I hear so many times people say thing like, ‘I would love to be 9 stone, but I don’t think I will be able to do it’.
Then why set yourself such an unrealistic goal if you really think you are not going to get there. You are only going to set yourself up to fail in your own mind, as you may not reach your goal. When this happens it then leaves you thinking, “what was the point, I might as well just give up”. This is when things start to spiral out of control, you lose all willpower and determination and you end right back at the start feeling worse than when you started.
All this, from just one unrealistic goal. However, there is a solution to all this. You see, the unhealthy habits you have picked up have taken time to become habits. They have all developed over time. No-one became overweight in a week, no-one became a heavy drinker the day they hit 18, and a lot of people don’t start out smoking 40 cigarettes a day.
The same applies the other way, it all takes time. You cannot just say that from now I am going to instantly reverse my poor habits that I have developed, that is unrealistic. The same as me saying I am just going to start squatting with an extra 50kg on my back tomorrow, or develop a six-pack in one week. It all takes time, hard work and most of all, planning.
So saying I want to lose weight and get fitter is not a goal, it is just words.
How are you going to get to lose weight and get fitter?
Well, let’s break it down and work backwards and see how we can do this bit by bit, month by month with short-term SMART goals.
Month 1:
Training – Go to bootcamp 1x a week
Nutrition – Cut the number of nights I drink alcohol in half.
Lifestyle – Spend 1 night a week away from the TV
That’s a fairly easy start, nothing too drastic, but for 4 weeks that will still be fairly challenging. Even if it doesn’t seem like it – it will be.
Month 2:
Training – Go to bootcamp 1x a week and go on a long walk (over 1 hour) 1x a week
Nutrition – Drink at least 3 litres of water (nothing added) a day
Lifestyle – Go to bed twice per week, with no mobile phones, ipads or anything that beeps.
I bet you think this is looking easy right? There are many who at this stage would have given up, but you have stuck with your realistic monthly goals.
Month 3:
Training – Go to bootcamp 2x a week
Nutrition – Make sure you eat one portion of protein with breakfast 4x a week.
Lifestyle – Get a full body massage, twice in the month (with the money you have saved from drinking less)
You probably are starting to get the hang of this now….
Month 4:
Training – Go to bootcamp 3x a week
Nutrition – Cook dinner from scratch using a delicious recipe 2x a week, and cut down on the amount of alcohol you drink by half (again).
Lifestyle – Sit down for dinner with a loved one or family instead of watching tv 1x night a week
At this point all these goals may seem relatively easy. Plus, you will be feeling a lot better, you will have lost weight and probably be wanting to take things up a notch
Month 5:
Training – Go to the gym 3x a week and go on a long walk (over 1 hour) 1x per week.
Nutrition – Start taking one omega-3 fish oil tablet and one multivitamin per day
Lifestyle – Buy yourself some new clothes as your current ones don’t fit you anymore with the money you have saved from having less alcohol.
Month 6:
Training – Go to bootcamp 3x a week and go on a long walk 1x a week
Nutrition – Remain on course with your nutrition plan which now seems easy because you are used to making small habitual changes over time
Lifestyle – Treat yourself 1x per week, since you have been working really hard for 6 months.
There it is for you all to see how with a 6 month actionable plan, you can set yourself up with a new healthy lifestyle. Now you can try and use this for your own goals.
I am not going to say you will be a super model at the end of it. But I bet you will a hell of a lot healthier, fitter and proud that you have achieved all of your short-term goals you have set yourself month by month.
So do it now, write yourself your long-term goal, then work backwards from there with short-term, reasonable and logical steps. Always think, how am I going to get to this next step?
If you want help breaking down your long-term goal into smaller, more realistic short-term goals, then please do get in touch with me and I’d be more than happy to help you do that (kristian@fitterbodybootcamp.com).
So I hope you can take this on board and make yourself a real SMART goal.