Setting Your Fitness Goals and Meeting Them

Whenever you set goals to strive for in your fitness plan, you always want to have a set date.  Of course, generally we all want to be in the best shape possible, but there needs to be a cut off point where you either reach your objectives or fall short.  Falling short isn’t really a bad thing as long as you have been following the course and put in real effort.  I tend to set goals really high so I always know I’m pushing it ahead of time.  If I fail, it’s usually a good failure.  For example, instead of running a 6:30 mile, I only get to 7:00 (which in this example would still make a marked improvement.)

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So once more, you need to have a date set in your goals.  Last week I set tomorrow as my date to cut weight, tone up, and gain more muscle.  I wish I would have taken down numbers (something else you should do) but I’ll have to settle for my own realism and perception as a measuring stick.  I feel pretty good about how far I’ve come in a week and a half.  Everything I’ve set out to do, I’ve done and I feel great momentum in my mindset as a result from it.

In fact, I’ve done so well I’m giving myself the day off to rest today.  I will go walking in a minute to help burn some calories and continue pushing forward, but I feel like I need to give myself a rest today.  You might be thinking to yourself, “walking?”  It doesn’t sound like much but walking is great workout filler.

Walking gets you on your feet, moving, burning calories, and toning up – especially in warm climates.  Last Summer I visited Williamsburg with no car and had to walk everywhere I went – to and from.  I walked to eat.  I walked to the store.  I walked to the gym.  I walked everywhere.  In one month, I had lost several inches and dropped about 10 pounds.  Keep in mind, I was still vigorously working out, but I credit walking for pushing me over the hump into those fantastic numbers.  One more thing – when you run out of food and have to walk to eat and then walk back you probably can’t even gain weight.

Last night I did about 15-20 minutes on the streets post workout and today I’ll go at it again.  Remember to walk with a purpose when you walk to really build muscle and tone in the process.  Exaggerate your movements, keep your back straight with your head up, and lift your knees.

I’m a little mad at myself for not writing down those measurements I mentioned earlier because that is something I would advise you to do.  It’s just as important as setting a deadline.  Make sure when you start your fitness plan to get access to a measuring tape and a scale.  Also you might want to write down some of your fitness markers to see where you’re stand:

• How fast can you run or walk a mile
• How many pushups can you do without stopping
• How high can you jump
• How far can you stretch