Do you remember your New Year’s resolutions from January 1st, 2010?
It probably went something like this: After waking up slightly (or seriously) hungover, you said to yourself “this is the year I’m going to get in shape!” or “this is the year I’m going to lose weight!” Maybe it was “I’m going to get out of debt,” “quit smoking,” or “start a business.” You strapped on your running shoes, threw your cigarettes in the trash, cut up a credit card, and/or spent a few minutes researching how to register for an LLC.
Two weeks later, things are going strong – yay success!
And then BAM you get sick/go on vacation/have a bad day at work and you give yourself a few days off “until things get less hectic.” All of a sudden it’s January 1st, 2011 and you realize that you don’t even remember your goals from last year. Fortunately, a new year is a chance at a new beginning.
Here’s how to not suck this time around the sun.
Be specific
“I want to lose weight” is a crappy goal.
“I want to get in shape” is incredibly vague and useless.
When setting a goal, you need to be specific as possible. If you want to lose weight, how much weight exactly do you want to lose? When do you want to lose it by? I won’t get into my issues with using just weight as a sole judge of success (because I do so here), but it’s certainly better than nothing. If you want to get stronger or faster, by what magnitude do you want those things to increase?
Pretend you’re driving a car – setting a vague goal is like saying “I’m going to California.” Awesome, where in California exactly are you going? As Chesire Cat famously states in Alice in Wonderland, “If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will get you there.”
Be specific, sucka!
- If you’re going to “lose weight”, how much weight do you want to lose and by when? 25 pounds by June? 100 pounds by November?
- If you’re going to “get in shape,” by what metrics will you measure yourself? Is it a marathon completion? 225 lb benchpress? Black belt in Karate?
After you’ve established your goals, write them down and hang them on your door/bedroom wall/office cubicle. Look at those goals EVERY SINGLE DAY so that they’re always at the front of your mind.
Are you insane?
They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.
I know waaaaaaay too many people that say “continually try to lose weight by dieting and running on a treadmill for hours. Every time they last a few weeks and then give up, only to try again two months later in the same way with identical results.
If you tried to “get in shape” last year and it didn’t work, CONGRATULATIONS – you found one method that doesn’t work for you. This year, unless you’re insane (which is certainly possible), you need to either try a different method or attack a previous method from a different angle. Look closely at your previous failures and figure out what went wrong – learn from those failures and apply them to your upcoming goals.
- If you failed because you hate running and gave up, try weight training.
- If you failed to lose weight by counting calories, that might not be the method for you. Try the Paleo Diet.
Remember, those who forget history are doomed to repeat it. Don’t keep doing the same thing over and over again – if something new doesn’t work, quickly learn from it and MOVE ON.
Track Your Progress
Do you know why video games (specifically role playing games) are so darn fun and addicting? Because you get to watch your character constantly grow stronger/bigger/better/more powerful. Even if you only get to play a game for thirty minutes, you can still see that your hero went from Level 7 to Level 8, increased his strength by two points, defeated the boss at the end of the 3rd dungeon, and so on. Every minuscule detail is tracked, recorded, and progress is easy to observe.
Games wouldn’t be nearly as fun if you had no score to count, levels to gain, or experience points to earn.
Keep track of your progress. Level up your life! Track your weight weekly, measure yourself with a tape measure to see if you’re losing inches around your waist, hips, chest, legs, etc. If you’re lifting weights, track your workouts on an excel sheet or a site like DailyBurn.
If you know what you did yesterday, you know what you have to do today to be better:
- If you ran a mile in nine minutes yesterday, will you run a mile in 8:59 or less today?
- If you did three pull ups last week, can you do four this week?
- Squatted 150 pounds on Monday? Nice! Can you do 155 on Friday?
Small victories, tiny levels, tiny improvements, but always steps in the right direction.
This is the premise behind OMFG, the Online Mutliplayer Fitness Game that we’re putting together on the Nerd Fitness message boards – turning your real life goals into a fun game that tracks your progress. Check it out if you’re looking for something fun and quirky.
