New Years is the day and setting goals is the game.
How many times have you set out to make new years resolutions and you fall flat on your face one day, one week or even a month into it?
Did you set too many goals, were they unattainable, did you have no direction or plan? For whatever reason, goals are hard to keep and/or achieve.
This year is no different, or is it???
Have you every heard of SMART goals? They help you make goals that you can easily stick to using five simple principles.
Take the ever so common New Years resolution to LOSE WEIGHT:
Specific: Lose 10 pounds in 3 months, through exercising 3-5 days a week and eating a diet between 1200-1800 calories a day.
Measurable: Stand on the scale every morning, chart my weight in graph to keep track of weight loss. Use the My Fitness Pal app to track calorie intake. Use my Garmin watch to track my walking and running. Text accountability partner when if I am about to eat things I shouldn’t.
Attainable: Lose 1 pound, per week. That’s a 3,500 kcal deficit per week. My body requires about 2,200 calories a day. I need at least a 500 per day calorie deficit to achieve my goal. Walk at least 30 minutes per day. Stretch daily. 1-3 mile runs 3-5 days a week.
Relevant: My doctor told me I have hypertension (high blood pressure) this puts me at risk for many other illnesses/disease if I do nothing. By losing 10 pounds using my routine I can increase my activity, decrease foods that are unhealthy and hopefully bring down my blood pressure.
Time-Based: I will complete my goal by April 1, 2020.
If you make one goal at a time, dedicate yourself to it you can get where you want to go. It takes time to build habits and if you try to push yourself to do too many things at once you will burn yourself out.
Take your time and focus on what is most important to you this year.