Setting Exercise Goals

Setting exercise goals; that’s easy right?  Well, no it’s not and that’s why so many people spend countless hours working out in the gym and getting nowhere!

There is a well-used saying in business that goes along the lines of: “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”  I know no-one actually plans to fail but if you don’t have a plan to get you from where you are to where you want to be, how on earth will you ever get there?

Everyone begins their exercise program with something in mind, no matter how vague it might be.  It might be to lose weight, run a faster 5km, to look better on the beach or, simply to live longer than your parents did.  There are as many motivators as there are people.

Setting goals is simply making what is in your head translate into action for your body while maintaining your interest until you reach your goals.  If you write those goals down and share it with someone, you have made an unbreakable commitment and are more likely to follow through and are less likely to give up when the going gets tough; and it will.

Goals start with a reality check.  Having unrealistic or impossible goals is almost as bad as having none at all.  You need to understand your baseline, or starting point, your physical limitations and your strengths in order to map out a plan that will work for you.

Let’s start with your baseline.  It is imperative that you know exactly what shape your body is in before you start or you will have no hope of measuring your progress.  As an absolute minimum, you should measure and record the following data:

• Date of the measurements.  Knowing when you start is fundamental and all measurements should be in cms and kgs. Measure only one arm and leg on the same side of the body.
• Height.
• Weight.
• Neck.
• Chest.
• Waist.
• Hips.
• Thigh (widest point)
• Calf (widest point)
• Bicep (widest point)
• Forearm (widest point)

Using this data, it is possible to calculate your body fat percentage and Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR), which is the number of calories your body needs to exist. You can use this information to work out a nutrition plan that will provide sufficient energy to complete your exercise program.

Next, you need to make a realistic assessment of your limitations and strengths.  Look at things like old injuries, current injuries, time constraints from work or family commitments.  Also consider how you can work your diary to block out periods of time specifically for exercise.  With the number of 24 hour facilities opening around the country, lack of time should no longer be such an insurmountable problem.

Ok, you have your goals and you now know where you are beginning from, what now?  Now, you have to get on with it but, there are still a number of things you need to do.

Making Goals Work

It doesn’t matter who it is, how long they have been working out or how close/far they are from their goals, everyone will at some point ask themselves why they are putting themselves through this.  Don’t worry, it is totally normal and that is exactly what your goals are for; to answer that exact question and should give you reasons that are strong enough to keep you going.  Those reasons are not always enough, so here are some things that will help.

Be Specific

If your goals are not clearly defined, it is difficult to tell whether you have reached them.  Without that clear definition, there is also no feeling of progress or achievement.  Rather than saying you will take up running, commit to running 2 kms twice this week.

Talk the Walk

The most effective goals are about what you will do, not what you can accomplish by doing it.  For example, deciding you will lower your resting heart rate by 10 beats per minute is specific but not action-focussed.  Instead, focus on the process rather than the outcome by deciding to do weight training three times per week.

Focus on the Short Term

Like any task, a commitment to change your life by becoming fitter, stronger, lighter, whatever your goal is, the prospect of taking on something this big can be daunting and like every other task we are confronted with, it becomes so much easier if we break it down into smaller, more manageable, chunks.

Having a broad ambition like “finishing a marathon” is all very nice but is not achievable without a long-term plan and smaller steps along the way.  Build your plan with your broad goal, like finishing a marathon, as the end point, then develop daily actions that build upon each other to direct you towards that goal.

The starting point in your short-term plans should be skills development.  If you want to finish a marathon, you will need to know how to run efficiently and have superior endurance.  So, begin running short distances to develop those skills and increase the distance and volume every week.

Measure your progress.  We touched on measurement earlier and you should consider measuring everything every four weeks.  If you are aiming at running the marathon, for example, measure your elapsed time over a fixed distance.  If your training is becoming boring or predicable, do something different for a few weeks to break it up and add some interest.

Finally, don’t be too hard on yourself.  If life throws you a curve ball, deal with it and jump back on the exercise train when you are done.  The old idea of throwing everything at your training, at the exclusion of all else, is not valid and will almost guarantee you will give up.  Remember, you may not be there yet but you are closer than you were yesterday.

Copyright © 2014 by Drew Dale

All rights reserved. This article or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review or scholarly journal.