Adjust on the fly
Let’s say you set out to lose 80 pounds, and you only lost 75 pounds before switching over to a muscle building routine. You might never lose those last five pounds, even though your body composition continues to change drastically. Does that make you a failure? Negative, Ghostrider.
Goals change.
Life happens.
If you’ve set specific goals and continue to track your progress diligently, you can make adjustments throughout the year when necessary without any issue. As long as you are better off today then you were yesterday in some way, that’s a win.
Decide WHY you want it.
Sound familiar?
- “I want to get in shape but I don’t like ________________.”
- “I want to lose weight but I just CAN’T give up _________________.”
- “I don’t have time for that because of ______________.”
- “I want to build muscle but there’s no way I can eat all of that _________.”
Fine, then don’t do it, and stay the way you are! It’s as simple as that.
I’ve received a number of emails over the past year from people who ask “Can you help? I know I should get in shape but I’m just not motivated to do so.” As Jeff Bridges says in True Grit “I can do nothin’ do for ya, son.” I cannot create motivation out of thin air – I am no conjurer of cheap tricks. That motivation needs to come from within you, my friend. Why do you want to get in shape?
- Did your doctor tell you that you had to?
- Did your wife tell you that she’s worried about your health?
- Did you just have a kid and decide you want to be around to see your grandkids?
- Are you in great shape and want to compete on Ninja Warrior?
Your motivation can come from anything and anywhere, but it needs to be YOURS. As Nietzsche says, “He who has a why to live can bear with almost any how.” Do you have your WHY yet? If so, suddenly giving up bagels for breakfast and soda for lunch no longer seems like such a huge sacrifice. When you find that one thing you want more than anything in the world, it’s going to be pretty hard to stop you from getting it.
Early morning workouts, paleo diets, saying no to popcorn at the movies, not buying ice cream at the grocery store – changes like these might be tough, but if they are the means to the end you desire, it will happen. Suddenly these agonizing adjustments become less of a chore and more of just who you are.
Check out this great definition of determination, and then go get it.
Go Public
Do you like being known as a slacker?
A loser?
A liar?
Hopefully not.
Take your resolutions public, whether its through your own blog, by joining the Nerd Fitness message boards, or even just by telling your close friends and co-workers. Ask them to email you weekly/monthly and ask how things are going. One of my friends is currently in an interesting contest; each person involved will have to pay $500 to the others if he doesn’t get below 10% bodyfat by June. It’s extremely tough to get down to 10%, but with 500 bucks on the line I have no doubt he’ll get there.
Find a way to build a support group of people who not only encourage you when you’re doing well, but pick you up when you’re slacking. Harness the power of your friends, co-workers, and community. You don’t have to go it alone.
Yesterday is Gone
One of the rules of the Nerd Fitness Rebellion is that we don’t care where you came from, only where you’re going. It doesn’t matter if you’re 300 pounds overweight, smoke five packs of cigarettes a day, $100,000 in debt, and at a dead-end job while living in your parents basement. That was you yesterday – today you get to be whoever you want. Build your own epic destiny, pick a super power, and start becoming superhuman.
Yesterday is gone. Today is the first day of the rest of your life.
Let’s do this.
-Steve
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Half Ironman by the end of September
Marathon by the summer (Gotta get it in before the WDS).
Got some more, but those are the biggies.
“I am no conjurer of cheap tricks.”
More Gandalf-Steve, please!
Here are my goals and how I hope to accomplish them.
Goal 1: Loose 40 pounds by Memorial Day Weekend
– I plan to research the Paleo Diet more and begin to adapt it into my eating habbits
– I will follow the Rebel Fitness Guide for excercise
– Cut out fast food and soda (Haven’t had either in almost a week and a half!)
