Setting a goal is almost an art. You can decide “I need to bulk up” and stop there. Or you can go further: what will you look like? How long will it take you to achieve what you want? And most importantly – why do you need it? Answering these questions will already give you a good boost of motivation.
It is best if you have one global specific goal. It may seem too complicated, so feel free to divide it into several smaller goals, breaking the process of building the body of your dreams into several stages.
Take advantage of management developments – these guys work a lot with goals.For me, the SMART goals system is optimal. I suggest using it.
The essence of this system is that the goal is:
Specific – for example, not just “tighten the body”, but make the core muscles more defined, pump up the leg muscles, increase endurance when running.
Measurable – not “running in the morning”, but running 3 km 3 times a week, losing an extra 8 kg, increasing your bench press to 120 kg for 5 reps.
Achievable – here it is important to adequately assess your capabilities. It is important to understand that you cannot lose 10 kg in 2 weeks or train every day with a busy work schedule. This is a very important individual goal setting point.
Relevant – listen to yourself, maybe you don’t really need to follow fashion, it’s much more important to stay healthy. I know from my own experience that when the entire Instagram for some reason runs 10 km every day, you want to do the same. But it’s hard, boring, and you also get knee problems. So, at the moment, this goal is not for me.
Time-bound – for example, not “lose 10 kg,” but do it within a year.
What to do with the target next?
So, when you have specifically outlined the goal, you have already taken a good step towards it.No more fear of the blank slate – you know where you’re going.
Now it’s time to gather your tools: create a plan to achieve your SMART goal.
It is most convenient to break the stages down into months/weeks – this will make it easier for you to track the intermediate results.
For each stage, set a micro-goal using the same system. In general, thinking in such categories helps a lot to be effective. Small adequate goals can be set for each training session – achieving them spurs and motivates.
Having a goal and a plan does not mean that you need to act blindly according to it. We are all human and we are prone to whims and disappointments. If you need a rest, rest, but do not cheat. Sometimes such a break gives more resources than training “under duress”. Moreover, if in the middle of the path the goal objectively seems irrelevant to you, feel free to adjust it.
The main thing in this process is to understand that you are doing all this for yourself.After all, fitness is not your profession. Once you fully understand this, you will finally feel freedom and full understanding of your actions.
