The Clearer the Goal, the Better Your Chance to Succeed

“The clearer the goal, the better your chance to succeed”
“Failing to plan is planning to fail”

I am sure I can think of at least another dozen proverbs with the same bottom line (no pun intended!) What I am trying to say is, before you start doing anything – learning a new language, backpacking through Europe or losing weight, you need to have a plan. All successful ventures start with a well thought out plan. Would you open a business without a business plan?

So, since we are at this time of the year, routinely associated with taking stock of the year that passed and setting our intentions for the one that’s coming, I figured, I will mention the subject one more time. Plus, if you plan to follow Melissa’s program, this is your perfect opportunity to start with her.

Yep, that’s right. Melissa (a new client) has agreed to participate in a 12-week program and document her results on this blog. We will start on January 1st, when I will publish her current stats (height, weight, BMI, body fat percentage). Then, from Jan 2nd, onwards, I will give Melissa her daily eating and exercise plan and she will write a short paragraph every day to say how she is doing. We will track her results monthly in comparison to her goals. If you wish, you are most welcome to follow her plan but I would advice you to drop a comment on the blog if you want to make any changes to the program. I will do my best to answer each comment! Also, please let me know if you are following the program and have any previous injuries, allergies or medical conditions. I will offer suggestions for exercise and meal modifications based on your situation.

Back to the point… Melissa’s first assignment starts today and she has 5 days (till January 1, 2009) to set her intentions. IN WRITING.

Here are the rules:

Goals must be realistic and obtainable. Is you are 1.65m tall, you never will look like Naomi Campbell. Get over it! Set goals that you can actually achieve!

Develop long and short term goals. You need to know where you will be in 4 weeks time, 8 weeks, 6 months and 1 year. “I want to lose 20kg in 1 year” doesn’t mean anything. To make it worth the piece of paper you write it on, break it down to “lose 2kg in January”, “1 size smaller (8kg) till end of March” and so forth. It is the short-term goals that will keep you pumped and ready to go in the next three months. They help you stay focused on the task. But you should always keep the “big picture” in mind.

When setting your goals, I also need you think about and answer the following questions:
- Why are you doing this? Who are you trying to please? Yourself or someone else?
- What is motivating you to make these changes? Your doctor, your family, your social life (or lack there of)?
- How is your life going to change when your goals are achieved? Remember, exercise, healthy diet and lean body can work wonders for your self esteem but they are by no means “magic wands” that will take all your problems away. Having said that, it’s easier to be miserable and slim than miserable and fat…
- What exactly are you trying to achieve? Small waist? Fitting into dress size 8? Looking lean?
Now, once you’ve thought it all out, what I need you to do is create a “road map”. Make a chart that has months on the horizontal axis and weight on the vertical. Then plot your current weight over the first month mark (which should be right now or Jan 1) and then plot the weight you plan to be at in Feb, Mar, Apr and so forth. That will be your “goal line” then every month you will need to plot your “actual line” (i.e. how much you actually weigh that month) to make sure you are moving in the right direction.
Remember to be realistic about the whole thing. A relatively moderate increase in activity and diet change generally result in 500g a week weight loss or approximately 2kg a month. That’s with “moderate increase” in exercise AND improvements to your diet. Not as easy as it sounds! So, if your plan includes weight loss of 5kg per month every month… you will need to subject yourself to one of these “Biggest Loser” type plans – 7 hours of exercise a day and carrot sticks. Can you do that? For how long?

Cool. I will write to you all again on Jan 1 with Melissa’s goal weight chart (so you can see what it looks like) and a bit about her and her plan. In the meantime, if you need some help with the goal setting – just drop a comment.

See you all!
Ciao!


Jeni