By Josh Kauten, Coordinator, Heartland Community College Fitness and Recreation Center
Whether you are starting a new workout plan or you’ve hit a plateau on your current regimen, it’s important to give yourself the best chance for success by setting goals. As a former personal trainer, I’ve seen several workout programs fail for a myriad of reasons. In fact, in 2007, Richard Wiseman from the University of Bristol studied 3,000 people who set health-related New Year’s Resolutions. Of those 3,000 people, 88 percent failed to meet their goal. What was the separating variable between the 88 percent and the 12 percent? Was it genetics? Time? Motivation?
While the types of programs and reasons for failure differed greatly, one constant for the successful individuals was setting clear-cut goals. It is easy to say, “I want to get in shape” or “I want to lose weight,” but neither of those statements have definitive finish lines.
Using the following S.M.A.R.T. goal setting guidelines is a sure-fire way to increase the success or your workout program:
Specific: Rather than setting vague goals like, “I’m going to work out,” or “I’m going to lose weight,” be specific. Set specific goals like: “I’m going to exercise for 30 minutes M/W/F,” or “I’m going to replace soda with water,” or “I’m going to lose 1lb/week for 12 weeks.”
Measurable: Make sure your goals are measurable. The easiest way to do this is by setting quantifiable goals. “This week I’m going to walk 2 miles and perform 3 sets of 15 reps on all of the machines Monday, Wednesday and Friday.” At the end of the week, it will be easy to see if you reached your goal.
Action-Oriented: S.M.A.R.T. goals should also include learning new information or trying something new. Anything that helps you prepare to complete your ‘action’ of losing weight will help you succeed. A good example would be to try out one new healthy recipe each week or learn a new exercise.
Realistic: Instead of setting a goal of losing 20lbs in 6 weeks, be more realistic. Setting a goal of losing 1-2lbs per week is much more attainable and is healthier too! Setting unrealistic goals is a guaranteed way to sabotage your workouts and will lead to discouragement and ultimately, failure.
Time-Bound: Putting a deadline on your goals deters you from procrastinating and keeps you on track to your ultimate goal. Also, reaching goals by a set date gives you a prime opportunity to reward yourself! Treat yourself to some new workout gear, a spa day or maybe even a vacation!
Once you have set your specific, measurable, action-oriented, realistic and time-bound goals, you are ready to begin your workout regimen. If you are not confident in your ability to perform the exercises with correct form or if you don’t have a well-designed and individualized plan in place, it would be wise to seek the aid of a fitness professional. A well-qualified fitness professional will be able to aid you in not just setting S.M.A.R.T. goals, they will be able assist you in all aspects of wellness.
Heartland Community College is now offering a community access program at the Fitness and Recreation Center. Enrollment in this program will provide everything you need to meet your S.M.A.R.T fitness goals, including treadmills, ellipticals, free weights and weight machines. For more information on this program, contact Community Education at 309-268-8160 or online at www.heartland.edu/communityEd.
Photos courtesy of Heartland Community College