Setting goals is essential for helping us live happy, healthy, and fulfilling lives.
But creating your goals is just the beginning. Once you set them, goals can be hard to stick with.
At first, losing 10lbs or getting up at 6 am every day sounds like great goals. But when the alarm clock goes off or the time for the gym comes, suddenly goals can seem so far away and hard to stick to.
The inability to stay consistent with goals is why 80% of people fail their New Year’s Resolutions.
Coming up with goals is one thing, but staying consistent enough to reach them is an entirely different challenge that hinders many women from making the body transformation they desire.
Here are some important tips for staying on track with your goals.
The Importance of Goal Setting
When it comes to changing behavior, goal setting is key. Setting goals keeps you on track for what you want to accomplish. Goals trigger behavior, which can help motivate you. They help to guide your focus so you can direct it toward what you should do next. Seeing progress is encouraging and helps you build momentum for action. By setting goals, you can identify what you find important and build self-efficacy.
Set SMART Goals
All goals are not created equal. Any goal is a starting point, but some goals are set up for failure. Goals that are generic, unrealistic, or too vague will be hard to follow. Set yourself up for success by crafting SMART goals. SMART goals are
- Specific
- Measurable
- Attainable (realistic)
- Relevant
- Time-sensitive
SMART goals are detailed and will help you stay on track as you work toward them, which leads to better outcomes. To learn more about SMART goals and why they are so powerful, check out this guide.
Write and Journal
Write down your goals as well as your progress. This gives you something to look back on, which will keep you motivated and focused on your goals. You can write your main goals down as well as your reasons for each goal to serve as a reminder when you need it. Jot down what you’ve done each day to progress toward your goal, as well as your feelings, thoughts, concerns, etc.
Announce Your Goals
Tell other people about your goals. Whether you talk to friends and family about your goals or share an update on social media, share goals with other people. This provides you with an instant sense of accountability. People are more likely to stick to goals that they have made public to someone else.
Split Goals Into Small Stages
It’s great to have long-term goals, but sometimes they can seem distant. This can lead to procrastination. Break all of your goals into smaller, daily actions. If you want to read 20 books this year, how many pages do you need to read each day? If you want to run a marathon in two years, what will your running look like today, tomorrow, this week, this month, etc? Segment your goals into smaller, manageable steps that become your “mini-goals” for each day.
Build Habits and Routines Around Your Goals
Create routines that facilitate progress toward your goals. When you leave your goals up to chance, it’s more likely that obstacles will get in the way. For example, if one of your goals is to be able to bench press 10lbs more within 2 months, then weightlifting at the gym should be part of your daily routine. Instead of worrying all day about when you can go, create a habit of going at the same time every day. Get up in the morning, change, eat breakfast, and head to the gym before work. When you do this, going to do your exercise becomes a habit that’s ingrained in your daily routines, which means it’s more likely to stick.
Keep a Daily Routine
Consistency is about repetition. To be consistent with your goals, you must repeat the actions it takes to get there. As much as possible, keep your routine as similar as possible each and every day. It may be tempting to sleep in on the weekends or enjoy some extra treats, but that will only set you back from your goals. Instead, build routines that you can do most days, and have alternative routines for days with a different schedule. For example, if you must drive your grandson to and from practice only on Tuesday, then that will impact your schedule that day. Still, your routines can remain the same from week to week.
Reassess Your Goals
Goals are important for guiding behavior, but goals can change as time goes on. As you work toward your goals, reevaluate them. Maybe certain things have become more important in your life and your focus has changed. Make sure that your goals align with your values, priorities, and interests so that you feel focused.
Predict Obstacles
Arising challenges can throw you off track from your goals. Staying consistent with your goals means completing the daily requirements, but the reality is that unplanned obstacles can come up. Think ahead to predict which obstacles could get in the way of your goals, and come up with solutions before you face those challenges. For example, what will you do if the weather is too bad to go to the gym? Or if the grocery store is out of romaine lettuce? Instead of panicking when you face challenges, plan alternatives. You could have a list of home workouts ready, and a list of nutritious meals that use other ingredients.
Find an Accountability Partner
It’s much easier to stay consistent with goals when you have other people working down the same path as you. Find others who have similar goals as you and become each other accountability partners. Your accountability partner can help you stay on track by checking in with progress, giving you ideas for how to handle challenges. You can both talk through your goals and how you feel during the process of working on them.
There are many ways to get a great accountability partner. You can talk with friends or family to find those who may be interested in pursuing similar goals or keeping each other accountable. You could also join a team or group that’s all working toward a goal. For example, if you are part of an evening workout class, you may meet other people who are also interested in similar body transformation goals.
Social media is another excellent place to find accountability partners. There are many groups with like-minded people looking for ways to stay accountable. For example, the JOC Transformation Group has passionate members who are committed to their own body transformations. In the group, you can learn proven tips from professional body transformation coaches, gain new accountability partners, and share your progress. To stay consistent with your goals, join the JOC Transformation Community today. Click this link to get started and work toward your goals!
