Goals the SMART way

If you’ve read my guide to fat loss you will recognise how important and utterly effective it is that you set and write down your goals. You will also see that the Smart Way To Fat Loss is an advocate of the SMART system for goal setting.

Setting goals

By setting goals you should think about what you want to achieve and commit it clearly to writing. By doing this gives you something physical to see, something to aim for, something to keep you on track and something to look back at. You may think the act of writing it down is a waste of time and that you know what you want to achieve, but how can you hit your target if you cannot see it? Some people like to chart their journey in a diary or blog; to make them accountable for their actions or to just seek encouragement from friends and like-minded people.

Setting SMART goals

The first known uses of the term SMART goals occurred in the November 1981 issue of Management Review by George T. Doran (as referenced by Wikipedia). The methodology is taught in many different arenas; in fact I first learnt this some 15+ years ago when studying for my business degree. I’ve seen the technique applied to a lot of different topics since and no more so than in the field of fat/weight loss; with good reason.

SMART is very easy to remember and it is simply that goals and objectives should be:

Specific

The goal has to be specific, clearly written and unambiguous. You need to fully explain what it is you are going to achieve, along with the reasons why this is important. The why will remind you of the purpose for your goal and reinforce the good habits and routines you will need to develop. It will fuel your motivation later if you start to deviate off course. You should further identify who you need to involve and how you are going to ‘stitch’ it all together to become a solid and actionable plan.

Measurable

You must be able to measure and monitor your performance and your goal. Again, if you cannot see it or measure it you won’t know how you are doing or whether you have achieved it. You will not be able to take corrective action if you deviate from your goal as you will not know. With fat loss there are many different measurements you can use – so don’t just rely on the scales – take tape-measurements, photos, check old clothing and if you do use the scales try to measure body fat too.

Attainable

Your goal must ultimately be achievable. It should be a challenge but within the realms of reality. If you set unrealistic goals and constantly miss them you will be unlikely to tackle other goals in the future. Think about your specific goal and whether it is truly attainable. On the other hand don’t make the goal too easy, if there is no challenge there is no real satisfaction.

Relevant

Although your goal may be Specific, Measurable and Attainable if it’s not relevant to you then where is the purpose? Is your goal worthy of your time and any investment? Does it fit in with or compliment your other goals and objectives? If it’s not in sync with you and your other objectives it is unlikely to be something you will see through and even if you do, to what end?

Time-bound

Finally you must set a time-frame. This will keep your goal firmly fixed in your mind and help focus on what you need to be doing to achieve it.

I like to break goals down into daily and weekly or monthly tasks right through to the ultimate target. You can then continually review and if necessary reassess. Check out the recently published daily goal tracker for a tool you can use for this.

SMART goals are easy to remember and a great tool for setting and achieving your goals on any matter, not just health/fitness.

Do something to today and set a goal using the SMART methodology. Let me know how you get on in the comments below.

Photos: SW2FL