How to Set Great Fitness Goals
Setting Realistic and Useful Fitness Goals
Setting goals can be a great way to motivate yourself and structure your workouts. Having goals helps you improve. However, it’s important to set specific and realistic goals. Setting goals that are vague, unclear, or unrealistic aren’t just ineffective, but they can actually be harmful. This is because they can cause you to lose motivation or focus on the wrong things.
That’s why it’s important to set goals that are SMART: Specific, Measurable, Accountable, Realistic, Timeframe.
Be Specific
A specific goal (such as “I want to lose ten pounds”) is much better than a vague one (“I want to lose weight.”) With a specific goal, you know exactly when you’ve succeeded. For example, if you want to lose ten pounds, you know when you’ve accomplished this goal. If you just want to “lose weight” there’s no way to ever know if you’ve achieved your goal, and that can kill your motivation.
Set Measurable Goals
Once you have your specific goal, think of a way to measure it. For example, if you want to lose ten pounds in ten weeks, then losing one pound a week keeps you on track. When you can measure your success, you’ll stay motivated.
Be Accountable
Write down your goals and your progress, either on paper, in your computer, or on your phone. This will keep you accountable. You may even want to share your goals with a friend, workout partner, or personal trainer. This will certainly keep you going.
Make Sure Your Goal is Realistic
You want to set a goal that is challenging without being overwhelming. If you set an unrealistic goal, you’re almost certain to fail, and this will kill your motivation. Think of what will be possible for you. This will be different for every person, so you’ll need to consider what is right for your situation.
Set a Timeframe
Put a time limit on your goal. Saying “I want to lose ten pounds in ten weeks” is much better than just wanting to lose ten pounds. Having a specific timeframe in mind keeps you motivated and pushing towards achieving your goal.
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