Slim Gym.

Slim Gym

Getting in shape is one of the most popular New Year's resolutions --

and the hardest to stick to. Hop off the elliptical machine, put down that smoothie, and change your body for good. By Brooke Le Poer Trench

it happens every January: Inspired by weight-loss resolutions, women start showing up at the gym day after day. Six weeks of red-faced exertion later, they cry uncle (and sometimes actually cry) when the needle on the scale and the notch on their belt hasn't budged. Many quit, wondering, What's the point? And so the cycle goes. "I see the same women year after year at the gym with the exact same bodies they started with," says Kacy Duke, a personal trainer at Equinox Fitness Clubs in New York City whose clients include Kirsten Dunst and Julianne Moore, and coauthor of The Show It Love Workout (McGraw Hill). "They do come in and work out, but they don't know what they should be doing to change their bodies." According to many trainers, there are common missteps that add up to a lot of frustration. But simply identifying these

saboteurs and adopting the workout habits of the fittest women in the gym can bring the results you want. Lean women do work out smarter and more frequently -- and they don't waste a minute of gym time. Of course, they're also not diving into a bowl of spaghetti Bolognese washed down with three glasses of Barolo after finishing a tough evening workout. "It's rare that very thin women look that way because of exercise alone," says Los Angeles personal trainer Gunnar Peterson, who works with Jennifer Lopez and Amber Valletta. "They modify their diets and stick to a healthy eating plan in addition to burning as many calories as they can in the hour they have at the gym," Duke says. Follow their lead (and skip your morning vanilla chai latte), and you'll soon feel as if you're moving forward when you're at the gym -- even when you're Spinning your wheels.

#1 THEY GET OFF ON THE RIGHT FOOT Many women think their workout begins when they start to sweat, but the toned women at the gym tip the odds in their favor before they lace up their sneakers. First, they eat something. "Fit people recognize that their body needs fuel to work hard and maintain its energy levels," Duke says. Which is not to say you need to carb-load like you're headed for Everest base camp. Eat a banana or a handful of dried fruit and nuts, or drink a small protein shake -- basically, choose something healthy that's about 100 calories. Toned women also get ready quickly. "So many people cut into their workout by wasting 15 minutes getting ready," says Ramona Braganza, a personal trainer in Los Angeles who has worked with Jessica Alba and Halle Berry. Finally, these women leave their BlackBerries and magazines in the locker room, "because if you're emailing or reading, you're not working hard enough to lose weight," Duke says.

#2 THEY HIT THE TREADMILL You may have noticed that the gym's treadmill bank is a congregation of perfect bodies. "Of all the machines at the gym, the treadmill is most likely to result in weight loss because it works more muscles and keeps your heart rate elevated, both of which burn fat," says Carol Espel, an exercise physiologist and national director for group fitness at Equinox Fitness Clubs. Trainers say it's harder to get the same results on an elliptical machine or recumbent bike because they're much easier on the body. Plus, they're self-