Happy New Year?
It’s the start of 2021 (although it’s a bit late for this post), and you might have set out to create goals for 2021. For example, you could decide to read at least three new books a month as a goal. Or, you could decide to learn a new skill (such as that python programming course you’ve been talking about for years). Others, specifically related to my interests, relate to losing weight or going to gym. I’ve been going religiously to the gym for the past four years. Every year, it’s been nice to see a large increase in people coming to the gym I frequent. As the months pass on though, it puts a damper on my spirits as all those new faces filled with motivation drops in number.
To me personally, going to the gym or trying to lose weight is not a monumental task compared to the people who’ve never done something like this before, as I know what needs to be done as I have done it before. With COVID-19 impacting the world, these gym resolutions are not much of a reality at this point. However, it’s still possible to try to change your weight.
The impact of COVID-19
COVID-19 has impacted me personally. Not going to the gym and eating more due to the lockdown (among other things), caused me to gain weight. I’m sure a lot of others reading this might have been in the same boat as me. However, I decided to look at COVID-19 as a break from the constant weight maintenance and tiring days going to the gym. I baked a lot, made many loaves of bread and ate a lot of tasty food. So far, I’ve gained around 8 kg in the past year. Am I sad about this? I would be lying if I said that I’m not a bit sad. But I decided that once things ease up a bit with regards to COVID-19 restrictions, I would ease back into my routine pre-COVID-19.
What am I doing in 2021?
With 2020 being a terrible year for many people in the world, myself included, I breathed a sigh of relief as we moved into 2021. The idea was that 2021 was not going to be as bad as 2020. As such, I, like many others decided to make a few goals for the year. I then decided on the following two goals:
- Lose 5 kg of weight I’ve gained during the year.
- Drop my resting heart rate down to a value less than 40 beats per minute.
The first is self explanatory. The second, seems like a strange goal to achieve. Let me explain.
Story Time
Two years ago, I used to run quite a bit. These used to be 5 km runs around 3 – 4 times a week. The results of these runs was that I lost weight and became gaunt (as I was described as). I also reached a resting heart rate around 47 – 48 bpm. At the time I thought it was amazing that your heart rate could get that low. A bit of research shows that the fitter you get, the lower your resting heart rate becomes. In fact, Miguel Indurain, a five-time Tour de France winner, was said to have recorded a resting heart rate of 28 bpm.
I got a bit sick after that, and was never able to recover my resting heart rate after that. Fast forward to 2021, I wanted to make a goal that was not necessarily strength based like the previous years. That’s when I remembered this resting heart rate and decided to make it my goal for this year. Is it a realistic goal? I’d like to think so, seeing as I did manage to lower it into the high 40s.
Now, the actual point of this post:
Setting unrealistic goals sets you up for failure. It makes you sad that you’re not getting closer to your goal. Sometimes, you just end up quitting.
Is reading three books a month realistic? Maybe to those who constantly read books, it is. But to those who don’t read that often, maybe starting at one book a month, or even 6 books in a year would be a better starting point. At the end of the day, you still see a benefit.
Likewise, me trying to get a resting heart rate of less than 30 bpm or lose 20 kg in a year is too unrealistic. Is it possible? Yes, definitely it is. But why go through this extreme change, when I can slowly try to reach my first goal and thereafter, choose another goal. For example, maybe after reaching 40 bpm resting heart rate, I try to reach 35 bpm. Or after losing 5 kg, I continue and try to lose 5 kg more.
In creating these goals and doing a bit of reading, I’ve found that there’s a good way to create goals.
S.M.A.R.T. Goals
S.M.A.R.T. goals is an acronym for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Timely goals. Although there are many words that fit these letters, these are the ones that you can use for yourself, and better apply to the topic at hand.
S – Specific
The first term, Specific, speaks to clearly defined goals. It’s easier to define a goal if you can answer the following:
- What do you want to achieve?
- Why do you want to achieve it?
- Who is involved with this goal?
M – Measurable
The second term, Measurable, speaks about measuring your progress. How do you know if you complete a goal, if you have no way of measuring your progress. “I want to cycle for a long time”. How long is long? Is 1 kilometre sufficient? Is 50 minutes sufficient? These sorts of questions can determine if you can measure progression of a goal
A – Achievable
The third term, Achievable, refers to goals that you can actually complete. Has someone done it before? What else do I need to achieve this? Can I complete it within the timeframes I’ve selected? These are questions that can determine an achievable goal.
R- Realistic
The fourth term, Realistic, refers to whether you as a person can achieve your goals within your current constraints and time. Are there constraints that prevent me from reaching this goal? Can I commit to reaching the goal? These are questions that can help find out if a goal is realistic or not.
T – Timely
The final term, Timely, refers to the timeframe you choose to complete this goal. When do I want to do this? In 1 week? 1 year? 10 years? If you don’t create a sense of urgency, you may end up abandoning the goal.
So what do I personally do?
Creating a goal such as “I want to lose weight” or “I want to study a course” is not necessarily a bad goal. The issue arises when it’s too generalised, you can’t measure it and you cant achieve it realistically within your the short time frames you want for it.
I personally create smaller goals to achieve and makes it more likely that I will actually achieve them. There is a happiness I feel because I can see progress towards my goals, and my life will generally be happier knowing my efforts are not for naught.
Maybe after I achieve a sub-40 bpm resting heart rate, I will create some strength related goals. But until then, I’m actually enjoying the cardio and the benefits I experience from it.
On another note, click here for a small study regarding goal setting to promote a healthier lifestyle