Goal 2: Save money for my wedding (Date undetermined due to venue availability)
– Skip morning trips to Wawa (local convenience store) for soda and food
– No eating out or spending on non necessities w/o checking w/ my fiance (he’s really good with money)
– Put at least $150 a week into a savings account
– Pay more than minimum payments on credit cards to pay them off quicker and waste less money on interest
Goal 3: Get organized
– Empty contents of car including trash and miscellaneous stuff every night
– Spend 15 minutes every night finding things their proper home
– Do one or two loads of laundry during the week so it doesn’t all pile up for the weekend (and clutter my floor)
– Have a yard sale in May to sell all of our old junk
Thanks for the realistic inspiration!
10% body fat by May 31st.
GET SOME!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NHopJHSlVo4
^ Derek Sivers makes an argument for NOT making your goals public. I don’t think this always the case if others really hold you accountable and it does seem to depend on the goal or the person… But still something to think about.
Well, here it is. Publicly. Run the Chicago Mararthon and raise $100,000 for a chairty yet to be determined. I’m 295 and have only run a 5k and a 10k, but this will be done. And it will be amazing.
I’m not setting goals for 2011. But If I was going to, I’d definitely follow your suggestions!
I’m not setting goals for 2011. But If I was going to, I’d definitely follow your suggestions!
Great article Steve. It’s been awhile since we have gotten a chance to chat… but I wanted to fill you in on my goals for 2011.
February 27th – 10K
May 15th – Cleveland Half Marathon
and if I manage to survive that… and I make my way through the 13.1 miles…then I am on my way to the Warrior Dash.
#MakeItHappen.
Cheers,
Steve
I think a lot of this depends on the person as well as the goal. I know that I’m better not publicly speaking about my goals and this is especially true of exams and certifications (IT). At least in the US/Western society dictates that we shouldn’t bring up things like diet/weight changes (except down. “Have you lost weight?” is acceptable, but how many people are going to say to you “Wow, you’ve really let yourself go, what happened to your diet?”)
My main goal for 2011: Lose 70 pounds by TRB XII (which would put me finally in the range of my “right” weight)
– Get back to eating more natural/paleo foods. I slipped over the holidays (don’t most people) and can feel the difference.
– Try crossfit and stick with it if I enjoy it. If I don’t, try something else new.
– Either set money aside of a gym membership or set time aside to clean a section of the apartment with room to work out. No more cold weather/messy apartment excuses to skip work outs.
It’s a little weird, I’m not afraid/concerned about this goal at all. I know I can do it. I’ve spent the last year and a half working my way here. I’m over halfway done (120+ and counting! Woot!). Now it’s just a race to the finish.
See you on TRB!
I thought it would be good to set 11 goals since it is 2011! Some are not completely fitness related, but still things I want to get done.
1. Run five 5k races
2. Run two 10k races
3. Run a half marathon
4. Run the Warrior Dash
5. Have a six pack (or some semblance thereof)
6. 100 Pushups in a row
7. 25 pull-ups in a row
8. Less than 25 minute 5k
9. Increase flexibility (palms on ground during standing toe touch)
10. Read 10 books
11. Restart Geek Into Shape podcast
My 3 Physical Goals for 2011.
1. “Go dancing at a gay club (I’m straight). Look good enough to get hit on.” – I’m taking ballet classes and general dance classes once a week.
2. “Complete a Half-Ironman (October 23rd).” – Have my training schedule already set all the way till October 23rd.
3. “Nude model, and feel okay doing it.” – I’m at 11%BF or so. I think I could feel comfortable doing it now, but I’d like to get below 10%.
My 2011 goals are already started in the 28 day challenge…however, I do have several long term goals:
1: Lose weight [well, fat]. This year my goal is 70 pounds. 320–>250. I would also like to hit 18% bodyfat, though that is a subgoal. 2012 will be the year of 10% bodyfat.
2. Complete the US SS Snatch Test. 200 snatches with a 53lb kettebell in 10 minutes. Currently I can only snatch a 32, so I have a lot of work ahead, though I have mini goals to reach it.
