Do you find it hard to stick to your exercise program?
Coming up with an exercise program is a feat in itself, but sticking to it daily is a whole different ball game. This post is perfect for you if you’ve been struggling with setting and reaching your fitness goals. This post will share the top-secret approach that elite coaches live by in world-class training athletes. You will be surprised as to how simple, direct, and doable it is.
The S.M.A.R.T. Approach
Elite coaches use the SMART approach in training. This method ensures success as it allows for a specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timed approach to reach fitness goals, hence the acronym.
After reading this, you’d realize that you’ve been missing your weekly target is not lazy, hopeless, or inadequate— it’s simply because you’re not applying the right planning strategy. With the SMART Approach, get motivated to exercise; it’s always okay to start again and begin anew because you can always be sure that regardless of setbacks and delays, you can still be on track and focused on your target.
How to Apply the SMART Approach and Motivated to Exercise
To apply the SMART Approach and get motivated to exercise, you simply have to integrate the following concepts in your planning:
1. Be as specific as possible. The more specific, the better. Attack your goal to a T.
It will be easy for you to get on track if you have specific goals. You probably think you already have a specific goal, but you actually don’t. Losing weight is not a specific goal. It is too general and wide that attacking it efficiently is just not feasible. What, then is a specific goal? A specific goal is as simple as ‘doing cardio for 20 minutes every day.’ It is specific because it is clear, it is achievable, and not general. If you’re going to compare ‘losing weight’ and ‘doing cardio for 20 minutes every day, which one is more doable? Which one can be easily executed? It’s the latter. Hence, you should always aim for specific goals at all times. If you’re planning to work with a personal trainer for beginners, you’d be amazed at how this is simply the approach that they zone in.
2. Make everything Measurable.
“If you can’t measure it, you can’t improve it.”
– Peter Drucker
The general goal of ‘losing weight‘ is not measurable. If it’s not measurable, there’s no way to determine if what you’re doing is working or not. To set yourself on track and ensure effective evaluation, you have to make all your goals measurable. You have to record your performance and dedicate time to comparing your old self to your current self. You need to set clear parameters on what you want to achieve. If you aim to lose weight, state it in pounds. Make everything measurable and quantifiable.
This is something that every coach does. They even apply it to their marketing strategies. If you want to know how to get personal training clients in an effective way, you should observe how trainers consistently release quantifiable outputs to ensure that they reach the right prospective clients. They make everything measurable to know just what to do (marketing-wise and training-wise); if something needs to be worked on, they add or deduct factors depending on their measured results.
3. Make it Attainable. Make it easy for you to make it possible
Having specific, measurable goals is not enough. Your goals should be attainable too. You could make your goal attainable by simply referring to your current state and past history. Why push yourself to do an hour of cardio every day when you know that you’ve only ever been able to do 10 minutes daily? You should never strain yourself. To avoid straining and overreaching, you should simply come up with attainable goals. It doesn’t matter how slow or how minuscule your goals will be. If they’re attainable, then you’re on the right track.
4. Have a Realistic and truthful mindset
This concept goes hand in hand with coming up with attainable goals. This is where you need to apply careful balance. Your attainable goals should also be realistic. Realistic in a sense that they should align with your overarching goal — whatever it may be, regardless if it’s losing weight or gaining muscles.
If you’re going to set attainable goals, you need to prepare for their equivalent results. You can’t expect to grow a rose if you know that you planted a daisy. This is a mindset framework that needs to be instilled. This involves patience above all things. This approach will require you to trust the process and never rush. If you’ve achieved a month of doing cardio daily for 30 minutes, don’t instantly hop to doing one for two hours. You should carefully increase your goals. You should never rush.
5. Make Time with your best friend
All successful fitness goals follow a timeline. You can easily get lost and overwhelmed if you’re not going to develop a realistic timeline that will cater to all your needs. If you want to lose weight, you should give yourself at least six months to see solid results. Such a timeline is enough to not make you feel bored or pressured. Weekly and monthly evaluations should be made to ensure that you check if your actions are working. Comfort and ease are signs that you should level up. If you want to know more about proper goal setting and timeline planning, you should check out https://movewellhealthandfitness.com.au.
I hope this article may help you get motivated to exercise and led you a healthy lifestyle!
