Goal Setting: Being SMART

Today I will be getting my goals for the whole of 2012 organised and on paper!  Although there are a few variations of SMART goals, Mish uses the one in the picture.  The only difference I would make is to ‘Achievable’ – I think that setting goals is not a place to put limits on people.   My ultimate goal is not tempered by anything except what is physically possible, even then I think we should push the limits!  Why can’t I make my goal to win a marathon?  If I really want it, then I will find a way!  I get so frustrated when I see people setting ‘mild’ goals like “I just want to be healthy’ like they really don’t expect to achieve to much and don’t want to get their hopes up.  My message to the world.. reach for the stars!  Push the limits of what is possible and believe in yourself!

My Smart Goals

48kg or 20% body fat by the end of the Michelle Bridges 12 week challenge.  That is nearly 17 weeks away.  Maintaining muscle mass is important to me so I will aim for a max of 1kg a week for the 5 weeks, and then half a kilo a week during the 12 week challenge itself.  I do need to check my scales and make sure my weight is accurate on the scales I am using (they are up to 2kg heavier then my old scales) so I may need to adjust this number, but I am currently 58kg so that is 10kg to lose.  I will re-evaluate at the start of the challenge but if I drop under 1kg a week for 5wks I will aim to enter the challenge with 6kg to lose which then leaves .5kg a week on average for the 12 weeks.

Run a half marathon on June 3 to finish.

By the end of year (lets make it my b’day in early December!) I want to be able to bench-press 45kg, do 5 chin-ups, 40 push-ups on toes in a minute, 1km in 4.30mins, and squatting 45kg.  I will also be doing level 5 sit-ups.

My ultimate goal: health - to me that is 48-50kg maintenance weight and regular exercise with a good clean diet!

12 month goal: fitness test results listed above.

3mth goal: 8-10kg weight loss, training for 1/2 marathon up to 20km for big run

1wk goal: 0.5-1kg weight loss per week (for next 5 weeks)

Daily goal: eat clean and train!

and always BEAT MY PERSONAL BEST!

(disclaimer.. this is adapted from “burn the muscle, feed the fat” by Tom Venetto.  I’ve read the odd page here and there and I remember him having this breakdown of goals!)

Important Note:

  It took a little bit of time to get here because within my ‘lose weight and get healthy mindset’, I have two goals.. to run and to get strong.  There is a basic premise that you cannot grow and shrink at the same time.  I cannot expect to lose a lot of weight and gain a lot of muscle – I could gain some muscle and lose a bit of weight, or I could lose weight and maintain my muscle. 

Goals should not conflict with each other!

I will be splitting these up over the year.  The first half of the year I will be training for a half marathon and concentrating on losing weight while maintaining my muscle.  Once that is done, I will be working on gaining muscle and getting myself to where I want to be shape wise!  This should work in well with the Michelle Bridges rounds – Round 1 for Lean and Fit, and Round 2 and 3 for Lean and Strong.