Let's start by painting a little picture for you, imagine going to work and not having anything to do or your boss hasn’t given you any tasks to do. Chances are you are going to look busy or just find yourself pottering around to make the time go faster. The same applies to your training. You will wander into the gym with little focus, no intensity, and no plan in place. The results… a poor session, a waste of your time, and that demotivating feeling that you are getting nothing from your membership, wondering if it’s worth it. So what do we do? We set that goal that will give you focus, motivation, drive, and something to aim for.
How do we set our goals?
Well, we make it S.M.A.R.T, what does that mean?
Let me explain.
Specific: Hit a 100kg deadlift, current PB being 75kg
Measurable: Keep track of the weight you're lifting each session and have a strength plan for each session to reach this
Achievable: Yes, with the right actions and a 6 week training plan, with 4 strength sessions a week
Realistic: 75kg to 100kg with the right training, over 6 weeks is realistic
Time: Within 6 weeks
This will mean now that every time you go to the gym you have something that you are working towards and you will have a plan in place that will mean that everything in the gym will be aimed towards helping you meet your goal. This in time will mean that you will stay motivated as you have something to work towards, resulting in you getting the best results and the most out of your training.
There are a few important things to think about when setting the goals, like don’t overestimate! By this, I mean don’t aim too high, because you can achieve anything when you put your mind to it, but what I mean is “it’s a marathon, not a sprint” if you have a large goal, like running a marathon and have never ran further than 5 miles chances are you aren’t going to be able to do a marathon that month. So break it down and build up to it, this will keep you motivated and much more likely to meet that goal.
