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Set your goals
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been said, “If you keep doing what you have always
done, you will get what you have always gotten.” Your
workout programme cannot proceed according to a plan if
you have no plan, nor can you expect great results without
a road map to guide you!
Take a few minutes to set realistic goals and organise your
training, and you’ll find the road to success is not
far away. Many of you reading this article will be looking
to move beyond moderate physical activity and toward optimising
your health, fitness and performance training returns! If
this is true, let your goals reflect this direction!
Too often, individuals set goals and never re-visit them.
Setting and reevaluating personal goals keeps you accountable,
your training programme, mind and body fresh, and the results
coming in! Before you set your goals, you also need to affirm
that down the road, you will be willing to reevaluate and
change directions when the evidence warrants it. |
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Describe and record your goals
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Setting goals and record keeping
are important because the adaptive response (this
occurs when you work harder than the body is accustomed
and you become more fit) to training is complex
and individual. In other words, individuals will
most likely respond differently to exactly the same
programme. Because of this, it’s important
to update your goals, record your progress or lack
thereof – so appropriate changes can be made
to create improvement or continued gains in your
fitness.
If this concept of developing goals is to be useful,
you must 1) commit them to paper, 2) be specific,
3) set realistic goals, and 4) read and reevaluate
your goals regularly. If you need help organising
your goal tracking system, fitness goal tracking
forms and weekly workout planning sheets are available
in Your Personal Trainer, by Douglas Brooks.
Motivation is only effective when the goal is meaningful
and fits the individual. Once you’ve set your
personal goals, remember to break a long-term goal,
like losing twenty pounds or running a marathon
ten minutes faster than your previous best, into
more manageable goals. These are not only more likely
to be realistic, but also allow you to achieve one
goal (short-term) while keeping the next within
attainable reach.
>>
Click here for a sample workout log <<
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| Tracking
your progress |
How
do you use your observations and records to enhance
results or to help guide programme changes? First,
focus on the positive, what you can do and have done,
as well as applauding your progress when you compare
how far you have come with regard to where you started.
You know, that if you want to create a fitness programme
that is goal- and results-oriented, it’s important
to know where you’ve been (use fitness assessment
tests), where you are (keep records and a diary of
comments), and where you’d like to go (goals).
If you follow these three guiding points, you will
have recorded a starting point from which to compare
your fitness improvements over time. From there, you
need to keep track of your progress by continuing
to keep records and jotting down your observations,
as well as periodically reassessing your fitness level.
key point: Results depend on what
you are achieving and
doing – not what you think you are doing. |
| Recording
your progress |
The progression of your training programme or
results from any assessment tests you may have
used can be easily recorded. Most training improvements
and test results, unfortunately, are filed away
to collect dust. Don’t let this happen!
Your recorded improvements and testing results
can show you the areas of fitness that you need
to improve in and simultaneously motivate you
to keep progressing. Realise that if you’re
new to training, during the first three months
of training you’ll probably see outstanding
improvement. After this time period, results will
come at a less dramatic pace, but steadily. Understanding
this fact about training improvements will keep
you – whether a veteran or a beginning exerciser
– from developing unrealistic expectations.
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| Using
performance graphs |
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Performance graphs are an excellent
tool to use if you want to get an overall picture
of the direction your training is headed. Over a
period of weeks, these graphs should also show a
steady-build of 4-6 weeks with regard to results,
followed by a plateau or dip, followed by another
steady-build of 4-6 weeks. This rise, followed by
a levelling or slight dip, reflects a programme
that is properly periodised, and allows for both
hard training and recovery.
The performance graph I developed has both a vertical
and horizontal axis. The vertical axis represents
your performance. This could represent past and
most current: 1) body fat measurements (as you get
more fit, your body fat will go down, so a positive
graph for this test will start high and go down!),
2) strength self-tests, 3) cardiovascular self-tests
(as you get more fit, you heart rate will go down,
so a positive graph for this test will again, start
high and go down!), and 4) amount of weight being
lifted for a particular strength exercise. Using
the performance graph represents my clients’
favorite way to record results that reflect personal
improvement. Using a bar graph like this give you
a ‘performance line’ for almost any
fitness related task you do. The horizontal line
of the performance graph represents time. Generally,
it’s easiest to record improvement by weeks
andmonths. |
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Working out at the right level of effort
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Whether you’re
training cardiovascular or strength fitness, or participating
in flexibility training, you’ve got to work
sufficiently intense ly to optimise results. On the
other hand, you shouldn’t treat every workout
as though it’s your last. Restoration and recovery
in a properly periodised programme is essential, too.
Generally, cardiovascular workouts should sustain
an intensity of 40 to 85% of maximal heart rate reserve,
be performed 3-4 times per week, for a duration of
about 30-minutes. Of course, you can work outside
these parameters and/or progress your programme to
attain this type of goal over a reasonable time period.
Strength programmes should incorporate at least two
sessions per week to see significant results. Generally,
two-set training, using 8-10 exercises to target all
of the major muscles groups, and a repetition range
of between 6-20 reps to failure will result in excellent
strength-training results with a minimal time investment.
Flexibility training can be done most days of the
week, but realistically, it’s adequate if you
focus on stretching at least 2-3 times per week at
an intensity that could be described as ‘comfortably-uncomfortable.’
Of course, the art is represented by properly manipulating
duration, intensity or load (number of reps to failure
or heart rate response), and by balancing the right
amount of work with recovery (periodisation). |
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Click here for a sample workout sheet << |
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Douglas
Brooks holds a master’s degree in exercise physiology.
As an author, lecturer, trainer and video personality,
his knowledge of fitness is recognised by professionals
and the public worldwide. He is the author of four
major texts, as well as numerous manuals and articles
relating to personal training. Douglas frequently
conducts lectures and workshops on exercise physiology,
kinesiology, strength training, and personal training
across the globe. |
He
can be contacted at Moves International in the United
States at 760 934 0312 or e-mail him at movesint@qnet.com
Douglas’ book, Your Personal Trainer, takes
you step-by-step through the phases of programme
design for cardio, strength and flexibility training,
goal setting, fitness testing and record keeping
to track your progress in an easy-to-read format.
He also shows you how to vary your programmes, keep
them fresh, and keep the results coming.
Your
Personal Trainer can be purchased from Ultra-FIT'S
Online Store |
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Phone the Ultra-FIT offices for details. Douglas’
latest book,
Effective Strength Training – Analysis and Technique
for Upper Body, Lower Body and Trunk Exercises, can be ordered
direct from Moves International – see details above.
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