Goals. We all have them, but most of us have goals like “I want to lose weight”. Or “I want to get stronger”. This is a great start! But for most people, this is such a big undertaking that it leaves you feeling overwhelmed and like you don’t even know where you would start.
Well, look no further. I am going to break down everything you could ever want to know about why you should always have a goal you are working towards, how to make them, and how to achieve them.
Why do you need a goal?
Having a goal you are working towards is the single best way to keep yourself growing and changing. The goal doesn’t have to be a huge life changing achievement. It could be something as simple as doing one chin up, or learning a new skill. This pursuit will make you try something new, and this will bring on change.
Having a goal gives you intrinsic motivation and helps to decrease procrastination. Knowing you want to get that chin up gives you motivation to go to the gym 3 days a week, and will keep you from sitting on the couch instead of getting up.
Having a goal gives you a sense of direction in life. I have had many discussions with my one on one coaching clients who often report feeling “stagnant” or stuck in life. They are in a routine doing the same thing day after day, and they feel like they cannot get out of the cycle. How do you break it? You set a new goal, and make a new plan and routine. As your goals change, your plans and routines will change with them.
Keep it SMART
Now that you know why you should be consistently setting goals, how do you do this in a way that will lead to success, not overload? You set a SMART goal. A SMART goal is:
S: Specific
M: Measurable
A: Achievable/Actions
R: Relevant/Realistic
T: Time bound
We are going to use this template as an example to work through the goal “I want to lose weight”.
Specific
“I want to lose weight” is not a specific goal, so let’s be more specific. You could say, I want to lose 50 pounds. That’s better! That would be specific enough to move on to the next step – however, people who see the most success know that there are many “mini goals” on the way to your bigger goal. So we could break down our goal and say, I want to lose 10 pounds, 5 times. This makes the goal seem much more achievable.
Measurable
How will you measure this goal? You can check your weight every day, check your body measurements every two weeks, and you can take progress pictures once per month to assess for body composition changes.
Achievable
Your goals should be achievable and realistic. If you are 100 lbs, saying you want to lose 50 lbs is not something you can do. However, if you weigh 300 lb, losing 50 lbs is a very achievable goal. Saying you want to lose 50 lbs in 30 days is not possible, but losing 50 lbs in 12-18 months is!
Relevant
At this stage you should also start planning your actions that will lead to your goal. How do you plan to lose 50 lbs? You could come up with a plan like:
- I will eat in a 500 calorie deficit everyday
- I will get 8,000 steps per day
- I will go to the gym 3 days per week
- I will prioritize protein and high volume foods to help keep me full
- I will plan on having 80% consistency with my plan
Is your goal relevant to where you are in your life? When you are in the middle of starting a brand new job, caring for an acutely ill family member, or trying to establish any other new routine, this may not be the best time to try to lose weight. But if you are 50 lbs overweight, and you’re currently in a relatively stable place in your life, then this would be the perfect time to go for it!
Time bound
How long will you work towards this goal? When looking at fat loss, most people find it helpful to reevaluate how things are going about every three months. At that time, you could take a maintenance break, change some actions, or decide things are going great, and keep going.
Example goal
S: I want to lose 50 lbs, losing 10 lbs 5 times.
M: I will weigh myself daily, do measurements every two weeks, and progress pictures every four weeks.
A: I have 50 lbs or more to lose at this time and plan to lose this weight over the next 12-18 months. I will: eat in a 500 calorie deficit everyday, get 8,000 steps per day, go to the gym 3 days per week, prioritize protein and high volume foods to keep me full, and plan on having 80% consistency with this plan.
R: I do have 50 lbs to lose, and my work and personal life are in a good place for me to dedicate my time and effort into fat loss.
T: I will follow this plan for three months and evaluate my data to see if any changes are needed, or if I need to potentially adjust my goal.
Summary
Now we have gone from “I want to lose weight” to a fully realized goal with a plan on how to achieve it. You can go through this process with any goal in your life. This is the process I use with all of my online coaching clients to help them make and achieve their goals, and you can do it too!