Setting achievable goals: Case fitness
Setting achievable goals makes more difference in the fitness outcome than you think. Goal setting is defined as the act of selecting a target or objective you wish to achieve. And this is where it already can go really wrong. Did you notice the word “wish”?
The opportunity cost
If we are serious about achieving our goals, however, we should start with a much different question. Rather than considering what kind of success we want, we should ask, “What kind of pain can I tolerate?”
Setting the goal or actually “making a wish” is the easy part. Who wouldn’t want to lose weight or earn more money? Everybody wants to achieve these goals.
The real challenge is not determining if you want the result, but if you are willing to accept the sacrifices required to achieve your goal. Do you want the lifestyle that comes with your quest? Do you want the boring and ugly process that comes before the exciting and glamorous outcome? Are you ready to give up your croissants for weight loss or work more hours to earn more money?
It’s easy to sit around and think what we could do or how we would like to be. It is an entirely different thing to accept the tradeoffs that come with our goals. Everybody wants a gold medal. Few people want to train like an Olympian.
Realistic goals
This one should not even need to be talked about. The goals must be realistic from the get-go. However, we still want to remind you that what is theoretically very realistic might not be realistic for you when taking all the following into consideration.
The two types of goals
To help you to get from wishes to actually actionable steps towards the goal, we divide goals into two categories.
- Outcome goals
- Behavioral goals
The outcome goals are the “wishes”, the end results. “I want to lose 5 kilos” is an outcome goal. The behavioral goals are the things that need to happen in order to make that outcome goal more than a wish. The behavioral goals are the actual action points that need to be fulfilled to achieve the outcome goal. “I will attend a CrossFit class 4 times a week for 6 months” is a behavioral goal. “I will eat a whole grain bun instead of a croissant every morning” is also a behavioral goal.
The outcome goals are useful for setting the direction. The behavioral are great for actually making progress. And remember, behavioral goals will get you some progress also in abundance of the outcome goal but not the other way around.
Goals competing with other goals
Goal competition means that one of the greatest barriers to achieving your goals is the other goals you have. In other words, your goals are competing with one another for your time and attention. Whenever you chase a new goal, you must pull focus and energy from your other pursuits. Everyone has 24 hours in a day. Some people can afford to outsource more work than the others but there are things that one cannot outsource. One of these things is health and fitness. Someone else eating healthy or lifting weights for you will not benefit you at all! On the other hand, one can save time by letting someone else prepare the food or by hiring a coach to get the most of the time invested in fitness.
Now, here is the good news. One of the fastest ways to make progress on your goals is to simply press pause on less important things and focus on one goal at a time. This does not mean that you fully give up on other goals – unless they are permanently colliding with your primary goal – but you put them on a maintenance mode.
Now you might notice that what you though was a problem of goal setting was actually merely a problem of goal selection. What we really need is not better or different goals, but better focus.
Measurable goals
“I want to be less tired after a full day of work” is a great goal to have. But as humans we do not tend to notice when unmeasurable things get better, at least not when they get a bit better. That is why the better way is to set goals on things that are a. measurable b. commonly known to influence the more perceptual goal. If we think about the aforementioned goal of having more energy after a workday a few things come to our mind. How about setting sleep, nutrition, or exercise related goals?
Conclusion
Goal setting is not only about choosing the rewards you want to enjoy, but also the costs you are willing to pay. A successful goal setting takes into consideration the opportunity cost of the time you need to spend on reaching this goal. It also takes into consideration the other goals you have and maybe puts them on hold for a while. Successful goal setting also concentrates on things that are realistic and measurable.
All of our memberships at CrossFit Kreis 9 include 1:1 Goal Review Sessions with one of our expert coaches. In case you want to profit from this service, please fill out this form and let us help you!
