Goal Setting: Does Your Behavior Match Your Goals

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Women running to reach their fitness goals.

GOAL SETTING: DOES YOUR BEHAVIOR MATCH YOUR GOALS?

By: Margot Rutigliano

So you’ve set a health, fitness or weight loss goal – now what? First of all, congratulations! Many people fly blindly without ever setting a clear goal. And if you’re reading this and your goal isn’t clear or specific, now is the time to define your goal. In this post, we’ll cover how your behavior must match your goal in order to achieve it.

I believe in clear, specific, measurable goals. If you truly want to achieve a goal, you can’t just throw something out there to the wind and expect it to be attained. Setting a clear goal that is defined will give you the best chance to succeed. Here are my tips for setting a goal:

  • Clear – it needs to be clear and understandable to you and anyone you might share it with (a coach, mentor, family member, etc).

  • Specific – if you have a broad goal, it might need to be broken down into smaller goals so it’s not overwhelming.

  • Measurable – how can you measure your progress? With health, it might be test results like cholesterol or blood pressure. Or it could be having more energy or not having an afternoon crash. A fitness goal might be measured by strength or speed and a weight loss goal could be measured by inches lost, body composition or weight lost on the scale.

  • Trackable – don’t just set the goal – track it! Use an app on your phone, make a note in your phone with the details or grab a journal and track your results weekly, bi weekly or monthly – whichever you choose. Not only are you tracking your goal but you can analyze what’s working and what isn’t. You can see how your progress is going and decide if anything needs to be changed.

BEHAVIOR, BEHAVIOR, BEHAVIOR!

Now that you’ve set your goal and understand the steps that need to be taken to achieve that goal, it’s time to match your behavior to your goal.

You can’t just wish for it, you have to work for it! 

Small steps usually work the best when trying to achieve a new goal. So if you were to choose 1 action or 1 behavior that you could do every day for the next week or two that would help you reach your goal, what would it be?

For example, if your goal is to lose weight, which behavior for the next week – two weeks would you want to focus on? Would it be portion control or exercising more or choosing healthier foods? Choose one behavior to work on and focus on that. Once you’ve got it down pat, then you can move on to the next behavior.

If your goal is to improve your speed in track, which behavior would you adopt to make that happen? In this case, you might even ask for help from your coach or trainer to improve speed. Would you run harder or faster? Would you lift weights explosively to gain strength? What would it be?

The point is that you can’t just have a goal, you have to put in the effort, the time and the dedication to reaching that goal to make it come true.

STEPS TO MEETING YOUR GOAL

  1. Define Your Goal

  2. Define How You’ll Measure Your Goal

  3. Figure Out How You’ll Track Your Goal

  4. Decide On A Behavior for 1 – 2 Weeks That Will Edge You Toward Your Goal

Now, it’s time to go reach your goal! If you have any questions, please comment below. I’m happy to answer any and all questions.

In addition, if you want a jumpstart to your healthy habits and reboot your body, join us for a fitness retreat or check our our Health and Wellness Coaching. We’d love to help! Best In Health & Wellness, Margot + The Vita Vie Retreat Team

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