Training Matters: Setting the course to achieving your goals for the new year

By Alex Graham on December 27, 2019.

Merry Christmas and happy holidays! I expect by this point everyone is slowly coming out of their turkey comas and starting to regret all the food and sweet treats they’ve eaten so far. There is nothing like the holidays and the approaching New Year’s to want to be better.

New Year’s resolutions: Most people make them. Whether it be personal growth, health, making a particular team or finally hitting that big lift, now is when most people create goals for the new year. The problem with resolutions is most people don’t keep them and fall short of their goals.

I want to deadlift 300 pounds. I’m not going to achieve that by hitting the gym every day and trying to lift 300 pounds. I’m also not going to achieve that if I deadlift any weight every day. The issue isn’t the end goal, its how people expect to achieve it.

Here are some tips for setting and keeping your New Year’s training goals.

Focus on the input, not the outcome

Weight loss is a great example of this tip. Most people who want to lose weight go on extreme diets with the goal of hitting an ideal weight. The issue is, once they hit it, they can’t keep it, because they have achieved this goal with unsustainable behaviours.

To create lasting change you must focus on changing your habits. One small habit at a time and eventually, you will realize that end goal and it will be sustainable.

Accountability

Creating life-long habits is a difficult task. Even when you think you are on the right track, it doesn’t take much to get derailed. This is where accountability comes in.

It is much more difficult to break a promise to someone else than it is yourself. It’s actually more difficult to break a promise to yourself if you say it out loud or write it down. For accountability, especially if your goals are fitness-based, find a coach or a training partner. This will help keep you on track.

A coach can even help you set achievable goals and habits. If this isn’t an option for you, create an accountability tracker. I personally keep mine taped on the fridge. Every day that I hit my goals, I give myself a check-mark and its right there in front of me.

Create micro-goals

This step ties into focusing on habits versus the end goal, but creating micro-goals is important. All the small habits and changes may seem like they will never add up to your end goal. This can be overwhelming and easily discouraging. This is where a micro-goal comes in. Creating small measuring stones that add up to your end goal can keep you motivated and on task.

It also allows you to celebrate victories. While you might not be at your end goal, it is important to recognize how far you have progressed and take recognition of that.

Track your progress

Tracking progress is slightly different than keeping yourself accountable. The point of tracking your progress is to make sure you are on the right path. It’s seeing your progress, hitting your micro-goals, and more importantly, finding out what is working and what isn’t. If your goal is to hit a 300-pound deadlift and you have been stuck at 280 for months, it is time to take a look at your journal and see what is and isn’t working. This gives you the opportunity to reevaluate and come up with a new plan.

I also suggest that when you are tracking your progress you include more than just the metric you are measuring for your goal (weight lost, pounds lifted, skating time, etc.). Keep track of how you feel before and after each training session. Are you hydrating? Did you get enough sleep last night? Are you stressed? Tracking your progress should be more of a journal. Reflect, reevaluate, and revise your plan.

Create SMART goals

All of the previous tips aren’t going to get you very far if the goal you initially set isn’t attainable. I hate to be the person who says you can’t achieve something you’ve set your mind to, but there are good and bad ways to set goals. This may be a buzz term but it holds merit, set SMART goals.

SMART refers to Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Timely. Setting the goal “I want to get strong” is going to be hard to achieve. What does strong mean? When is this happening? A SMART goal would be “I want to deadlift 300 pounds by July 1.” It is specific, it’s measurable, it’s achievable as I can currently deadlift 285 pounds, it is relevant because I am a strength athlete, and it is timely, July 1.

Now take a look at your goals and see if they follow the SMART formula. If they don’t revise them to do so as it will also make the previous tips more helpful.

The new year is just a few days away. If you are like most people and plan on setting some New Year’s resolutions, I hope you can take away some of the above advice and achieve your goals this year.

Alex Graham, CES, XPS is the strength and conditioning coach at ASDC-SE. She also is the Kinetisense Performance Specialist and is a world leader in 3D functional movement. Email: agraham@mhc.ab.ca.

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