Fiscally FitWhen I wrote 7 Secrets To Staying Slim, That Save You Money I really came to understand how one’s physical health has a parallel existence to being fiscally healthy.

Lose the Excess Weight – Just like excess weight puts an added burden on your joints and heart, so too does the excess stuff in the house; to keep it up in usable condition, to find a place to store it, to dust it, to forget you even have it. Eventually that adds a burden to your budget and to your psyche. Declutter and get some money in the process.

Gain Muscle
– Through the process of gaining muscle you are losing weight and firming up your existing muscles that will help you later in life. The same is true in the financial gym, when you gain a savings, you also realize that getting rid of your debt will help you save even more. This savings bulk up will also help you later in life or through an emergency.

Develop Your Core – It is hard to gain muscle when your body’s core is weak and can’t bear under the weight. This means that you need to know what is coming in and where it is going. If you have that balance under control, then you will be able to handle the money you are putting away and increase or decrease it with a plan.

Go for the Gold – When you start to see that physique in the mirror that you have been dreaming about, you start to build a confidence that moves you to loftier goals. And with finances you will also find this to be true. You have found a way to train that will shape you into the image you long to see (with little tweaks here and there, no one is perfect!) and as your financial life grows, so will your ideas for retiring early, cutting back to one job, buying a half tone of gold or saving 1 million dollars for retirement.

So how do you do these things?

Lose the Excess Weight
Stop overspending – Cut up the cards. if you maxed them out, you can’t use them anyway.
Spend within your means – Moderation is key. Don’t let your eyes grab a hold of what your wallet can’t handle
Pay off debt – Put in a little extra. If it is rounding up your minimum from $37 to $40 a month or paying min on all cards except one.

Build some muscle
Improve your credit score – Since this is a new year, it is a good time to get your free reports at Annualcreditreport.com and take a look what needs to be fixed.
Improve your emergency fund – If you have nothing, get it to $100, $1,000 or save 3 months expenses worth
Start a 401K/IRA – Hide today’s money away for yourself in the future.

Develop Your Core
Differentiate Needs & Wants – Obviously you can’t have it all now, or you can, but there is a great debt to pay for it. This is where procrastinating is a good thing- when you spend money.
Understand Income/Outgoing – Sit down and work out a balance sheet, set up a budget, find ways to cut back so you can increase it in other, better areas.
Balance Value – Cheap isn’t always equal to value. Sometimes you have to delay in order to get a good value.

Go for the Gold
Save even more – If you have a robust 401k/IRA and savings, start expanding
Keep yourself Informed – Make sure you are keeping yourself informed, it is your money and under your control
Avoid scams – Don’t fall for get rich quick scams, keep your finances safe and secure

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Dawn C. is site owner of Frugalforlife.com where this is a repost from: Physically Healthy vs. Fiscally Healthy. Dawn is residing in Colorado with her spouse, Teri, of 11 years.