Making the Most of Setting Goals

With the new year quickly approaching many of us will be taking inventory of this past year and looking to make a change in the new year. According to statisticbrain.com, 45% of Americans make New Years Resolutions, with the #1 resolution being to lose weight. Sadly, the website reports that only 8% of Americans accomplish their resolution. Don’t let those odds be against you!

The easier it is to follow your plans to reach your goal, the more likely you are to stick with and accomplish your goal. Follow these simple steps to creating your goals and actually following through with your New Years Resolutions this year and beyond:

• Write down what you ultimately want to accomplish.
• Brainstorm all elements involved with each goal. Be thorough – even the smallest task should be documented.
• Rank each goal in its importance to you. For example, it is more important for you to quit smoking than it is to redecorate your home?
• Rank each goal in the order you plan to accomplish them. This can be tricky – you want to keep your rank of goal importance in consideration while completing this step.
• Create dates by which you will accomplish your entire goal, as well as each task associated with the goal. Create 3 sets of dates – early dates (think “this would be fabulous if it was accomplished by this date”), ultimate dates (think “this is probably much more realistic of a date”) and late, but acceptable dates (this will be your “drop-dead” date – you HAVE to accomplish your goal by then).  This will hold you accountable and provide some structure with your goal setting but also allow life to creep in. It will eliminate your guilt if you have 3 dates to accomplish something, rather than one hard and fast date.
• Start on your first goal and keep on going!

If you follow this plan for your goals, you will be in the 8% rather than in the other 92%. Take some time to yourself, sit down with your favorite clean hot beverage and plan your year.

Our 12-Week Transformation is a perfect way for you to stick to your resolutions. It gives you 12 weeks’ worth of gym or home workouts plus a great Facebook support group! Need more information on goals? Check out our 6 Simple Steps to Reaching Your Fitness Goals and Creating Your Workout Plan.