By Kaden Hill, CPT SMART Fitness Goals  for Spring

Creating SMART goals are a smart way to set yourself up for success in your fitness journey. In this article, we will go over what they are, considerations for implementing them and some examples of what they might look like in relation to fitness.   

SMART goals were coined by George T. Doran in 1981 in a review titled “There’s a SMART Way to Write Management’s Goals and Objectives”. He outlined the components of this acronym for a more practical way of making business goals more action oriented. Throughout the last few decades, his framework has expanded to almost every field in corporate America. With how widespread SMART goals are used, it’s not uncommon to see them used in a fitness setting for personal use.  

Let’s outline what SMART goals are and how you can apply them to your fitness journey:   

Specific:  

The fitness goal you set must be specific. Think about the who, what, where and why. Who needs to be involved in accomplishing this goal? This can be anyone from your support systems (friends, family, coworkers, gym partners) to people directly involved in your training (dietitians, personal trainers, health coaches). What does the goal entail? This is where you can get very detailed about what your goal is. What places can aid in achieving your goal? For some, this may be at home. For others, a gym or social fitness space could be on the list. Why do you want to achieve this goal? Ask yourself why you want this goal specifically and if it is externally or internally motivated.   

Measurable:   

How are you going to determine if you meet your fitness goal? For example, if your goal was to work out at least four times a week, you need to track how many times you work out each week and average them for that period. If your goal is to lose 20 pounds in four months, a scale would be an example of how you measure weight changes and thus progress towards this goal.  

Attainable:   

How realistic is this goal? If I made a goal to lose 50 pounds in two weeks, that wouldn’t be very realistic, and I should reevaluate the goal to fit this category better. Sometimes this requires doing personal research into what it truly takes to attain such a goal. For example, if I developed a more complex goal of learning a complex lift, I would have to sit down and look up the form for the lift, how to progress and regress the lift as well as how to choose the appropriate load, etc. If you are unsure whether your goal is attainable, MoveWell, your employee fitness center, is here to help!  On our website, you can set up a consultation with one of our exercise specialists, choose the type of gym membership that works for you and sign up for personal training.  

Relevant:  

Does this goal add value to other, larger goals or yourself as a person? Maybe this goal is needed to achieve a more complex goal. For example, if you were prescribed an exercise regimen to reduce the risk or decrease the symptoms of a chronic disease, exercise would be relevant not only to achieving said improvements but also to improving health and well-being.    

Time-bound:  

When do you expect to start and complete this goal? Remember, setting start and end dates can help with motivation. Be realistic; this pillar of SMART goals goes hand in hand with being attainable. Don’t set a reasonable fitness goal for yourself, then make it unattainable due to the time frame you’ve given yourself to achieve it. It’s also important to consider making this pillar dynamic based on your progress towards the goal. We’re human beings, and some lenience here and there is acceptable, as long as we don’t use it as an excuse for halting our continual progress towards the goal. For example, if you usually work out after work and one day stay a bit later, deciding to go home to make dinner for the kids might be prioritized over going to the gym that day. As long as this doesn’t become a regular pattern and you make up for the missed workout another way, the acute lenience here is acceptable.   

In summary, SMART goals are a great way to help yourself set realistic and attainable goals for yourself across a variety of health and fitness outcomes. When followed correctly, this method of goal setting can make it easier to achieve goals on your fitness journey.