I actually have all of my 2010 goals written down, but due to various excuses and stupidity and laziness, I wasn’t able to reach them. This year is different. I have mini stages to meet the goals I have for this year. I have a nerd fitness community to keep me in line, and I have a willingness and desire to change, unlike last year…
My 2011 goals.
1. Be in the best shape possible for the Warrior Dash I signed up for. It is in September. This includes getting my 5k times up. I would love to be around an 8.5minute mile for the full 5k. I am currently at just over a 10 minute mile for that duration. I would also like to be able to complete it without any interval
2. Lose weight. I am at 249lbs. Last January when I was really motivated I went from 260 something to roughly 229. I felt great and loved every second of it. Of course, there was a change to my wife’s schedule and this through off everything. I would LOVE to reach 200lbs by the time I participate in said Warrior Dash, but if I am anywhere below 220 I will be happy.
3. Start working at doing the “150” challenge. Basically like the 300 challenge but just with less reps. I want to document and record how much better I get at basic work outs such as push ups/etc.
4. Beat “The Fight: Lights Out” in it’s entirety on PS3. It might seem lame, but this game has straight up kicked my ass the past few days.
5. Have great posture and confidence. I am fairly new to the site and have been reading many articles and the one about confidence rang home. I am not known as someone without confidence but I am not known for it either. I have since made “the stare down” a mini-game and my back hurts from sitting “the right way” in my chair today.
6. Not limit my goals. I plan to add and expand upon my goals. The only way is up.
My two fitness goals this year are to:
– Complete all the challenges in the Florida Warrior Dash in January.
– Finish in the top 3 in my age group at the local sprint distance triathlon in June.
Financially, I will pay off my second mortgage. I’m highly motivated by the financial freedom. This motivation will make doing things like eating out less and buying less toys easier.
Sounds like a lot of us are hitting on the same talking points around this time of year. Glad to read your take on them.
Keep killin it Steve, make 2011 EPIC. (and in your case, awesome)
Over the last 3 years I have lost 30lbs (210 lbs in Dec of 2007, 180 lbs in Dec 2010). It has been a slow and not very focused effort…but an effort I am pleased with. A month ago I discovered Nerd Fitness, the community, and mostly the inspiration and great ideas that Steve provides. Now its time to get serious. I turn 40 in April of this year and have 4 very specific goals before by the the day I turn the BIG 4-0:
1. BMI of 22 (currently 26)
2. 9% Body Fat (currently 14.2%)
3. Go Paleo! (messed around with it in Nov & Dec…today I am committed)
4. Run a half-marathon on April 11th
Those are my goals. Time for “Operation 40 and Fit”.
Great post Steve, I think between Nerd Fitness and Art of Non Conformity I’ve got my 2011 goals in my sites, thank you!
Great post Steve, I think between Nerd Fitness and Art of Non Conformity I’ve got my 2011 goals in my sites, thank you!
I’m going to snap a rubberband on my right wrist every time I say a curse word…in hopes of conditioning myself to no longer use poor language. AND I am going to try at least one new recipe from Food Network per week. … I just made those up right now. But, I like them, so I will really do them.
I would suggest writing goals in the present tense as if you’ve already achieved them. This activates your subconscious better and makes it easier for you to carry out the actions to achieve your goals.
I will run, not walk, the Indy mini-marathon on May 7.
I am going to loose 20 pounds in 2 months so I can go on vacation to Florida to see the last NASA shuttle launch. While I am there, I will see the ocean for the first time (and look good while I’m there). This will also fit the “first family vacation” goal I’ve been making for the last 4 years.
Great inspiration and giving us all a kick in the ass!
My goal was to travel the world in 2010-check!
2011 goal is to combine work with travel so that I can work from anywhere (location independence is key for me at this point in my life). It’s gonna take a TON of work, but opportunities will present themselves, I’m sure of it. Until then, gotta continue working my ass off!
Thanks for the post
1. Get below 200 pounds, hopefully below 180.
2. Be able to do at least 10 pullups.
3. Be able to do 250 squats in a row.
4. 5 minute plank.
