Goal Setting Success - Part 1

Well, it’s that time of year in which we reflect on what we achieved in the past year and what we hope to achieve in this year to come. In essence, it’s time to set some goals! A seemingly easy task, yet how many of us actually achieve the health and fitness goals we start the year out with?

Here are some things to consider when setting goals that may help you set more effective and achievable goals.

What EXACTLY are your goals?

Objective vs Subjective Goals

Objective Goals are specific achievements usually measured in a specified period of time. For instance, lose 20 pounds within 3 months, running/walking for 30 minutes 4 times a week, consuming less than 10% of calories per day from saturated fats. These are very specific and usually easy to measure.

Subjective Goals are general statements (“I want to lead a healthier lifestyle”) that are vague and not easily measurable. But just because they are not easily measurable does not mean they cannot be measured. For instance, what constitutes a “healthier lifestyle?” Being more active? Eating more fruits and vegetables? Reducing intake of complex carbs (pastas, breads, etc.)? From these statements, we can then break them down into more specific Objective Goals.

Objective Goals will more likely lead you to success as they become the building blocks of measurable change. But if all you have right now are Subjective Goals, that’s okay. Use those statements as a starting point to identify more specific objective goals. And if those objective goals turn out to be harder to achieve than you expected, you can reevaluate and redefine those objective goals while keeping your subjective goal in place.

What’s your type?
Outcome, Performance, or Process

We can detail our goals further by identifying which of these 3 TYPES it falls into.

Outcome Goals

Goals usually focused on the end result AND are in relation to another person, usually in the form of a competition. These are generally longer term goals.

Examples: 
-Win a weight loss competition among friends.
-Place in top 10 in a 5k race.

Performance Goals

Goals in relation to one’s own level of performance or behavior. These can range from long to short term goals.

Examples:
-Reduce calorie intake from 3,000 calories to 2,000 calories.
-Perform aerobic exercise for 1-hr per day, 5 days a week.

Process Goals

Goals focused on helping individuals to actually reach their performance goal. These are generally short term goals that help identify your action plan.

Examples:
-Avoid buying processed snacks when grocery shopping.
-Schedule a 1-hr workout at 6:30a Mon-Fri.

Take some time and identify what type of goal you are actually setting. All three types (Outcome, Performance, and Process) are helpful, but ultimately the first two are leading you to identify what Process Goals you can set for the near term. And what you achieve in the near term is all that matters right now.

Specific and difficult goals lead to higher levels of task performance than easy goals, no goals, or do-your-best goals.

One of our biggest fears in goal setting is that we won’t achieve the goal. So many of us set easy or very general fitness goals so we can more likely avoid that feeling of failure. However, only setting vague goals typically leads to even less success and thus a more general feeling of failure. Be brave and set those specific and difficult goals. Cause if you come up short on a difficult goal, you likely made it further than successfully achieving a very easy goal, and you’ll feel better knowing your subjective goal is still on track.

If you would like help in defining your goals, or setting effective goals, click above to schedule a time for us to chat, FREE of charge.