Written by Claire Troy.
Are you the type of person who sets fitness goals year after year, but never seems to achieve them? It might be because you’re biting off more than you can chew with unrealistic goals.
To ensure your fitness resolution hasn’t been forgotten by the time February rolls around, it’s important to set realistic goals. By doing this, you’re more likely to keep focused and motivated and before you know it, you will have achieved your goals!
To help you achieve your fitness goals this year, use our top 5 tips below:
Tip 1: Create Short-Term & Long-Term Goals
Goals should be both short-term and long-term. Your short-term goals are important to help you stay on track and focused, while your long-term goals are there to remind you of the bigger picture. Set daily or weekly short-term goals, as well as monthly and yearly long-term goals.
Examples:
Short-term goal – exercise three times this week.
Long-term goal – lose 5kg in 2 months.
Tip 2: Make Measurable Goals
Goals should be easily measured so that you know if you have succeeded or not. These are known as quantitative goals, which are numeric and detailed. How far do you want to run or how many pull-ups do you want to do? Give all your goals a number, so that you can track the goal’s progress.
There are also qualitative goals but they are harder to measure and track. These goals are based on feelings rather than numbers. You can still set these goals but your main focus should be on numeric, measurable goals.
Examples:
Quantitate goal – perform 5 pull-ups in 4 weeks.
Qualitative goal – have more energy.
Tip 3: Make Realistic & Relevant Goals
Make sure that your goals are realistic and relevant to YOU specifically. Always take into consideration your availability, your abilities, your limitations, your workload and your lifestyle. If you set unrealistic goals that cannot be reached, then you will only cause disheartenment when you cannot achieve that goal. So when you are setting your goals, make sure that you keep yourself in mind.
Tip 4: Allow Room For Setbacks
Setbacks are only natural and everyone goes through them. But it is those who foresee the setback and plan accordingly, who will still achieve their desired goals. So, before you set your goals, think of any setbacks that might be coming up, for example, a holiday, a wedding or a party. Try to stay on track through these events but if you do derail, then just re-set your goals or allow some additional time.
Tip 5: Appreciate Your Progress
Your fitness journey will not be enjoyable if you do not celebrate every goal that you have achieved. Be proud of how far you have come. Even if there are some setbacks, don’t be hard on yourself - just keep moving forward! Embrace what you have accomplished and maybe even treat yourself when you do complete some of those long-term goals.
This post was written by Claire Troy. Claire is a health coach and freelance writer from Melbourne, Australia. She has been working in the health and fitness industry for over 5 years, providing support and advice to those in need.