The Simple and Effective Way to Get Stronger, Leaner and Crush Your Goals this Year

2019 is upon us, and now’s the time you may be thinking of a setting a resolution. There’s a problem with New Year resolutions, though – most people don’t stick to them.

To help YOU be one of the few people who stick to their goals this year, we’ve created a plan you can follow to help you achieve it.

Maybe you want to lose weight, get stronger, or compete (and win!) in an athletic event or competition. 

No matter what your goal is, you’ll have a much better chance of attaining it if you have a framework to do it. After all, you wouldn’t build a house without a set of design plans, right?

We’re going to share a plan that has specific steps you can take to achieve any goal you set for yourself.

And once you learn these steps, you can apply them to your goal to get the result you want. 

You can be stronger. You can be fitter. You can crush your goals.

STEP 1 – MAKE YOUR GOAL “SMART” 

The first step is to make your goal SMART.

SMART is an acronym that stands for:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Achievable
• Relevant
• Timely 

Most people set goals that are too broad, for example “I want to be healthier” or “I want to be fitter”.

Those “goals” are too broad to be actionable.

In order to achieve a goal, it needs to be specific. Otherwise, how do you know whether you’ve achieved it? How will you know what steps to take to get you there?

You need to make it Specific.

So instead of saying “I want to be healthier” you could say something like “I want to lose weight.” That’s more specific. It’s not where we need it to be yet, but it’s closer than that initial “wish” of being healthier.

Next, you’ll need to make it Measurable.

Tie a number to it. So take that goal of “I want to lose weight” and make it “I want to lose 20 pounds.”

Now you’re getting closer…

After making your goal measurable, it’s got to be Achievable.

If you want to lose 20 pounds and you’re currently 100lbs overweight, and otherwise in decent health, losing 30 pounds sounds like an achievable goal.

But what if you were only 30 pounds overweight, are 8 months pregnant, and set to bed-rest? 

If you were in that situation, it’s probably not a good time to lose 30 pounds, and it’s probably not going to happen. So make sure your goal is a stretch; that mean’s you’ll be excited once you’ve achieved it; but it’s also achievable and realistic. 

Next, make it Relevant.

If you want to be healthier, make sure you don’t set a goal to eat 10 more hotdogs each week. That’s not going to work. It has to be relevant to your broad dream or goal.

Last, it has to be Timely.

This means you need to come up with a date in which you’ll have achieved your goal. So going to back to the weight loss goal, you can say that you’re going to lose 30 pounds within 3 months.

Now that’s a SMART goal. It’s specific. It’s measurable. It’s achievable. It’s relevant. And it’s timely. 

STEP 2: WRITE IT DOWN 

The second step is to write down your goal.

Lots of performance coaches and experts believe in the power of writing down a goal. Doing that helps to give you clarity around what you’re looking to achieve.

Now, this may sound a little weird, but some experts believe that writing your goal down actually leaves an imprint on your subconscious mind so that it can help you achieve your goal, even when you’re not consciously thinking about it.

We know that may sound a little crazy. But there is power in writing down your goals. 

If you want to super-charge your progress, write it down every day. Heck, you can even write it on a notecard and carry that around with you. The sky’s the limit when it comes to your focus on this goal.

STEP 3: CREATE ACTIONS STEPS

The third step is to create action steps.

Action steps are tasks you can do every day that over time will lead you to accomplishing your goal.

Why are they important?

WHY ACTION STEPS ARE IMPORTANT

Big goals are scary. They can be intimidating. Over time, focusing only on the end result can be demoralizing; especially on days you may only make a little progress

But that little progress over time can lead to big results.

So that’s why you’re going to make sure you do those little things that add up to the result you want.

Let’s take an example.

Maybe you want to run the New York City marathon.

But if the longest run you’ve ever done was a 5K, you’ll need to increase your running capacity and endurance.

So your first action step could be to run 5 times per week so you’ll increase your training frequency.

STEP 4: VISUALIZE YOUR GOAL

The 4th step is visualizing your success.

A visualization is a specific day dream in which you actively imagine and participate in your perfect reality.  

By visualizing your success and feeling the emotions behind it, you can positively influence your subconscious mind…and to some extent, the world around you.

Well even though this one may sound a bit weird, there’s actually science behind it. A study conducted in 1960 by a Wayne State University professor found that basketball players who visualized themselves practicing foul shots actually improved their performance…without actually practicing in real life!

These players literally day-dreamed shooting free throws, and they got better at it just by thinking about it. 

That’s crazy!

So, you’re going to use this same technique to achieve your goal.

Every day, you’re going to visualize your success.

Expect it, don’t just fantasize.

You need to expect the outcome. Know that you will create the life you want in your visualization, based on all the work you’re going to do and the steps you’re going to take that will get you there.

Know it. Believe it. Feel it. 

STEP 5: TRACK PROGRESS

The last step is to track your progress.

Like any plan in life, you need to track your progress to make sure you’re going in the right direction, and if not, you’ll change your strategy so you can achieve the goal you set out to achieve.

After all, if you’re taking a road trip to somewhere you haven’t been before, you don’t just bring a map with you, you also check in from time to time to make sure you’re going in the right direction.

Well, the first 4 steps in this system are about building your map, and then getting in your car and driving in the right direction.  

This last step is about checking in along the way to make sure you’re getting where you need to be, when you need to be there.

TRACKING DAILY ACTIONS

The first way to track progress is to focus on your action steps. You need to be fanatical about these actions steps, and you need to be honest with yourself as to whether you’re doing them each day.

One way to do this is by using a tracking sheet. You can use a calendar, a spreadsheet, or a word document. 

Whatever it is, just make sure you’re aware of whether you’re doing what you need to do each day to get to your goal.

Remember, if you want to achieve something you’ve never achieved before, you’ll need to act different than you’ve ever acted before. 

That means if you haven’t been disciplined enough to take action every day, change that now.

WEEKLY AND MONTHLY REVIEW

Along with tracking your actions steps for each day, do a weekly and monthly review of your progress.

Remember we made your goal measurable? This is why.

Because there’s a number tied to it, you can track it and make sure you’re going in the right direction and are on pace toward achieving it. If you're not, you can make adjustments to your plan before it's too late. 

YOU CAN DO IT!

You've got your goal. You have the plan. Now, it's time to achieve it!