Every day, we make thousands of choices—some big, some small—and every one of them can influence our lives. Even the most minor choice can have a major impact.

Take an early morning workout, for example. You can choose to go out partying the night before, or you can choose to go to bed early. You can choose to hit the snooze button several times and rush to your session on an empty stomach, or you can wake up early and enjoy a healthy, energizing breakfast. You can choose steak and eggs with a nice cup of coffee and a handful of almonds, or you can wolf down a bowl of cereal with skim milk, a banana, and a glass of orange juice.

You can choose to do a circuit training program full of big, compound, multi-joint movements—or you can hop on the treadmill for an hour.

I’ve been in the personal training game for over 20 years now, and I’ve seen it all. Many people think hiring a trainer is all it takes to get in shape. Not true! A trainer can absolutely help, but the responsibility is still on you. You ultimately control your fate. No one else can do it for you.

A trainer can lead you to water—filtered water, of course—but they can’t make you drink.

And remember, a trainer is only with you for an hour—once, twice, maybe three times a week. That’s it. The rest of the time, you’re on your own. If you show up to that session with a negative attitude, you won’t get a positive result.

Personal training is what you make of it. A good trainer can guide and motivate you, but you need to push yourself to work hard if you want to succeed—in and out of the gym.

You’ve heard it before: “Abs are made in the kitchen, not in the gym!” No donut enters your stomach by accident. It enters by choice.

So start the year off right: Make the right choices—and you’ll get the right response.