By: Hamish Abbie BPhEd, BComm, CHEK L1, XLR8 Coach, REPs
Goal Setting for Fitness Results
Goal Setting - How to get your Goals Right
"A dream is just a dream. A goal is a dream with a plan and a deadline"
In all aspects of life, goal setting is essential for your personal focus, growth and development. While we can be motivated enough to set goals on a regular basis, too often they fall by the wayside and we don't follow through or hold ourselves accountable for falling short.
Writing your goals down on a piece of paper is a good start, as seeing your goals in print creates a sense of urgency and gives you something to refer back to when you lose direction. It also helps to share your intentions with someone you are close to, including your personal trainer. Knowing that someone has an interest in your progress creates a sense of accountability, making you less likely to let yourself slide.
Action creates motivation, so why not start putting your vision down on paper today. No goal is too big, but do consider the following tips:
Goal Setting Tips
- Identify your stepping stones. Remember to make your short and medium term goals stepping stones towards achieving your ultimate long term goal. Breaking goals down into manageable targets keeps you motivated and stops you becoming overwhelmed.
- Make sure your goals are realistic. Creating realistic goals sets you up for success. If your goals become too easy, you can always set new ones, with a sense of achievement. The same can’t be said if you set a goal that you can’t attain.
- Create rewards for achieving your goals. This could be a massage, a new outfit or a personal training session. Whatever it is, make sure it is something you value. It’s too easy to become resentful and frustrated if you don’t take the time to look after yourself.
- Prepare for plateaus. If you feel you have reached a plateau, do not give up. This is a natural part of working out. To keep things interesting ask your trainer how you can vary your exercises, sets, repetitions and order of your workout. Also be innovative and try to come up with new ways of making your exercise fun and exciting.
- Define your deadline. It's far too easy to put your goals off if you haven't set yourself a deadline. Be realistic but definite. Having a deadline creates a sense of urgency which will help spur you into action.
If your goal is to lose weight and get into great shape, then guarantee your success by working with the team at Pulse Personal Training. We would love to help you transform your body in 2012. Contact us today discuss how we can help you to get started.
