It’s that time of year when people pledge to themselves that they will start their new workout regime. It’s also a popular joke that most of these promises are forgotten as soon as February comes around. There are several reasons why these New Year’s resolutions fail, but one primary reason is a lack of structure.
Knowing what you’re doing every day and keeping records of your workout are foundational in your efforts to effectively set and achieve fitness goals.
Write Down the What and Know the Why
Writing down what days you are going to exercise and exactly what you’re going to do will give your routine a defined structure. Having daily or weekly goals that you write on the calendar will make the larger overall goal more attainable. It also puts you in charge of your own scheduling and lets you take charge of the situation.
Also, knowing and writing down why you are exercising will help keep you motivated throughout your routine, reminding yourself that this is all for a purpose—whether it be for your own satisfaction or for the benefit of others.
Be Specific in Your Goals
When writing down your exercise schedule, don’t be vague in your activities for the session. Know exactly what exercises, which machines, how much weight, the amount of repetition, and how many sets. This keeps you accountable on whether you fall short of those daily goals or even exceed them. The foundation of your overall goal is built upon what you set daily.
Not having it meticulously planned out will result in disorganization and inefficient efforts. This can have obvious negative effects by slowing progress or having it come to a halt entirely. Know the numbers of everything before you walk into the gym.
Be Realistic in Your Goals
No one expects you to walk into the gym on day one and do one hundred push-ups without a break. The only one pressuring you to do that would be yourself. It’s easy to be overly eager to reach your end goal; it can be discouraging not seeing immediate results. But to effectively set and achieve fitness goals, you must know your own initial limitations first.
Know where your current fitness standing is, and from there, you can build your workout regimen. Adding more weight, repetitions, and sets after you get comfortable with your current limitations will ensure steady progress and give you a sense of accomplishment and growth.
Being comfortable with your limits and slowly building them up is key to your exercise success.
