Are you wanting to set fitness goals or write a training plan for 2020? But you aren’t sure where to start? Don’t worry, I’m here to help! Today I’m going to walk you through a few steps that you can use to write your training plan and set fitness goals for 2020! Use these steps to help you get a move on in your fitness goals for 2020!
1. Identify your goals
The first step is to identify what it is that you want to achieve. The more specific you can get the better. You need to be able to know exactly when you have achieved your goal. Write this goal down. Writing it down makes you feel more accountable to yourself. It also increases the likelihood that you will follow through.
For example, say my goal is to start running. OK, that’s great, but what does that exactly mean? Just getting out and running once could count as “starting”. A more specific goal would maybe be to run a 5k.
2. What do you have to do to achieve those goals?
The next thing to do is to find out what it is that you need to do in order to achieve said goal. You need to do your homework. Research what actions you need to take to get things done. In the context of setting a training or exercise plan, you need to find out what exercises and workouts will help achieve your desired results.
Going back to our running example, what would it take to run a 5k? You may have an idea in your head how far a 5k is, but have you ever traveled that far on foot. Do you have the endurance? Will you need to build up to it? Do you have the right shoes? The right clothes? Have you downloaded an app to track your runs and your progress?
This is also the time time to identify any exercises and nutrition to add to your routine to enhance running. You’d need to identify what those exercises are. You’d need to identify what your nutritional needs would be. You need to also not forget overall health an fitness.
3. How to do what you need to
Now that you know what to do, find out how to do it! You need to know how to go about taking these steps. For a Training Plan, this may mean learning how to properly execute the exercises you have chosen. This may also mean identifying more basic skills that need to be mastered first before progressing to a higher level to achieve our goals.
This would be the time to make sure you’re doing your squats, lunges and push-ups with proper form, or find lower progressions if you cant do it properly. You’d need to learn how to cook or find the nutrition you need. You’d need to learn how to use the running app. All these things need to be done before you do what you identified that you need to do.
4. Break it down
At this point, you probably have quite a list of things to do. Which can be pretty daunting. What you need to do now is step back from the big picture. You need to look at the parts. This is where you trim your goal down into bite-sized pieces, pieces that can be managed one at a time. Now you can focus piece by piece.
So.. What are the pieces of our running goal? One way to break it down would be start with walking. Walking a mile then two, then three. Then start running parts of it. Then continue increase the segments that you run. Another way would be to take the exercises that you selected in earlier steps and progressions of those exercises and identify which progression to start with. Then set a smaller goal of simply reaching the next progression. Both of these approaches are appropriate and important.
5. Schedule it
Now you need a schedule. Take all those pieces you broke down in the last step and put them on your calendar. Plan out when you are going to do what. Plan when you are going to do each workout, exercise, whatever it is. You need to get these written on the calendar and put them into your schedule. Having it scheduled ahead of time, exactly when you’re going to do each specific piece will make it easier to follow through and get it done.
With your exercises and progressions in hand, you need to plan when you’re going to do it. You need to plan when to start and when you’d like to achieve the first goal you set in the previous step. Put both of these dates on the calendar. Having it written down helps keep you more accountable.
6. Plan for setbacks
What if things go wrong? Things will go wrong! It might be a good idea to have the ability to adjust and adapt to bad weather, injury, or whatever else that may happen. This isn’t necessarily having a back-up plan, but having the mental, emotional and physical ability to adapt to whatever changes may occur. Having a back-up plan is good for only one scenario, having the ability to adapt is good for any scenario.
With these steps you can take your goals and turn them into an actionable plan. With an actionable plan you can create real change in your life and achieve your goals. Clarifying your goals, breaking them down and creating accountability, even if it’s only to your past self, make such a big difference. Knowing where your headed before you start and making a commitment to getting there make the goal more real and makes it feel more achievable. That’s it for now, catcha next time!