5. Run an 8 minute or faster mile.
6. 100 Pushups in a row.
7. Run five consecutive miles.
8. Eat Paleo.
9. Get rid of all the stuff I don’t need/don’t want.
10. Memorize Pi to 100 places.
11. Learn a programming language and write a basic program.
Those are my 11 goals of 2011. I love your blog, and your forum helped me lose an inch off my waist in two weeks.
I LOVE this! I gave up on resolutions years ago. For the past few year I make a ‘List of Things to do in 20XX’. So here’s my list, made public for the first time:
Things to do in 2011:
1. SCUBA Certification
2. Start an official FIRST LEGO League Team at my school.
3. Lose 50 pounds by the end of the year.
4. Exercise an average of 4 days a week.
5. Complete 5 new peaks in my quest to join the Catskill 3500 Club.
6. Travel to Costa Rica this summer (plans are in the works)
7. Finally open my 403(b) – Mailed out the enrollment form today!
8. Continue to declutter and organize my home
9. Continue to save for the down payment on a house.
10. Get my Technology Education certification.
Hiya Steve,
Great post and got me all motivated again.
My long term strength goals this year are these:
1. Bench press 300lbs
2. Squat 200lbs
3. Run a 5k in under 25 minutes.
Short and to the point.
If I manage to achieve that before the end of the all well and good. Though it is my most ambitious plan yet so need all the time I can give myself.
I originally joined the Nerd Fitness community just to get ideas, tips/tricks, etc. to help my girlfriend in her quest to lose weight, eat healthy, and improve her life. I knew I had some areas of my life that could use some improvement, but I thought I was doing alright, so I was just going to get info to help her. Then I read this article and everyone’s comments and realized there are A LOT of things I can/should do to improve my own life while helping my girlfriend. Thanks for the positive kick in the ass Steve!
My goals for 2011
1. Quit smoking before my birthday (November). I was a pack-a-day smoker up until 3 months ago. I’m down to 2 packs a week now.
2. Quit drinking pop and junk food for every meal.
I’m not overweight at all, thanks to a high metabolism I guess, but I know my heart isn’t going to last if I keep going the way I am. I think if I can accomplish both of these goals, I will be a lot better off.
My goals for 2011:
1) Finish my master thesis before my birthday on March 24th
2) Changing my eating habits to fit the Paleo diet (starting the 1st of February – using January to educate myself and to find some tasty recipes)
3) Lose another 18 pounds (starting with a 6 weeks of a simple bodyweight rountine and then moving on to something new – maybe some crossfit)
1) Learn French by taking French 101 (scheduled), 102 (tentative) and borrowing the language learning materials my world-traveling friends have so graciously offered. Committing about 2 hours a week of additional non-homework time.
2) Get my own place.
3) Persist in working out regularly via yoga, weights, walking the dog and dance-cardio classes. Average 4 hours a week.
4) Continue with the paleo diet and practicing mindful eating habits to stay conscious and stop when full.
All of this feeds into my overarching goal which is to keep a clear mind and a heart that is open to share with others.
1) Learn French by taking French 101 (scheduled), 102 (tentative) and borrowing the language learning materials my world-traveling friends have so graciously offered. Committing about 2 hours a week of additional non-homework time.
2) Get my own place.
3) Persist in working out regularly via yoga, weights, walking the dog and dance-cardio classes. Average 4 hours a week.
4) Continue with the paleo diet and practicing mindful eating habits to stay conscious and stop when full.
All of this feeds into my overarching goal which is to keep a clear mind and a heart that is open to share with others.
Steve – I am impressed with your readers comments, they are simply amazing! Each one has such specific goals and they all seem motivated. Did you pay everyone to write such thoughtful goals?! 🙂
My goals this year:
Weight: Get weight down to around 180ish (I feel like that’s how much I’d weigh with a 32 in waist, currently at about 215lbs and 36/38ish in the waist)
Exercise: 3x a week, whether it’s a designated fitness routine or anything else, I need to keep my ass moving and this year I want to keep a more reliable log of my progress while I’m working at it.
