Goals got you down? Need to write a new one? Don’t know where to start on your health and fitness journey? Goal-writing may be just as important as behavior change itself. After all, you need direction, don’t you?!?!
Most goals out there:
- Lack specificity
- Are NOT individualized
- Offer no direction
Goals like:
- “I want to exercise more”
- “I want to be strong”
- “I want to lose weight”
These words on a page are useless unless they include 2 important criteria:
- WHAT success will look like, &
- WHEN you know that you’ve achieved it
Check out this goal-writing template to give direction on your path to making better health and fitness decisions.
Use the goal-writing template instead:
Person will [desired direction] [target behavior] from [current baseline] to [target goal] for [desired time range].
“I want to exercise more” becomes….
I will increase my steps counts from 3,700 per day to 4,500 per day for 4 consecutive weeks
“I want to be strong” becomes…
I will increase my pushups repetitions from 10 per set to 15 per set for 8 consecutive exercise days
“I want to lose weight” becomes…
I will decrease my daily calorie intake from 2,700 cal/day to 2,500 cal/day for 3 consecutive months
GOAL WRITING BONUS: Add on this criteria too:
Person will [desired direction] [target behavior] from [current baseline]to [target goal] for [desired time range] until [criteria is met].
“I want to lose weight” NOW becomes…
I will decrease my daily calorie intake from 2,700 cal/day to 2,500 cal/day for 3 consecutive months until I lose 10 pounds
Goal-writing is only a start.
Effective behavior change relies on aligning daily activities with clear and objective goals from the start of any fitness journey. This blog outlines a tried and true structure of goal-writing. Whether or not your write a goal that is too big or too small is another issue.
When a goal is set, it is time to start aligning your everyday behavior with your newly written goal!
