Smash Your Ultimate Fitness Goal

Goals are the targets to which you point your life. Fitness goals are important for many different reasons. So how can you set goals and achieve success?

Goals should be made up of the starting point and the destination. Writing your goals will help you to focus on where you are going, determine what adjustments you need to make, and see if you are heading in the right direction.

You can think of a good fitness goal as your Southern Cross (constellation of stars), especially on those days when life starts to get in the way and you need that little push.  

In the past, I have simply set myself a lofty goal, which has been unsustainable and unrealistic. I’m sure that some of you can relate to feeling worse than when you started. Here are a few of my tips for setting and achieving your fitness goals.

Break goals into smaller ones and focus on one goal at a time 

If running a half marathon is something that you have always wanted to take on but you’ve never run more than 5 km, then 5 km to 21 km is quite a big step, don’t you think? Yet it is a great example of how an ultimate goal can be downsized into a series of achievable goals.

So let’s break the start of the goal down by focusing on micro-goals and a main goal to start with. Our basic framework will be to work our way up from 5 km to 10 km, then to 16 km, and finally to 18 -20 km. Here is an example of the first stage of our plan.

Ultimate Goal: Run the Taupo Half Marathon on 1st August 2021
Written: 7 December 2020

First Step to Ultimate Goal

Goal 1: Get a training plan and a personal trainer.

Goal 2: Pick a series of events to train for leading up to the Taupo Marathon with my personal trainer.

Goal 3: Train to run the YMCA Auckland Domain 10 km on 14th January 2020.

Goal 4: Join a running group and consistently run so many times per week over varying distances, building towards 10 km.

Main Goal 1: YMCA Auckland Domain 10 km on 17th December 2020.

First Main Goal Achieved

As you can see, we have acted on smaller goals to achieve a main goal, which are our stepping stones to our ultimate goal.

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A Habit Health Personal Trainer can provide you with a customised training
programme to help you work towards your goals. Book today.

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The following are key to achieving your goals:

Commitment. Am I comfortable with the level of commitment required to reach my goal? It’s a great time to think through what will be required from you, including accepting that at times you may have to work harder than you want to. 

What do I need? When planning a goal, sometimes we don’t know what it will take to achieve it. A personal trainer or a sports physiotherapist will be able to help you identify what you need to achieve your goal safely and successfully with positive long-term outcomes. 

Depending on what you are trying to accomplish, it can stir up a lot of emotions. If thinking about your goal brings anxiety, consider talking with a psychologist who can provide techniques for a positive mindset.

Recruit your support team. When planning your ultimate goal, you should also think about who in your life could encourage, motivate, and hold you accountable to it. These cheerleaders are the ones you can turn to when you need support. 

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Get tools and techniques for a positive mindset.
Book a Habit Health Psychologist.

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Having clear and manageable goals can go a long way towards helping you achieve success in your fitness or sports endeavours. Talk to a Habit Health expert today to help you on your journey towards your ultimate goal.

Vini Mock Rodrigues is a Personal Trainer at Habit Health Vero