Fitness is one of the core components to creating and maintaining a solid, productive health regimen. Everyone can agree on the importance of fitness its role in building cardiovascular health and the weight-loss and strength benefits it produces. Being fit, most people would agree, improves one's sense of well-being, makes you feel and look more attractive and prolongs life.

That is where it ends, for many. Even those who work at fitness do so without a coherent plan. They decide that fitness is attained by working out' or playing a spot, and then fall into fairly rote patterns to achieve their goal.

It is possible to avoid this syndrome, which is not so much quitting as a logical response to a mushy, non-directed approach. And the way to do that is to establish a program that is most clearly suited to achieving the goal you seek. It is also critical to see your fitness goals (and methodology) as part of an overall health plan.

So, first establish the goal, which may be:

* A general desire for better cardiovascular health or weight loss;

* A more directed goal, such as lowering cholesterol and stopping the spread of heart disease (it is one of the unspoken truths that most adults in Western, modern cultures have some manifestations of cardiovascular disease);

* Sports performance, where fitness is a mechanism for attaining goals in any sport, whether in or out of competition.

The goal you choose will impact the type of fitness program you choose. If you seek to improve general health, strengthening your body and losing weight, then a standard, gym-centered path is probably right for you. Join a gym and consult with the fitness/training staff. Evaluate where you are' current fitness level and present injuries or limitations. Explain to the local expert what your fitness destination is.

Then work at designing a plan that will get you there in a sane, safe and enjoyable way. It should not take long to devise a plan that combines aerobic and cardiovascular work, speed drills and weight training. Stick to the plan, be patient, and the results will come. It is vital that any such program be combined with proper nutrition and what we call applied physiology' healthy mental habits, diaphragmatic breathing and general awareness.

If your fitness goal is health-specific, for instance, attempting to reduce the risks of heart disease, the nutrition-fitness connection is especially important. If you are presently grappling with cardiovascular

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