Reaching a fitness goal that makes you feel more energetic, look great and be healthier, but before you can reach a healthy fitness goal, you have to set healthy fitness goals. The goals must be realistic. No matter how hard you try, if you’re 5’8″, you’ll never naturally attain the goal of being 6’5″. Losing 100 pounds in two weeks is also not an attainable or healthy goal. Focus on setting goals that are realistic, but also make sure those goals follow other steps that make them attainable.
Is your goal specific?
Why is that important? Let’s look at two goals. The first is “I want to lose weight” and the second is “I want to lose 20 pounds.” For the first goal, if you lose a pound does that mean you’ve reached your goal? When a goal is specific, you know when you’ve attained it. You can break it down to mini goals, such as “I will lose two pounds a week for ten weeks to reach my 20 pound weight loss goal.” You then can identify the steps you’ll take to reach the mini goals.
Can you measure your goal?
A healthy goal has to be measurable. How will you know if you get healthier? In the previous example, the person measures their achievement by the specific amount of weight to lose? Identify exactly what you want to achieve. If lowering blood pressure or blood sugar levels is a goal, then use that in setting your goal. “I will lower my Systolic blood pressure by ten points by eating a healthy diet and exercising three times a week.”
Your goal should be relevant and time-bound.
If you aren’t interested in achieving a specific goal, but a friend or spouse thought you should, such as lose ten pounds, it’s not relevant to you. You also have to set a time frame to achieve that goal. How many people remember pulling all-nighters because of a test the next day. That test made that date important and even though you didn’t bother learning the information along the way, learning it became important because it was time-bound. The same is true of any goal, unless you set a deadline, there’s always tomorrow.
- Tracking your goals and keeping record of your progress is also important. It helps you identify what works and what doesn’t, plus allows you to go back and see how much you’ve achieved.
- Even though you do your best, at one time or another, you may have a set back, whether it’s skipping a workout session or eating a pint of ice cream. Forgive yourself and get back on track. You achieve nothing with self-condemnation. Be your own best cheerleader.
- Goals can be changed. You can make adjustments if it’s too hard or too easy. If there end up things out of your control, change the goal to control those things you can control.
- Setting and tracking your goals keep them in the forefront. They help you get results and stick with a program. Write down your goals and hone them. If they’re big, break them down to smaller goals so you have more immediate success and stay motivated.
For more information, contact us today at UpFit Training Academy
