How To Set SMART Goals

Posted by Lauren Higgins on Wednesday, October 09, 2019

How To Set S.M.A.R.T Goals
Do you ever feel like you're working hard and getting nothing in return? Set S.M.A.R.T goals to help you crush your long-term fitness goals!

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Fitness goals often drive us to join a gym, discover new recipes or explore one-on-one training options leading up to big events. Whether you’re looking to lose weight, improve your fitness level or train for an athletic event, setting goals is a tried and true method to ensure success. And while long term goals are important to have, setting short term S.M.A.R.T goals can be the best way to achieve a long term result. Whether you’re just looking to lose a few unwanted pounds or maybe you’re looking to make a complete lifestyle change – whatever your goal may be, it’s important to have one and adopting the S.M.A.R.T method is a great way to see each goal through.

S.M.A.R.T is an acronym for specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and timely. S.M.A.R.T goals are a great way to break down a long-term goal into a handful of short-term goals by keeping you feeling confident and accomplished on your fitness journey. Because one workout and one healthy meal won’t help us reach our goals, we must rely on time and consistency when it comes to our health and wellness transformations, and because it takes time, it’s easy to feel discouraged and hopeless. Adopt the S.M.A.R.T method to setting fitness goals and stay clear of these feelings of hopelessness as you crush every S.M.A.R.T goal that makes up your long-term fitness goal.

Specific

A S.M.A.R.T goal must be specific. It isn’t enough to say, “I want to get healthy.” This is too arbitrary and how exactly could you measure this? Instead of a generic, “get healthy,” a better goal would be, “I want to lose weight.” You’ll narrow this down even further as we move one.

Measurable
This is where you’ll determine how to track your goal. Let’s revisit the, “get healthy,” goal. This goal can’t be measured because it isn’t a quantifiable goal like, “losing 10 pounds,” would be. Losing any amount of weight is quantifiable and can be tracked on a weekly, monthly or yearly basis. Maybe your goal isn’t weight at all though – maybe your goal is to do 15 pushups, run a 5K or hit the gym three times a week – whatever it is, you should be able to identify when you have reach your goal.

Attainable

Remember time and consistency? While it’s great to think of the big picture, it’s important to set several S.M.A.R.T goals in between to help stay on track. Setting smaller, short-term goals will help you see progress in the early stages of your journey and keep you motivated to move forward. Think about how long it may take someone to lose 100 pounds. It’s easy to fall off track when you feel you aren’t making the progress you want to be making as quickly as you’d like.

Relevant

This is where finding your, “why,” becomes imperative to your success. Why is this goal worth your time? Are you motivated to achieve this goal? If so, what is your motivation? Attaching motivation to your goal adds a sense of urgency and relevancy to it. For example, “I want to lose 10 pounds before my class reunion,” gives your goal purpose. Whether you want to boost your confidence or improve your fitness level, identifying your goal’s purpose will make it relevant for you and motivate you to achieve it.

Timely

Timing is everything. Setting a timely goal will not only give you a deadline, but it will set the tone for how likely you are to achieve that goal. If you give yourself six months to lose 10 pounds, you may not be as motivated to ditch the, “I’ll start tomorrow,” mentality. On the flip side, giving yourself just one month may not be realistic either.

Be honest with yourself about what you’re willing to do to meet certain goals. Adjust your expectations if you know you’re unable to achieve a goal as quickly as you’d like and focus on the things you can do to help you reach your goal at a sustainable pace.

S.M.A.R.T goal setting with your Fitness Coach
The Fitness Coaches at Milestone are here to support you on your health and wellness journey. You will gain accountability and measurable objectives to support goal completion when working alongside one of our many on-site Fitness Coaches. Our round the clock support ranges from training, motivating and coaching you through both your successes and your setbacks to ensure your goal is met.

Our Fitness Coaching can be applied to all aspects of health and wellness. From weight gain, weight loss, programming and motivational slumps. We strive to bring clarity to your ambitions and the knowledge you need to get there.

Interested in meeting with a Milestone Fitness Coach? Contact us for more information!

Topics: Health, Fitness, Nutrition, weight loss, Wellness, Personal Training