For as long as I can remember, I’ve always had goals for myself. I feel like this should be a New Year’s resolution post, but it’s June – half-way through the year – and the prime time for everyone to forget the goals they had set for themselves 6 months ago. Setting goals is so important in routine, wellness, and everyday life.
Goals can be short-term or long-term – daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, you get it. Goals can range from health, food, wellness, work, money, school, etc.
I generally have goals I don’t even know I set for myself such as keeping my apartment clean throughout the day or finishing my homework (which is sort of engrained in my brain now after 4 years of college) or getting into graduate school or reaching my fitness goals.
Setting goals for yourself is easy – but sticking with these goals is what drags people down. It’s really easy to say “I want to lose 20 pounds this year,” “I want to eat healthy this week,” “I want to make Dean’s list this semester,” or “I want to make more sales this year for my job” and not follow through with it.
Lack of motivation, accountability, or materials also plays into the inability to achieve goals. Make it worthwhile and important to you – these goals are easier to attain.
Many of my goals are fitness related. At the beginning of my fitness journey, I wanted to keep myself accountable and maintain the motivation I have to achieve these goals – therefore, I used a workout journal.
In my journal, I wrote down my beginning weight, goal weight, and once I knew what weights were comfortable for me to lift, I made goals to increase weights for lifting. Now that I have reached those goals, my new goals have changed.
In my workout journal, I would record what I would do for weight lifting, cardio, abs, HIIT, whatever exercise I would do for that day. I would include the weight, reps, and sets each time I would work out so I could see the progress.
I don’t keep a workout journal anymore because I track my workouts on my Apple Watch (of course it doesn’t track weight – it’s more general (i.e. Strength Training, HIIT, Indoor Run)) but my goals have also changed and developed.
I thought a workout journal was a great way to start my fitness journey and to grow and continue it as well. Journaling doesn’t have to be just for working out – it is a great way to track the food you eat and your calorie intake (or if you’re technologically savvy, use MyFitnessPal – it’s free).
If goal-setting is for school or work, I LOVE using a planner (or sticky notes). My planner has to be notebook size because the bigger the better – small doesn’t cut it for me in college. I get a new planner every year at Target (because Target has the best ones). I’m super organized, so I literally write everything in there. Planners are great for goal setting as each time I cross something off my list, I feel like I have accomplished my short-term goal.
Accountability is another great way to accomplish goals. Tell your best friend, your husband/wife, your mom/dad, sibling, significant other, coworker, anyone! Make sure they keep you accountable by checking in on you every once in a while.
Right now, my friend and I are doing a 30-day food challenge (no sweets, no pop, no fast food, etc.) and we are holding each other accountable for that. I generally tell my friends about my fitness goals and friends are literally THE HYPE of fitness, especially when they want to do it with you.
Also, Apple Watch has this great feature where you can share your activity with friends and send them cute, corny messages when someone finishes a workout – it is seriously the best kind of motivation.
As everyone probably learned in school, make sure your goals are specific, time-bound (not too long that you forget about them), attainable, and relevant. Write them down (also, sticky notes – literally my favorite). Tell someone! Aim high for your goals but start low.
Lastly, reward yourself. When I hit my fitness goals, I rewarded myself with new workout clothes. I would recommend the small the goal, the smaller the reward (i.e. lose 10 pounds, treat yourself to Starbucks). It’s a personal preference on what your ideal reward is, but make it something worthwhile so you achieve the goal(s).
Let me know what your goals are – long-term or short-term! Find your accountability partner and get goin’ on those achieving those goals!
