers brings May flowers. And May brings freak-out time for those who fear baring their legs, bellies and bottoms as the weather warms up. Familiar cries of desperation and tales of weight-loss woes can be heard everywhere this time of year, an all-too-common scenario that continues to occur, kind of like in the movie "Groundhog Day," where the same day keeps repeating itself every time the star character would awaken in the morning.

Listen, it isn't an easy task to lose weight, especially as the years begin to fly by. For many, losing extra pounds becomes a bit more difficult than in years past. Yet, I believe that by adopting the mindset and strategies of a weight-loss warrior, you can really do it this time -- and do it right, so that it sticks and you aren't freaking out this time next year.

Here are seven ways of the weight-loss warrior, sure to help you get your bod ready for Summer.

• Inch by Inch. Buy a tape measure, the kind you find in the sewing department. Measure your chest, upper arms, waist, upper hips (measure where your hip bones begin), buttocks, upper thighs and calves. Write it all down. This is your starting point. Measure again the same time of day in about three weeks.
• Forget About It. Stop weighing yourself more than once a week. If you can stand it, wait three weeks. It's more rewarding this way to measure your progress. Forget the scale for awhile and focus on the tasks that will make a difference.
• Focus Upon the End Result. Close your eyes, and envision yourself in your favorite pair of shorts or that new slinky dress. Do you see yourself looking confident, smiling, and looking oh-so-good? Work on this mini-meditation. Throw on some music and see yourself at your goal weight. Lock it in. You might try finding a hypnotherapist or another pro who uses visualization to help you overcome your subconscious roadblocks
• Be Accountable to Another. Accountability works better than trying to go it alone. Connect with a real live human being you see on a regular basis and report your ups and downs. Choose a friend with similar weight-loss goals, a personal trainer, a wellness coach or a nutritionist. Keep a food and fitness journal and review with each other at least once a week. And be honest about what you report.
  
• Do it Right with The Right Diet. Here's the Laura Diet. Stop consuming junk and synthetic foods. Stop eating wheat products except for sprouted wheat. Stop drinking alcohol. Eat three times per day. Drink plenty of pure mineral-rich spring water like Crazy water. Eat lean protein at each meal with plenty of dark green leafy veggies. Have one to two servings of legumes daily.Throw in a few tablespoons of olive oil each day. And take your Omega-3 supplements. Eat one serving of berries, apples or melon in between meals.
  
• Sleep it Off. Research shows that people who get adequate sleep are leaner than those who are sleep deprived. Seven to eight hours is optimal.
  
• Where For Art Thou Cardio? First thing in the morning, jump on the treadmill or eliptical and go for at least 20 to 30 minutes with interval training. Then, after you eat dinner, no later than 6 p.m., do it again. With this two-a-day strategy, it will ramp up your metabolic rate big time!

In order to finally do it right this time around, you must commit yourself to the process. Good luck and let me know how it goes!