How To Get Motivated Through Goal Setting

Setting a meaningful goal is one of the best ways to get motivated. When you don’t feel like working out your goal will give you that needed push. All the sudden you're passing up desserts and eating more yummy greens. After all, you need to take action if you want to reach your goal in a timely fashion.

Handwriting a timely goal with a due date will keep you laser focused. Have you ever noticed how disciplined and rigid people get around wedding season. It's no coincidence, everyone wants to look their best for this special occasion. Obviously, those pictures will reside on Facebook forever. I guess that's what photoshop and filters are for.

A due date provides a sense of urgency. In school, you can cram and pull all-nighters and get away with it. When it comes to fitness you cannot procrastinate and expect to reap success.

If your goal is to build lean muscle and lose belly fat you must be consistent. Making poor choices all month long and eating a salad the night before your weigh in won't help you. You must look at each week as an opportunity to get closer to your goal. When you're inconsistent with your nutrition and exercise you're driving yourself away from your goal.

Consistency leads to faster results. It's the most direct route to your goal. Once you start to see some positive changes things start to get easier. The hardest part is to get the ball rolling wouldn't you agree? Newton's first law puts it like this "An object in motion stays in motion." Now that the ball is rolling you feel energized and motivated. Saying no to that third slice of pizza got a whole lot easier. That grilled chicken salad tastes like manna from heaven. But, if you're not consistent and not seeing any progress you'll lose motivation. You will drive right off the path, get lost, and forget that you even had a destination.

5 steps to help you write an effective goal

1. Specific

2. Measurable

3. Realistic

4. Important

5. Timely

Example of a bad goal: I want to lose 20 lbs is not a good goal. It’s too vague and has no time frame.

Example of a good goal: I want to lose 20 lbs in 5 weeks so I can look and feel my best at my son's graduation. This goal covers all the criteria above. It’s specific, measurable, important and the has a time frame. Losing 2 pounds a week is a challenging task but it’s realistic.

Stay patient and persistent if you want to reach your goal. You might get lost on the way to reaching your goal. Don't get discouraged and give up. Learn to forgive yourself and learn from your mistakes. You're not a bad person.

If you need some extra guidance and direction please feel free to schedule a complimentary consult (Thiago@TSantosFIT.COM)