Are you struggling with your fitness goals 2024?
It’s been an amazing and exciting year so far! Have you set your fitness goals 2024 yet? If not, now is a great time to set up some goals and start working on the new you!
Have you had the thought of getting in the best shape of your life? It doesn’t matter how old or young you are. Fitness is for anyone, who wants to have good health and be physically and mentally fit.
It all starts with a simple decision and the choices you make that will set you up for success. Having a healthy body and a healthy mind is key to living a healthy, happy, and long life.
Understanding what is a fitness goal and how to reach them.
Understanding what a fitness goal is, will help you in your fitness goal setting for success. A fitness goal is a special training , exercises, or a physical challenge that you prepare for yourself. You must set a realistic challenge that is realistic. You don’t want to set your goal too easy or extremely hard. Setting unrealistic goals will lead to failure and disappointment.
When it comes to setting a fitness goal, “one of the biggest mistakes is that people try to do too much at one time,” Try to complete one goal at a time, before you go to the next. Trying to tackle too much at once is essentially just setting yourself up for failure.
Going into your workout with a plan will help you feel in control of the situation. When you know what to expect, your mind won’t be racing with thoughts like, “I don’t know what I’m doing” or “how long should I do this for?”
The 5 most common fitness goals are :
- Shed fat – Cutting back on the obvious junk foods and becoming more active are the best ways to lose weight. You’ll need to start counting your calories to ensure you’re eating enough to maintain your muscle while losing the fat.
- Build muscle – The key to building muscle is to increase the rate of protein deposition while minimizing the rate of protein breakdown.
- Improve endurance – Running can build your endurance. Run long and slow.
- Increase flexibility- Stretching increases your flexibility. Perform different stretches and you will start to have more flexibility.
- Toning – In order to achieve the look of muscle tone or a toned body you need to engage in strength training as well as shed the layer of fat covering your muscles.
How to set fitness goals and crush them
1. Start now
You don’t need to wait until New Year’s Eve to set goals. Grab your yellow notepad and a pen and start now…. not next week, NOW!
2. Define what you want to accomplish
Don’t just say, “I want to lose weight” or “I want more muscle mass.” This is the beauty in fitness: It doesn’t need to end with achieving massive biceps. Once that box is checked, move on and start conquering more.
3. Make your goals M.A.T.
Measureable: Whether that means weighing yourself, testing your body fat, or doing some kind of assessment or evaluation. Keep a journal as a record of everything that you’re doing to achieve your goal (e.g. workouts, diet, goals). It may sound tedious or difficult, but the path to success should be both fun and challenging at all times, and you need a way to measure that success as you achieve it.
Achievable: Set realistic goals for yourself. If you’re 45 and have a beer belly, you probably will never be the starting QB for the Patriots , but you may eventually make a better training partner for your child, so maybe he can be one day.
Timed: Goals are dreams with a deadline. Set a specific and realistic time to reach them.
4. Acknowledge your hurdles
We all have them. Think of the last 3 excuses you had for not working out (e.g. too tired, not enough time in the day, too sore).
5. Make some sacrifices
Ask yourself , “What can you do day to day to achieve these goals and what are you willing to give up right now”?
6. Take action, each and every day
It is the small daily steps that will create the momentum needed to ignite the drive in your mind and body.
If you take the time to answer these questions and stay true to these tips, you will start to see success on your fitness journey, and maybe in the other aspects of your life as well.
Answer these questions:
What is the first step that you can make right now to put you on your path toward achievement and stay motivated?
What are your weaknesses?
Why have you not already achieved the goal you seek?
What are the personal, professional, or circumstantial barriers that have gotten in the way?
How can your time management be more effective?
Your goals in fitness will come true only if you work on addressing these issues first. The more paper you used to answer these questions the harder it is going to be to achieve success.
Reward yourself when you reach an important milestone or achieve a specific goal.
The good feeling of a job well done is great, but rewarding yourself for reaching your small goals can be one of the most effective motivation tools you have. Rewards don’t have to be big to have big results, either. Frequent small rewards earned for smaller goals are actually more effective than a big reward that requires a long, difficult effort. Don’t pick rewards that will completely defeat the purpose of your accomplishment.
By setting, reaching, and rewarding yourself for your fitness goals, you set yourself in motion for continued success and a lifetime of good habits. That’s something worth celebrating!
Ideas for rewarding yourself when you reach your goals.
Get a Massage
Exercising is good for you, but it can also take a lot out of you, too. After weeks or even months of working toward your fitness goals, you may find that your muscles and joints are tired and sore. Treat your body with a massage to help restore your muscles to their normal, healthy state. There are different types of massages you can try, from Thai to sports to Swedish to hydro. Each is very beneficial, relaxing and enjoyable.
Buy Yourself a new Exercise Wardrobe
If you have been working out in the same old sneakers and tired training clothes for the last few months, why not spice up your exercise wardrobe upon reaching your fitness goals? New training shoes, a bright workout top or shorts can make you feel really good and possibly make you feel more motivated to workout. You could buy an entire outfit all at once when you’ve completed a mid-level fitness goal or a single piece of new clothing when you’ve attained easier goals.
Book a Fitness Weekend at a Hotel
Hotels and resorts often host special fitness weekends. These weekends could include anything from spa packages to personal training to a variety of group exercise classes. Some fitness weekends feature celebrity trainers and may also include lectures and presentations to educate and motivate you. Book a fitness weekend with your partner, friend or relative so they can help you celebrate your fitness achievements.
Add to your Exercise Gadgets
Exercise gadgets, such as MP3 players, heart rate monitors, pedometers and so on make for great fitness goal rewards. Not only do they give you something to look forward to, they can also play a part in reaching future fitness goals. Gadgets don’t have to be expensive either.
Enjoy a healthy Treat Meal
Many fitness goals involve following a strict diet. Upon reaching a certain fitness goal, you could reward yourself with a healthy treat meal during which you can enjoy some of the foods that have been off the menu for the last few weeks or months. While you should be careful not to overindulge and undo some of your good work, there is no reason that you cannot enjoy some otherwise “forbidden” foods — in moderation of course.
