How to turn your New Year resolution into a Smart fitness Goal

​In any given January, you're bombarded with a slew of "new year, new me" resolutions. The sentiment is admirable, but if you've been paying attention, you'll have noticed that these resolutions don't seem to last.

​According to research conducted by social media channel for athletes, Strava in 2019, 80% of resolutions get ditched by the middle of February. I don't need to keep listing data about failed resolutions; we all know that they have a terrible reputation.

I believe that problem is not the resolution itself, but the way they are made. No assessments, no planning, just right into the middle of it until you get too tired, bored or stressed, and give up. I believe they could work if they were considered fitness goals and approached with a habit change mindset rather than an all or nothing attitude. Let's talk about how you can turn your resolutions into achievable fitness goals you won't abandon next month.

What Are SMART Goals?

SMART is an acronym. It stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-bound. Using the SMART principle is a way to create a more vivid, clear goal. That means SMART goals are more likely to be achieved than targets set by other methods. By defining your objectives, and setting yourself a deadline, you'll be more likely to stay focused and motivated to work towards these goals.

• Specific: Rather than setting some generic weight loss goal like "I'd like to lose weight", being particular about how much weight you'd like to lose will give you a clear target. "I'd like to lose 0.5kgs per week for 10 weeks".
• Measurable: Having a quantifiable goal allows you to know when that objective has been reached. It gives you an exact way to measure your final success and progress along the way.
• Achievable: An achievable goal is finding the ideal balance between an ambitious plan that could be intimidating and a comfortable, possibly dull aim. Attainable goals are hard enough to be inspiring but not so hard that they stop you from taking action.
• Realistic: If the goal is to run the London Marathon, but at the moment you don't run at all, building up to a real milestone goal in the lead up to the marathon could be a good idea. For example, consistently training to complete a Couch to 5k training plan for the next 10 weeks, and then regularly enter your local park run.
• Time-bound: These are goals with a deadline, even if that date is something that you'd imposed on the goal yourself. This might include a weekly weight loss target and one for the month and the quarter. The time element can keep motivation high and allow you to track your performance against the big goal by breaking it down into smaller targets.

Why Use SMART Goals?

Smart goals are used in many professional areas and are more recently gaining popularity in the fitness industry. By having a SMART goal, not only are you incredibly clear on what you want to achieve and by when, but you're also able to motivate yourself towards that goal along every step of the way. 

If you are crystal clear on your SMART goals, you can map the journey out yourself. So even a big, ambitious goal can feel manageable, and you stay focused on your next step. If you're working with a personal trainer, they will likely use SMART goals to help understand how you will measure success on your fitness journey.

How To Set Your Own SMART Goals

Now that you understand what SMART goals are, and how to use them effectively, you may want to re-write some of your new year's resolutions into SMART goals to make them more useful. That's why we developed the goal-setting workbook. You can download it for free.

By working through this document, you'll be able to pinpoint exactly which parts of your life have the most meaning for you. This helps you tune into your values. Once you've understood your values, you'll be able to complete an assessment in each area, to have total clarity on which areas need the most improvement. Finally, you'll develop your SMART goals to bring these areas into balance. You need never struggle for motivation ever again.

Conclusion

SMART goals are a way to stay focused and motivated on your plans and intentions. You can use them all year round, for personal and professional purposes, and the principles remain the same. Using SMART goals, you will be more likely to achieve your goals because you'll know exactly what you need to complete and when to be considered successful. Considering what your success looks like ahead of time helps you visualise what your life will be like when you've achieved your goals.