Every New Year people make all kinds of resolutions to get fit, lose weight, give up smoking, cut down on drinking etc. You would be surprised how many people fail. They set out with all good intentions and then after a couple of weeks their resolutions fall by the wayside.
In January 2006, over 3.5 million people joined a gym, but by March and April 49% had already given up on their new fitness regime. Why do you think this is? One of the main reasons people give up after such a short time is because they haven't made any positive plans or set any goals. There is a well know saying, "Failing to plan is planning to fail."
Wanting to get fit and healthy is just the starting point. It's important to realise that health and fitness is not just a short term measure, but it should be seen as a complete lifestyle change. Making a conscious effort to eat healthily and include more exercise has to be a long term effort. If you truly want to succeed in 2007 it is vitally important that you make a plan for your success. It's important to have a visualisation of what you want to achieve in your mind. Imagine if you were going on a journey. You wouldn't just jump in the car and start driving if you had no idea where you where going and why you were going there, would you? You would probably turn around and go home after about 10 minutes. Well this is what happens with most people who start a new health and fitness regime. Because they have no definate plan or goals they have no idea where they are heading or what they want to achieve.
If you want to succeed then follow this simple advice.
Before you start, have a good think about why you are setting your New Years Resolution. What is it you want to achieve? If your aim is to lose weight. Why do you want to lose that weight? Is it because you want to look good in your wedding dress or fit into that bikini for your next holiday? If this is the reason, how much weight do you want to lose, or what dress size do you want to be? In the above example, the initial Plan is 'To lose weight.' The Goal is to get down to a size 12. The Target is by June 2007. Now you need to decide how you are going to reach that goal in the desired time frame. This will be your action plan. The methods you use for example might be, a healthy sensible balanced diet combined with regular exercise.
Once you have decided on your goal try applying the SMART method below to make sure your goal is viable.
SMART is an acronym used in many walks of life to help set targets and goals.
Specific - Is the goal specific to what I’m trying to achieve? Some goals are very broad, for example, get fit or get healthy. How do you know when you have got there? Be more specific. ‘I want to be able to run a mile in less than 10 minutes.’ Or ‘I want to lose 5 inches of my waist.’
Measurable - How can I measure my progress along the way? A goal should be divided into smaller sub-goals with defined targets so you know when you have reached them. Measure your waist and weight every 2 weeks. Then log your progress. Setting mini targets or sub goals along the way will help to motivate you.
Achievable - Is my goal achievable? What tools and help do I need to succeed? Can I succeed without this help? Example: To be able to swim a mile in less than 40 minutes, first I must learn to swim!
Realistic - Is my goal realistic? Example: Is it really possible that at the age of 40 I can be playing football for the England first team this time next year?
Time - Have I allowed enough time to complete my goal within my expectations? Losing 15lbs of body fat in 2 weeks is not really possible, but in 8 to10 weeks is definitely possible.
Using the SMART method to evaluate your goals will help you to make sure that what you want to achieve is possible. Once you start to see positive results at the target points that you have set along the way, this will help to motivate you to reach your final goal.
For anybody starting out on a new health and fitness lifestyle I can't stress enough how important this first step is. If you ask any successful person in life, no matter what they have achieved, I'm sure they will agree.
Plan for success and you will succeed!
Good luck
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