Setting fitness goals is a great way to keep you on track and motivated when working out. Whether you’ve been working out for a while now or are new to exercise goal setting, SMART fitness goals can help you lose weight, improve your fitness level, and help you reach an important milestone.
SMART Fitness Goals
SMART stands for specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and timely. All of these help keep you on track to reaching your fitness goals. Let’s dive a little deeper into how to apply each action to your goals.
Specific
You want to be very specific when naming your goal. What is it that you truly want to accomplish? Don’t set a goal of getting healthy. That is too broad. Instead, set goals such as losing weight, running more often, going to the gym, or simply being able to do a push-up. Write down what specific fitness goals you would like to achieve.
Measurable
Now that you’ve set your goals, here is where you’ll measure them. If your goal is to lose weight, decide how much weight you want to lose. Have a goal of doing a push-up? How many push-ups do you want to be able to do to hit your goal? Set measurable numbers with each of your goals.
Attainable
In order to hit your goals, you need to make them attainable. If your fitness goals are too lofty or broad, chances are you won’t be able to reach them. You may get discouraged and quit. If you have a very large goal, such as losing 50 pounds, make it more attainable and set mini SMART goals. Perhaps you want to lose 10 pounds in three months to help you reach your larger goal of losing 50 pounds. This step is also where you can really ensure your goals are achievable. Losing 10 pounds in one week isn’t achievable, but losing 10 pounds in three months is more realistic. Make sure your goals are realistic.
Relevant
This is where you determine your why. If you don’t know why you are aiming for those goals, you may get stalled on the way to reach them. Are you losing weight for a big event? Maybe you want to run five miles to finish a race. Determine why you set these goals. When you make your goals relevant and are working toward something, you can push yourself even harder to achieve these goals.
Timely
Creating a deadline for your goals creates urgency. This is where you can decide to break up larger goals into smaller goals. Have a goal of running five miles? Then break that down into mini-goals. Aim to add a mile each week or every other week. Conversely, you don’t want to put too much time on a goal. Giving yourself 12 months to lose five pounds may not incentivize you to start kicking it into high gear.
Putting it All Together
Now it’s time to put everything together. Your specific goal is to lose weight. Your measurable goal is to lose 10 pounds. Your relevant goal is for your sister’s wedding and the time is two months. Your SMART fitness goal then is to lose 10 pounds in two months for your sister’s wedding.
Once you have your goals set now, it’s time to put them into action. How will you lose those 10 pounds? Do you need to hit the gym four days a week? Maybe you need to incorporate extra vegetables at each meal. Be accountable to yourself and stay consistent. Using the SMART goals setting method is important, so you are able to better achieve the goals you are setting. Be sure to download and visit the Sworkit app, and leverage the “Ask A Trainer” feature that’s included with your membership to help you get closer to achieving your fitness goals.
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