Stop, pause and reassess your fitness goals

Over the last many months, I have written about - and you have read about - various aspects of getting fit and healthy. However, it is also equally important during a journey to pause and reassess, because most times when we walk blindly along a route, we stop seeing our achievements and our mistakes. We also get bogged down by the success and failure of others and end up with more questions.

It is important for you on your journey to better health to know the whys and how’s’ and where’s’ of your voyage so that you have a better chance of achieving your goals. So think of this article as reaching your reassessment point, where you ask yourselves some vital yet basic questions (again) and remind yourselves of why you are on this healthy trip in the first place. Charting this course to better health is an art form in itself where the below questions and your answers will fill the canvas.

Question 1

What are my goals?

The first question you must ask yourself is not about your exercise regimen. It is about your own self and it should result in a better understanding of your goals and dreams. Observe yourself and be completely honest. What do you want from life?

In the give context it is very easy to say ‘I want to be fitter.’ However when you are break it down you will realize that your actual answer is ‘I want to play ball with my son without feeling out-of-breath in 5 minutes’ or ‘I want to feel the sense of accomplishment of completing a marathon’ or ‘I want to fit in a size 10 dress’ or ‘I want to beat my Type II diabetes or cholesterol problem’. Now you know exactly what your real goals are. Getting fitter is a way to achieve those goals – a sensible and healthy way to reach your destination.

The deeper question in this case is what is your journey about? In almost all cases it is about uncovering the better version of us hidden underneath layers of fat.

Question 2

Why am I exercising?

This sounds very similar to the first question but the answer has to be a more specific in a fitness context. While the answer to the first question could be ‘to be a more fun parent’ or ‘to fit into a size 10 dress’ the answer to the second question is ‘to increase my energy levels’ or ‘to lose 5 kilos.’ We are talking specifics here.

Your answer could also be – ‘to lose weight and stay healthy’ or ‘to maintain my weight and stay healthy’ or ‘to train for the marathon / race / game’ or ‘to add some muscles to my frame’ or whatever physical goal it is that you hold close.

Your answer has a huge impact on the workout routine you adopt. If you have been exercising for a while chances are you have progressed from one stage to another (from ‘need to lose weight’ to ‘have to maintain weight’). In such a case you will have to adapt your workout routine to your new fitness levels and also reassess your goals.

Question 3

What are you willing to sacrifice?

So you want to lose 8 kilos in two months! You have been walking once in a while but nothing good is coming out of it. Really!!

How are you going to lose any weight if you can only average an hour’s worth of exercise in a week because you have overscheduled your life? Something has to give. We are experts at packing our day with things to do – work, shop, cook, drive, party, favorite rom-com on the telly, movie nights, coffee dates, kid’s school work, visiting family and friends, charity work, parlor… name it, I have heard it all. When we finally take a breather it is either too late to head to the gym or we are too tired.

The question is what are you willing to give up so that your exercise time (even if it is only 30 minutes every day for 4 days a week) is sacrosanct? Set this time aside and let your family know that nothing short of a genuine emergency is allowed to eat in to those 30 minutes.

Question 4

How fit am I now?

You may have been 15 kilos overweight or maybe even downright obese when you started out on your fitness program. Now a few months or a year down the line you only have to lose the last 2 stubborn kilos or you no longer tilt the scales like you did before. Congratulations! It also means that it is time that you upped your game and made things a bit tougher for yourself. If you have been managing with a couple of laps around the park maybe it is time you considered joining a running club or trying out something challenging like high intensity functional training at XFit.

However if a year down the line you have only managed to lose two to three kilos or you have plateaued after losing the first five kilos, then it is time for an urgent reassessment. You are definitely in need of guidance not just in the area of exercise but also in terms of nutrition. This is the time to head to the experts, namely physical trainers and nutritionists.

Question 5

Am I over-reaching?

No one is asking you to set easy targets. However if your goals are unrealistic then you are only setting yourself up for deep disappointment. In other words, if your goal is to lose 10 kilos in a month you are headed for a let-down. Sure you can do it if you starve yourself; but no self-respecting fitness expert is ever going to condone that!

Study your goal chart and ask yourself – am I asking too much off myself? Should I go a bit easy on my goal setting? If your goals are unrealistic then you are going to face more setbacks than the average person and this will lead to disappointments and eventually the loss of motivation. For your own good follow the turtle’s lead and take it slow and steady.

I am not asking you to go so easy that you don’t get up from the TV room couch at all! I am asking you to gently sneak in increasing increments of exercise, so that your body accepts the greater demands placed on it without rebelling. Most experts believe that the body needs about four days to get used to a new situation – diet or exercise related. So if you have increased your speed or your distance or the amount of weight you lift, stick to this new routine for at least four days before moving on to the next stage.

Question 6

What are my excuses?

This is a biggie! Even the most motivated amongst us may sometimes hit a slump and make excuses to not workout for the fourth day running. Notice these signs. If it continues, you could slide off your healthy slope and end up back to square one. Therefore it is imperative that you pay attention to the excuses you are making. In almost all cases the excuses are just a façade that the real reason is hiding behind.

The excuses can range from the specific ‘it’s too hot’ to the vague ‘I don’t feel like it’. However don’t let yourself off the hook that easy. Ask yourself why again and again until you dig out the real reason. Why do you not feel like it may lead to the revelation that you are upset about an argument you had with your spouse earlier that day. Just knowing the real reason frees you as you now know what you have to do to chase the blues away. Strangely enough you will also find that, in almost all cases, knowing the real reason behind your blues or moods will bring back your energy to head out to the gym – either to sweat your frustrations away or to work-out your way to a solution.