When I tell people not to set a weightloss goal, they are usually surprised. But here’s why! And if you’re wondering what you should do instead, continue on for How to Set a Good Fitness Goal!
Whether it’s a new year, you got chastised by your doctor, your high school reunion is coming up, or your clothes stopped fitting the way you want, we often find different reasons for getting back into fitness, or even starting for the first time.
It can be super tempting, when facing this new challenge, to decide that you want to lose a certain amount of weight.
That, however, may not be the best option for you! Here’s a video I did (with a synopsis below that if you don’t love watching videos) where I share my opinion of how to set a good fitness goal!
- Make your goal something completely within your control – effort based!
- If it MUST be performance-based, make sure that it is not based upon something that is related to so many different things, like the number on the scale is!
- If it has to be tied to a number for it to be measurable, make it a number of reps, or at the very numberiest (yes, that is a word now), make it the number on a measuring tape – this is a much more accurate measurement of progress than the scale!
- Remember why you started working out in the first place, and tie a goal to that – it doesn’t have to be about weight loss! You want to be healthier, stronger, faster, more flexible, harder to kill, right? Make a goal tied specifically to that!
I hope you found this helpful, and wish you the best with your workouts!
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So, what are some of your fitness goals right now?
xoxo,
Mandie
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These are such great, relevant tips! Especially as we wind down toward a new year… thank you so much for sharing!!
My pleasure! So many people get so frustrated when they don’t see downward movement on a scale, which is sad, since they are still likely progressing! I would hate for someone to give up for that reason, when there are so many other and more accurate ways to measure progress!
great tips – I actually set a goal to lose 100 lbs, but I didn’t want to fail so it actually kind of motivated me to keep going and seek like minded people on twitter, blogs etc. 🙂
Thanks! I don’t necessarily think it is a bad thing to set a weight loss goal, especially if you have a lot to lose. My main issue is when people think they aren’t progressing and that their efforts are for no reason, when they really are getting stronger and healthier with every single workout and healthy meal! If you ONLY watch the scale, you may not notice other improvements in your body, you know? And the scale sometimes is affected by things like hormones, water retention, swelling to protect muscles when you first start working out, lean muscle mass being denser than fat, etc! And you can still do the same strategy of seeking likeminded people online and make sure you don’t fail with effort-based goals, too!
I am a big fan of effort based goals. Sometimes setting performance goals can just set you up to feel bad about yourself. Guilty of doing this myself sometimes. Good tips! #bloghop
Yes! They should motivate for sure, but the last thing goals should do is make you feel bad about yourself and potentially hurt your overall process! Thanks for visiting! 😉
I love goals! I love working towards them. I think you have a great set of tips here! As someone who has lost over 90 pounds I completely agree with you in regards to not setting a weight loss number goal. I think setting smaller goals that help you achieve that great goal is the way to go. If I would have set the goal to lose 100 pounds I probably would have given up after the first year. But because I set goals that help me lose or maintain my weight I am still working towards my ultimate goal of getting to a healthy weight. Great post!
Thank you! Yes, the small goals along the way is a great point, too! And congratulations on the 90 pound weight loss – that’s amazing!
I shared your post on my social media. It does very well with my post today about my 2015 goals and I would love others to hear your message as I am prompting them to consider goals for 2016. Thanks!
Thank you so much! I appreciate it! 😉
Good tips! I overwhelm myself with too many goals. I really have to focus in and set only two or three goals at a time and put all my energy towards them!
I know what you mean! Have you ever done Chalene Johnson’s 30-day Push (www.30daypush.com)? She teaches how to figure out your top ten goals, and then that one goal usually facilitates several of the others, so that is the one to focus on. It’s a great program, and it’s free! I highly recommend it! =)
Great tips – it’s easy to get caught up in numbers when setting goals. I know for me, my main fitness goal is to increase my strength training and get into a good routine.
Yes, the routine part is so important! When it’s a habit and you’re consistent, the results come by themselves! Thank you for visiting!