This week we're focusing on goal setting, how motivation works in our brains, and tips to give you the best chance to achieve your goals.
Neurology of Motivation Part 2
Motivation still lives in the brain, like all other skills. A large determining factor for your success is being as specific as possible when setting a goal, or "target" to aim at. 30 mindless minutes on the elliptical machine is doable for a while, but if there's no end target, we just become a hamster on a wheel and get tired of it after a few weeks. If there's an end goal, or finish line, in site and you can track your progress towards that goal, the brain stays more engaged and it's easier to stay on track and keep it up until you hit your target.
Practicing "Aiming"
How do we practice "aiming" differently than in the past?
Set specific goals and targets to train for.
Many people join gyms or start new training programs at the beginning of the year in hopes of "getting in shape," or "feeing better."
What does that mean? What does being "in shape" look like to you? Is it a certain weight, body-fat percentage, able to run a certain distance or swing a kettlebell for a certain amount of time? Do you want do do a certain amount of push ups? A pull up? Whatever that picture of being "in shape" looks like to you, write it down.
"The clarity with which you define something determines its usefulness."- Tony Blauer
The more clear your goals are, the easier they are to train for, and accomplish!
Break It Up!
Whatever your end goal, or big goal, is, you should have milestones or smaller "chunks" you reach along the way. Why? Small, attainable goals make things more manageable and help you gain and keep momentum towards your larger goal.
Plus, how else would you know that you're on the right track? If you don't have milestones or ways to re-assess throughout the process, you could be way off the mark and never even know it until it's too late. Re-assessments aren't gauges of success or failure, they're information. A good re-assessment of your progress let's you know if you're on the right track or if something's not working and you need to take a different course. Shift your mindset- if something's not working, don't take it as failure. Take it as important information that tells you what you're doing doesn't work for your nervous system, and you need to try something else. Everything "works" all the time because it's telling us "yes, this is good" or "no, try something else."
Murphy Proof
We're not always on top of our games 100% of the time. There are times when we slip or circumstances beyond our control knock us off course. It happens- we're human! Remember Murphy's Law: "anything that can go wrong will go wrong." Plan for it! Once you're brain knows it can and will happen, and you have a strategy to get back on track, all of the sudden those slips and road blocks aren't so big because you already know what you need to do.
Write 'em Down and Post 'em
Statistically, 89% of the goals that are written down and reviewed regularly are achieved within 12 months. Let us help you! Print out your 2013 Targets sheet below, write down your goals for the year, and bring them in and post them on our target board. This is a great opportunity for you to write them down and see them regularly as you come to the gym, but also get encouragement, support, and tips from your community. After all, everyone of us in the FE Community share one common goal: We All Want to be Better Than We Currently Are.
That's why we come here and continue to work and learn.
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