So have you got the guts?
Are you exercising? Do you have a goal? You do? That’s great! Now, how about a plan? You don’t have a plan? If you don’t have a plan, how do you plan to achieve your goal? You could go day to day and hope that you will eventually reach your goal but having a plan will help you in achieving that goal.
Details
Planning out what you need to do to realize your goal is a great way to first off see if it’s achievable. If it’s not a realistic goal, most times that will come out during planning. Planning also helps in sticking to what it is you need to do to reach that goal. It’s something you can put on your calendar, into your schedule that you feel you need to do. Seeing it written down is a great way to make it part of your day.
If you have a goal of running a race, let’s say a 5km race, and you don’t plan out your training it can be really hard to set a target for that race and to know if it’s a realistic target. Putting together a training plan will help you on race day to have a realistic goal, an achievable goal. Planning can also help in preventing injuries from happening. Planning out your training, and sticking to it, allows you to train realistically and not overtax the body during training or during the event.
Making the time
Not having a plan makes it easier to miss training. It’s easy to find something to occupy that time you would have used for training. Let’s face it, we are all busy and will find things to occupy our time. By scheduling your training or gym time in your calendar allows you to visualize that event. It’s something you can see, something that is there reminding you what you should be doing. It also helps you in planning your day and making time for working out. It helps you in putting together your day setting aside time not only for working out but also other things you need to get done. This also helps in dealing with guilt that you might be taking too much time for yourself and not other things.
It’s easy to get overwhelmed with the things we have to do every day. Putting these things into a schedule, or a calendar allows you to get a handle on them and realize that you can get them done and still get in a workout, even if it’s only a half hour. But what usually happens is we feel that there is too much to do and our workout gets put aside.
Also remember that we should be taking the time to work out. Working out has many benefits that impact multiple aspects of our lives that it should be given the priority it deserves.
Back to it
Ok, back to planning. Set a goal. Could be a short term goal or a long term goal. Plan what it is you need to do to reach that goal, and be realistic about it. If you aren’t sure how to plan for the goal consult an expert in that area, or a personal trainer. Put your plan into your calendar. Take each day as a singular day and stick to your plan. Each day then becomes a week, and the weeks become a month.
When you reach the end of the first month you can then look back and reflect in awe at your progression. Another benefit of having a plan is the motivation it brings with it. I remember training for a 10k race. My first 10k race was one that didn’t have any planning. I trained in the sense of exercising each week but nothing specific towards my goal. This time I put together a schedule. A 16 week period of training, increasing mileage each week. Incorporating runs longer than 10k but also including interval training. The result was I ran a 10k about 6 minutes quicker than the one where I had no plan.
That’s one example.
For everyone
Don’t feel that you have to participate in an event to have a plan. All you need is a goal and you should have a goal. Lose 10lbs, add 10lbs of muscle, increase vertical leap, or run a sub 50 minute 10k. If you don’t have a goal, you are losing the opportunity to experience the motivation that comes with reaching that goal. Without a goal, you increase the chance of losing interest and potentially stop working out. I see it all the time. People working out for the sake of working out. They have no goal and because of this they aren’t measuring their progress. Boredom sets in and because of the perceived lack of results they stop working out.
Set the goal. Plan it. Then do it. And when you achieve it, celebrate it. You deserve it.
Yours in health,
Darryl