How To Properly Set Health and Fitness Goals

by Tony Rovere
(West Islip, NY)

In my opinion, the steps to goal setting are the single most important elements of any weight loss plan that you create. The key is understanding how to properly set weight loss goals. Why?

Because unless you have a set of clearly defined, measurable and realistic weight loss goals you will fail. I don’t care what the diet is. I don’t care how often you work out. You will fall off the boat, eat too much and self-sabotage yourself.

The steps to goal setting are about designing your own future and I will show you how to do it so that you can stay motivated and on track. And what’s more, the tips and techniques here can be applied to any area of your life. Here, I am writing regarding the health aspects of your life. But the same steps to goal setting can be applied not only to weight loss but to your career, personal finances, your relationships or anything else you could think of.

Step 1: List at least 5 things that you have done that you are already proud of?

Do not skip this step because you think it is corny. It is the foundation of the rest of the other steps to goal setting.

Why do I ask you to do this? This is to give you credit for what you have already accomplished. You have accomplished some incredible things in your life. And you did this without a plan in all likelihood. Some of the things that could be on your list could include:

• Graduating at the top of your class



• Captain of the football team or cheerleading squad



• Winning an award



• Giving a speech in public



• Getting that promotion you wanted



• Raising a family

And the amazing part is that you did this without a plan, with goals. Do you know how much you could accomplish if you have a plan? So the first of the steps to goal setting is to give yourself credit for what you have already done. These are accomplishments you should be proud of!

Step 2: What do you want in the next 2 years in terms of your physical fitness:

Come up with a list of at least 20 items/achievements that you want to accomplish in the next two years. Some ideas could be:

• How much weight do you want to lose?


• What dress size do you want to be?


• Ladies, have a particular dress you want to buy but can’t fit in yet?


• Do you want to run in a race?


• Do 50 pushups at once?


• Do 50 sit-ups at once?


• Be able to climb the stairs without being out of breath?


• Lower your cholesterol?


• Stop taking blood pressure medication?


• Maybe a little revenge will be on your list? Has someone told you that you couldn’t do it? That you would always be fat? Or maybe you just broke up with someone or had a divorce and want to look super-hot the next time you bump into them?

Take the time to write down at least 20, and if you can do more, that’s great.


Step 3: The third of the steps to goal setting is to go through the 20 items/achievements and divide them between 30-day goals, 90-day goals, 180-day goals, 1-year goals and 2-year goals.

The reason for this is because you need a mix of goals so that you can always be checking goals off of your list.

If you goal is to lose 75 pounds, that may be a one year goal, but you need to lose five pounds in the next 30 days so that you can check off the five pound goal. Being able to check off that first five pounds will give you the motivation to check off the next five pounds!

So if you are a 200-pound female who wants to go to 120 pounds, don’t be afraid if a portion of the goals list looks like this?

Weigh 195 pounds
Weigh 190 pounds
Weigh 185 pounds
Weigh 180 pounds
Weigh 175 pounds
Weigh 170 pounds
Weigh 165 pounds
Weigh 160 pounds
Weigh 155 pounds
Weigh 150 pounds
Weigh 145 pounds
Weigh 140 pounds
Weigh 135 pounds
Weigh 130 pounds
Weigh 125 pounds
Weigh 120 pounds

As a matter of fact, I would recommend it. Being able to check off those small intermediary goals will allow you to stay on track while you pursue the big goal.

So itemize your goals between 30-day goals, 90-day goals, 180-day goals, 1-year goals and 2-year goals. Target the 30-day goals and ask yourself an incredibly important question.

Why?

The most important of the steps to goal setting is to understand why these goals are important to you? You need to write this down because if the ‘why’ is strong enough you can figure out the ‘how.’ That is more valuable than knowing what your Basal Metabolic Rate is and what exercises to do.

Get the "Why” right and you’ll just start moving in the right direction without even realizing it. You will begin to make the right decisions about how to eat. You will have the motivation to make the right choices when you go to McDonald's.


You will understand the power of a public statement. You will be willing to bet your friends that you will lose the weight by the end of the year.

Then you’ll be willing to do things that will truly astound you. Want that gorgeous dress but don’t think you’ll ever fit in it. You will buy it anyway in that smaller size.

Then you’ll take it and you’ll put a date on it. That date might be six months from now, or a year from now. But you will hang that dress where you can see it every day and tell all your friends about it and the date that you will wear it. Most importantly, you will know within your heart that you will be wearing that dress on the day you wrote down. And when you can do that you have mastered the steps to goal setting.

That is the power of finding your WHY!

And if you can find your why you can accomplish anything.


About the author:

Tony Rovere regained his health, strength and vitality by losing 60 pounds and managing to keep it off for over 3 years.

This is why he created Health-and-weight-loss-tips.com, where he shares his passion for health and fitness with others so that they can accomplish the same goals that he has achieved.