What are you working towards?

It’s not exactly a secret that one of the hardest parts of following a physical-training regimen is getting started. Once you’ve been working towards something for a while, at least with me, I build up enough momentum that I am able to press through with more constancy. Getting started though isn’t easy and being stagnant harbors momentum as well. It can be really tough to break that.

For a lot of people (myself included), the learning curve with training was so intimidating. With barbell-training, it’s even worse. It takes a significant amount of time to learn how to squat, deadlift, and press correctly. It is very difficult to learn on your own, without having someone who knows what they’re doing making slight tweaks and assisting with form.

In addition, we don’t exactly make it easy on ourselves. One of the things that plagues the fitness industry is that we have so many conflicting modalities for everything. Seldom do two trainers agree with each other on everything, which would be ok. However, in many cases, experts and trainers are pushing conflicting ideologies and trying to inculcate them into the minds of new trainees who lack the context to understand the big picture. In other words, it feels like everyone has the answer to your problems and only their way can be the most effective way to train and eat. This doesn’t represent everyone obviously, but the best trainers understand that you need a why behind why you train, and positive outcomes vary from one person to another. There is no “one-size-fits-all”.

This is why in my opinion, simplicity proves vital. If I could put one thing in your mind to consider before getting started, it is goal-setting. What are you looking to get out of your training? Are you trying to get faster? Stronger? Do you have an ideal physique you are trying to achieve? Are you trying to put on muscle? Do you want stronger joints? These goals vary from person-to-person, but they are very important because our goals dictate how we structure our training.

Goal-Setting Matters

Not only is setting goals imperative to achieving the most of our training, but I would take it one step further and say we get the most of our training when we write down what we are trying to achieve. When I first started training, I began to get the most results when I would write down 30-day, 90-day, and 180-day goals. Why did this help me?

It’s simple. Writing down my goals kept me accountable and helped me determine whether or not my training structure was working. In my case, my goal was adding strength, so my goals consisted of numbers. They looked something like this:

• 30-day goal
  • PR 5-rep max on squat
  • Form PR my deadlift

• 60-day goal
  • Perform 2 reps of my current Squat 1RM
  • Perform 2 reps of my current Deadlift 1RM

• 180-day goal
  • Establish new 1RM for Squat 185lb>
  • Establish new deadlift PR 225lbs>

I tried my best to make my goals clear and measurable, so I was able to test the validity of the programs I was using and the effectiveness of my training frequency, intensity, and even the accessory-exercises that helped me the most. Of course, we have to be careful with this because some programs/strategies take longer to work than others. In other words, I may be on a program that emphasizes volume in order to aid in hypertrophy. Consequently, I may not see strength gains in the short-term, but I will in the long-term and I have to keep that in mind when evaluating whether my current plan is working.

Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t always hit my goals that I wrote down but writing it down and reading it from time to time helped me keep track and verify that I was going in the right direction. In addition, having goals with varying timelines help us stay on track since we are working towards something. It also feels good!

One of the ways we can see the effectiveness of goal-setting is to consider the opposite. A lot of times, we are prone to showing up at the gym and going through the motions based on how we are feeling in that moment. Our moods and feelings are volatile, and although there are ways to train effectively while training instinctually, sometimes we can be susceptible to taking training one-week at a time and not committing to actions for long-enough to see or make a difference.

In my own experience, most if not all of the things that helped me improve required a commitment of at least six weeks. This is why it is so important to go into the gym or off to do our training with the short-term and long-term understanding of what we are trying to accomplish. Good things take time. They don’t happen overnight, and they don’t happen if we lose sight of the goal post.

This doesn’t just apply to fitness. This is a life-principle. If my goal is to self-improve in any area, I need to commit to a change for an extended period of time. Whether that is waking up earlier, reading a book, learning a new language, etc. I am not going to get any permanent long-term gain by doing something for a week or two and then moving on to something else. Our minds are very prone to that. But if we make a point to set a measurable goal and commit to it over the long-term, it would be a huge step for us in the direction of self-improvement. 

Think retroactively. Where would your knowledge be if you had read a book a week for the last year? Those 52 books would be enough to change your worldview or achieve mastery of a subject that you might not have been familiar with before. This is a struggle for everyone, me included. I don’t always do a good job of goal-setting, but today is as good a day as any to begin working towards something meaningful. 

If you have any questions about this blog post or questions about beginning your fitness journey, or goal setting in general – feel free to reach out to me. I would love to help you achieve your goals!!

Lexi Pernsteiner, RN-MSN

IG: lexicristabelle