A Simple Guide to Setting Effective Goals

Setting effective goals is an essential part of getting yourself mentally prepared for a lifestyle change. It’s easy to jump back into exercise and changing your dietary habits without taking the time to consider why, and often this means that you fall off the wagon sooner rather than later. Goals are fantastic reminders of what you want to achieve, and can be used to keep you on the right track when your mind starts trying to make excuses (i.e. convincing you to stay at home and binge watch The Crown on Netflix rather than do your workout!). Sometimes it's difficult to know where to start, so here is a simple guide to setting effective goals to get you started. 

If you still need convincing about why setting goals is important, click here. If you’re raring to go, keep reading!

Step 1: Brainstorm

Let yourself think very freely about why you want to get fit and healthy. Be completely honest with yourself and scribble out anything and everything that comes to mind. Are you embarrassed by your weight? Frustrated by feeling out of breath all the time? Looking for help with regulating your energy levels? Are you hiding behind baggy clothes and not pursuing your dreams because you feel trapped inside your body? Perhaps you want to be able to eat and feel good about it rather than feeling guilty all the time. We are complex creatures, with lots of stuff going on, so let yourself freestyle here. Don’t be surprised if this is an emotional process. We aren’t often encouraged to really take the time to notice how we feel, and why we might be feeling that way. Sometimes it’s a shock to the system.

Step 2: Isolate key items

If you have completed the above step, you probably have a sheet (or maybe a few!) of paper with scribbles or a long list of thoughts about why you want to get healthy. The next stage is to go through what you have scribbled out in your brainstorm, and highlight which ones feel the most pressing at the current time. Which issue is REALLY bothering you on a day-to-day basis? Pick 3 things at a maximum. Don’t throw the brainstorm away. Keep it in a drawer, ready to refer to when it’s time to set new goals.

Step 3: Create specific goals

It’s time to take your chosen items and create 3 well-defined goals. Think of them as crystallisations of what you want from your health and fitness regime, and why you are making this change. If this feels difficult, it’s a sure sign that this is a vital part of the process for you. It’s far easier to stick to things when you know why you are doing them! If you don’t know why you’re making loads of effort, and don’t have a strong sense of where it’s all leading, you’re bound to struggle. You need that sense of direction to keep you motivated!

You may have heard of SMART goal setting. There are endless articles about this, and it’s a very effective way of making sure that your goals are going to keep you on track when you feel life and it’s many challenges weakening your resolve.

Here are the key aspects of any goals that you set, according to the SMART model:

Specific – your goals need to state, very clearly, what you are striving to achieve. Anyone who reads your goals should be able to understand what your aims are with no ambiguity. If you have a crystal clear picture of what you are aiming for, you are more likely to get there. If you don’t know where you’re heading, you will struggle to keep yourself motivated. You won’t ever know that you’re on the right track, or be able to remind yourself of why it’s worth the effort.

Measurable – we are pleasure seeking creatures. We like to feel good in ourselves. We particularly like to feel a sense of achievement. Clear, indisputable evidence that our effort and hard work is paying off is a guaranteed way to create the feel good factor that will keep you going in difficult times. A goal should be easy to track and measure. The tangible sense of progress will keep you on track.

Achievable – you want to set yourself up for success. Goals shouldn’t be too easy, but if you are over – ambitious, you are likely to give up because the goal seems so far away. You want your goals to be within your reach, so that you can visualize achieving them. Setting unachievable goals will hinder you because you won’t be able to “see” your success in your mind’s eye. That visualization is a key element of your success. This is also the time to consider whether you need any external aid – you may feel that a trainer can help by writing a plan tailored to your goals. Here’s an article to help you find the right trainer if you decide to go down that road.

Relevant – goals are designed to keep you on track, and keep you motivated. It needs to be easy to see how the achievement of this goal is going to positively impact your life. It can be as simple as wanting to be able to run for the bus without feeling winded, or being able to play with the kids at the park without feeling self conscious about being overweight. There are no right or wrong goals – the trick is to take the time to think about what is actually relevant to you in the context of your life and situation.

Time bound – when you set a goal, set a time frame. If your goal is to be able to run 5k, but you don’t set a time frame for it, you aren’t giving yourself any impetus to get started, or to stick to it. If you set a goal to run 5k in 3 months, you are far more likely to stick to your exercise plan because you have a deadline to aim for.

Apply these 5 elements to your 3 goals. Once done, write the goals out over and over again. Take your time with this process, and let yourself do it properly. Trust me, it’s worth the effort!

Step 4: Embed your goals 

Now, you have 3 strong goals written down. You have taken the time to transform muddy concepts and ideas into crystal clear statements of intention. You have begun the process of embedding those goals in your mind by writing them over and over. Now, it’s time to move towards completing the process.

Write your 3 goals out onto index cards, or onto post – it notes, and put them somewhere that you will see them frequently. Keep reminding yourself of them, and say them to yourself at night just before falling asleep. Do this for at least 3 days before you start a new eating or exercise plan. Hold yourself back for a short while, and use that time to mentally cement your intentions.

Phew, once you’ve done all of this work, you’ll be raring to go! Enjoy discovering your body confidence! 🙂 

P.S If you need a few tips on getting started on your fitness journey, my e-book, “Getting Started” is free to download. Click HERE to subscribe to my mailing list (no spam, I promise!) and download your free copy 🙂