SETTING REALISTIC GOALS


We all have goals whether you realize it or not. You may not have them written down, but you do know what you are trying to accomplish. You also have some idea how to achieve them.

If your goal is weight loss, some other long-term goals could be:

These are great goals, but how will you reach them? These goals don’t address the behaviors you’ll need to change or the actions you’ll need to take to achieve them.

You need to learn goal-setting methods and ways to attain them.

Did you ever try to figure out why you didn’t succeed in reaching your goals in the past?

It’s time to reverse your shortcomings of the past and learn how to set and achieve realistic goals.

Now you may be asking, “What exactly are goals?” Basically, they have two parts: actions and reactions.

Actions

Reactions

Now let’s start at the beginning, how do you set goals? Many people set number goals such as I want to lose 60 lbs or I want to fit into a size 12 or I want to get down to a 36 inch waist.

These may be good goals to aim for, but you can’t directly change those numbers. The only thing you can change is your eating behaviors. If you set your goals in terms of behaviors and successfully achieve those behaviors, then the numbers will take care of themselves.

To set behavioral goals, you need an idea which behaviors are causing you problems. What were your antecedents to eating? What eating behaviors have contributed to your weight problem? With this information, you can take a look at your exercise habits, and your actual food intake. They become the foundation for your goal-setting.

Some of your goals may be large, requiring major changes in life-long habits. If that’s the case, what you need to do is break them down into smaller, short-term goals. They still need to be big enough to be challenging, yet not so big that you can’t reach them.

Each goal should be specific. It should tell you exactly what you want to achieve. If your goals are not specific, you won’t know if you get there. For example, if you set a goal of having more willpower, but never say what you mean by willpower, how will you know if you have more?

The goals have to be relative to your past and present behavior. They also need to take into account where you started from and where you are going. If you have never exercised, don’t be unrealistic.

Most importantly, your goals have to flexible. Don’t use always or never. These are perfectionist goals and leave no room for being human.

Here’s a summary of goals:

The next step is how will you reach these goals? You need to plan how you will reach them. No one way is right or wrong. Do what works best for you.

Here’s an example – if losing weight was your goal and you are now at your desired weight, you can set a goal of resisting donuts at coffee break. There are several ways to accomplish this. Stop taking a coffee break, resolve to drink only coffee or bring a healthy snack to eat. Be creative. There are many options available to you other than eating donuts!

Once you put your plan into action, you need to evaluate its effectiveness. Are you progressing toward your goals?

If the answer is no, the problem could be in your plans or the goals themselves. Take a look at your goal. Was it unrealistic to begin with? Was it too big, requiring too much to reach it?

If need be, reset the goal and divide it into small, achievable steps. Use your evaluation as a learning tool. When problems occur again, refer to your past experience to see what works, what doesn’t work and resolve it.

If you still seem to fail at everything you attempt, maybe it’s time to look at your reactions to see if you’re defeating yourself. You’re not alone, if you are. Think back to your school days. We are taught to be critical and find errors. Did you get praised for the things you did right in school, or did you get red x’s for the things you did wrong? We’re taught to see things that are wrong rather than things that are right.

It’s time to change your reactions to your actions. If you “pat” yourself on the back for the things you do right, you’re more likely to continue with your success. Learn to see progress towards a goal as a step in the right direction. Turn difficulties into opportunities for improvement, rather than reasons for giving up.

Problems arise if you avoid the issues rather than confront them. Small justifications and rationalizations can lead to bigger ones, eventually putting you right back where you started. To stop the cycle, learn to take action immediately. Go back to your goals and action plans and get yourself right back on track.

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