A common trait of high achieving individuals is that they set relevant and concrete goals – goal setting for health and performance is no exception.
Why do we need to establish goals? Simply, they are the markers along our journey towards long term success. When we are feeling lost or aimless, we can return to our goals to solidify our direction and purpose. They help us focus our attention on efforts that are most beneficial and they also help us prioritize our time to make the most out of every day.
It takes some careful consideration to set relevant and tangible goals. To help you identify and articulate your goals, let’s walk through the process and an example.
First, establish a vision statement – what longer term success looks like. In essence, it’s a snapshot of your future self that captures your big dreams and aspirations. The only standard to measure against is what will provide you the most meaning, personal satisfaction, and wellness. Vision statements are a source of motivation – when the going gets tough, return to yours to remind you why you started.
I have several vision statements spanning my personal and professional life. It does not have to be as concrete as a goal. Here is my personal nutrition and fitness vision statement:
Ten years from now, I will remain lean and at a healthy body weight, have excellent health markers with low risk for disease, and be stronger and faster than I am right now.
Once a vision statement has been established, how does one achieve the vision? This is where goal setting comes in. To effectively set goals, use S.M.A.R.T. goal setting. This is a tried and true method I’ve used and implemented both in the corporate world as well as personally. It is so well-known, you may already be familiar with it at work. The S.M.A.R.T. criteria dictate that goals must be:
S – Specific. What will you accomplish and what actions will you take?
M – Measurable. What metrics will you use to measure the goal?
A – Achievable. Is the goal reasonable? Do you have the skills and resources necessary to accomplish the goal?
R – Relevant. Does the goal align with your vision?
T – Timely. What is the time frame for accomplishing the goal and is it realistic?
Why is S.M.A.R.T. so important? By setting clearly defined goals, you can then track progress, celebrate tangible achievements, and be more confident in your own capabilities. If your goals are too general or open to interpretation, you may not be able to plan a course of action to meet the goal, or be confident that you actually achieved the goal. Let’s walk through an example of a nutrition and fitness goal:
In three months, lose 10 lbs and be able to run five miles by eating healthier and working out more.
Let’s test how well this goal is written against S.M.A.R.T.
Specific? Not quite. This goal tells me what needs to be accomplished (drop 10 lbs and run five miles), but it is too general about HOW this will be accomplished. It needs to define how you would eat healthier and work out more. For example, If I just add more vegetables to my diet, that’s probably healthier, but will it truly allow me to meet my weight loss goal? Likewise, if I work our more by only lifting weights, will it make be a better runner? It will certainly be overall, but unlikely to be the most efficient course of action. We need to be laser-focused on the activities that get us to our goal most effectively.
Measurable? Yes. Progress can be tracked over the three months based on the scale and how your clothes fit. You could even buy a pair of pants one size smaller and see how they are fitting over time.
Achievable and reasonable? Yes. Assuming: 1) free of injury or pain and are able to jog, 2) access to information or a resource to establish a run training plan, and 3) access to information or a resource to establish a fat loss plan.
Relevant? Yes, assuming part of your long term vision is to achieve the physique you want and improve cardiovascular health.
Timely? Yes. This is clear – three months to meet this goal. We’ll assume it’s a reasonable amount of time based on current state.
Conducting this analysis, looks like the goal needs to be improved by adding some specifics about how the goal will be achieved and available resources to ensure you have the right systems and processes in place to meet your goals. Here is how the goal would be updated based on S.M.A.R.T. :
In three months, I will lose 10 lbs and be able to run five miles following the specific fat loss nutrition plan designed to lose 0.8-1 lb per week while keeping my energy up for running, and a 3x/week run training plan established by my coaches.
Aah….now we have it! The goal now provides information about how we will be able achieve it, and we now also can also track progress within our training and nutrition plans.
Ready to start developing your goals? Use this downloadable S.M.A.R.T. Goals Worksheet to help.
To sum it up: goal setting is a critical part of your health and fitness journey. It should not be taken lightly – spend some time questioning yourself and clearly articulating your goals. The rewards for taking the time to set specific goals are immense – direction, clarity, purpose….and increased confidence as you achieve them. Let me know if you found this useful, and I’d love to hear about your vision and goals!
Note: Goal setting is one part of the equation – effective execution is the other. In the next piece, we will discuss the importance of systems as a key element for goal achievement and habit formation.
Contact me if you need some coaching to help you achieve your goals.