Krista Anson, 24, at Crunch Bellmore where she is currently a personal trainer. (Photo by: Antasha ‘Tish’ Islam)

Krista Anson, a former soccer player, and track athlete knows how to help people get healthy – from the way they exercise to what they eat. A former coach at OrangeTheory in Bethpage, NY, now a trainer at Crunch Bellmore, NY, Anson says she advises her clients to find balance in their fitness regimes.

“It doesn’t happen overnight, patience and consistency are key,” Anson says, adding that balancing out mental and physical health is the secret to reaching long-term goals, whether it’s eating that piece of pumpkin pie you were craving or beating the sun and making time to get a workout in at the crack of dawn.

“The quote I live by is: ‘Nobody cares, work harder,’” Anson said. “No one wants to hear your excuses and how tired you are, just show up and do better.” This mindset, she explains, puts “you against the world,” you push yourself harder and strive for more, especially when you “don’t feel like it.”

Anson says being physically active is the key to being physically and mentally fit, it helps people become a more balanced, physically fit person. Being active improves mental health by reducing anxiety and depression by improving confidence, self-esteem and supports one’s cognitive development. Many people think that maintaining their fitness will just aim at their physical image but don’t realize that being physically active will actually help maintain their overall health by improving the body’s development and functions.

Last, but not least- diet. We’ve all heard the saying “abs are made in the kitchen,” but what does it mean? Anson explains where one can start. “It’s the 80/20 rule: When you’re trying to lose weight, 80 percent of your results come from your diet, and only 20 percent come from exercise”. This doesn’t mean you can stop working out, it’s still a huge percentage, but if it seems like the scale isn’t changing, you might need to understand your body’s needs and work on your calorie intake. Being in a caloric deficit, along with exercise will help one reach their weight loss goals, which means eating fewer calories than you’re burning. Besides counting calories, you need to make sure you are consuming quality calories. This means, if you have a calorie target of 1800, then you should not eat pizza, burgers, etc., you need to make sure those 1800 calories are coming from foods that are high in fiber, and are good sources of protein, carbohydrates, and fats.