Life: Move out of my parents house & get out of retail. I also need to de-clutter and organize.
Hi Steve, I just found your blog today and I’m addicted! (Really, I think I’ve read probably 50 posts today, plus a ton that you’ve linked….) I love the idea of “leveling up” your life and eating clean. My 2011 goals:
1. Lose 20 lbs by trying the Paleo diet for 1 month, mixing up my workouts, and keeping progress charts.
2. Find a new job that I enjoy by applying to 20 places a week and picking up all web design work I can for experience.
3. Get my boyfriend to propose by… oh, wait… can’t really control that one. 😉
On the bright side, just yesterday I checked off my first HUGE goal of 2011 and paid off my last student loan! Now all my monies are belong to me….!
2011 Goals
1 – Lose the rest of my flab around my gut in time for beach season. I’ll be continuing my workouts and now adding in one more day of all cardio to help this along. Also, #2 goal will help this out too.
2 – Compete in a sprint triathlon. I got the book “Your First Triathlon” for christmas and I want to start the 12 week program so I can compete in my town’s annual triathlon. Bonus goals – Do more than one triathlon.
3 – Do a crossfit workout camp. A club has four week programs at one of the local high school gyms. All I gotta do is sign up although it probably won’t be until after triathlon season.
4 – Take a martial arts class. I got a few to pick from. Just got to pull the trigger.
5 – Clean the crap out of my basement and finish building my woodworking workshop. That project is a few years overdue.
My goals for 2011?
1. Successfully hold a handstand for more than ten seconds.
2. Read/Watch Lord of the Rings trilogy.
3. Practice, practice, practice parkour. 😀
4. (Later on in the year) Apply to 3+ colleges and apply for as many scholarships as I can.
5. Not necessarily lose weight (though that would be nice), but not gain weight either (as recommended by my doctor as a goal for my next doctor visit).
I got a DEXA body fat scan and found out I’m at 22.1% 🙁 working towards getting under 12% with the slow carb diet and p90x workouts.
I have set the following goals for 2011:
1) I WILL lose 35 lbs. by July 1st.
2) I WILL be able to run a 5k. (The Couch to 5k program)
3) I WILL pump out 100 push-ups (The 100 push-ups program)
4) I WILL hike all of the Appalachian Trail in Connecticut (Okay, still researching this, as it may take more than a year for sectional hiking.)
Good luck to everyone!
1. Help my wife deliver our baby girl!
2. Get to 20 pull-ups (at 12 now)
3. Body fat <10% (~13% now)
4. Gain 5 lbs of muscle
1. Comit to writing on the Rebel Fitness Forums
2. weigh 190 lbs by June.
3. Learn to speak Russian
4 Live outside my comfort zone more often.
1. Weigh 132lbs by the end of the year. Which would give me a BMI of 22.
2. Swim 2k in under 45min.
3. Run 10k, no time limit on this one, just no walking. It’s going to be a challenge because I have collapsed arches and my feet are a mess at the moment, they swell up and hurt like hell after 3k.
4. Stop eating bread.
5. Learn to meditate.
6. Be flexible enough to do the splits
7. Finish writing the collection of short stories I’ve been working on forever.
8. Pay my parents back the money they lent me and get my overdraft down to £500.
9. Pretend my student loan doesn’t exist.
1. Weigh 132lbs by the end of the year. Which would give me a BMI of 22.
2. Swim 2k in under 45min.
3. Run 10k, no time limit on this one, just no walking. It’s going to be a challenge because I have collapsed arches and my feet are a mess at the moment, they swell up and hurt like hell after 3k.
4. Stop eating bread.
5. Learn to meditate.
6. Be flexible enough to do the splits
7. Finish writing the collection of short stories I’ve been working on forever.
8. Pay my parents back the money they lent me and get my overdraft down to £500.
9. Pretend my student loan doesn’t exist.