Why It’s Important to Set Realistic Goals for Yourself
Rome wasn’t built in a day. The same holds true for your fitness goals. Whether you want to lose weight, get in shape, or run a marathon, you can’t expect it to happen overnight. You need to set goals for yourself that are obtainable. Otherwise, you can set yourself up for failure if you set the bar too high at the beginning.
As you make progress, you can work toward your next goal. With persistence, you will accomplish what you set out to do when it comes to your health and fitness.
Why it’s Important
Giving up is not some unique thing that happens to the worst of us. Almost everyone gives up on something at some point. One of the biggest reasons why is because they bit off more than they could chew.
Setting a goal of climbing Mount Everest as your FIRST mountain without any experience or training sounds stupid right? Of course, yet so many of us do it proverbially. We get this ridiculous notions stuck in our heads that we should run a sprint before we even know how to crawl.
Then as soon as the first obstacle hits us, which it will, we get discouraged and give up because it’s not as easy as we thought.
This is what happens so many times, I see it with so many people, and especially with fitness related goals.
Take it One Step at a Time
The first step is to set your goals. You can use the SMART method. You need goals that are specific. In other words, don’t be too general. State clearly what you want to do, such as lose ten pounds or run a mile.
You need something that you can measure. Don’t pick a goal to take a walk. Say you are going to walk a certain distance. Choose goals that are attainable.
Instead of vowing to climb Mount Everest, shoot for the hiking trail that is close to home. You can always work your way up!
Your goals should be relevant to your life. In other words, choose something that is practical, meaningful, and will suit your lifestyle.
Finally, set a time frame for your goal, stating when you want to achieve it, within a reasonable amount of time. In addition to using guidelines for your goals, consider aiming for one goal at a time. As you reach one benchmark, pick a new one. Check them off along the way and feel the pride of your accomplishments.
Don’t Only Focus on the End Results
Many people get hung up on where they want to go with their goals that they forget the journey itself.
For example, you might want to lose 25 pounds. If you are so focused on that final figure, you can get bogged down as you are striving to reach your goal. It can get to the point that you lose your motivation because you aren’t there yet. You don’t even give yourself credit for losing the first pound, or the second or the third. You forget that you had those 3 extra pounds at all. You get so caught up in the 25 number you forget that you’re going to have to pass 24 other numbers to get there
Concentrate on the process that is involved instead. The journey is often much sweeter than the destination, you’ll realize this when you are near the end of it.
Take a picture of yourself at the beginning of your journey and post it in a visible place where you will face it each day. A visual aid will help you to keep a promise to yourself to keep working toward your goal.
As you make progress, take more pictures and hang them up, proving that the process is working. It might take you several months or even two years, but you’ll see the improvement staring back at you every day.
Choose Something You Know is Possible
When you pick realistic goals that pertain to your fitness, you know with absolute certainty that you can do it. You have to clear your mind of any doubt and stick with it until you cross the finish line. D
on’t pick a wall that is too high for you to climb. You don’t want a mental barrier that will knock you down and steal the wind from your sails. By choosing a goal that is something you can achieve, you will feel great satisfaction when you get there.
You’ll have the courage to branch out and set more goals for yourself with each one that you check off your list. Realistic goals make you stronger and build up your confidence. They make you feel good about yourself and your body.
If you are on a mission and aspire to new heights, think about your next goal. Take yourself to a new level of accomplishment.
sources
http://healthyliving.azcentral.com/importance-setting-realistic-fitness-goals-15764.html
http://www.self-esteem-enhances-life.com/realistic-goals.html
