Plans and Goals

You Must Have a Goal and A Plan
The #1 reason people don't reach their fitness goals is because they have generic goals and haphazard plans of reaching this goal. This is a blog for the average not advanced trainee. Advanced trainees understand the value of these 2 very important aspects of training already.

Goals
The #1 goal I heard as a trainer is "I want to just tone." This was usually code for work a miracle because I don't want to work too hard but want the results of someone who does. What the hell does "I want to tone" even mean??? Its as generic a goal as "I want to lose weight." Goals must be specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely. So a better goal would be "I want to lose 4 inches from my waist and midsection by summer time." Because really if you lose 4 inches from your waits and midsection does it really matter what the scale says? Even lost in this is a performance goal. "I want to be able to run a 5k, triathlon, bench 315, jump higher, etc... You would be surprised how your body will change without you trying to work on your looks. I am a perfect example. I always wanted to be big. I read magazine article and trained like a bodybuilder even though I was still a beginner. I gained a few pounds putting me over 200lbs but never over 215.  I then ditched the "looks" goal and began powerlifting. Now I am 260lbs a year and a half later and actually not much fatter. I reached my early on goal by following a specific performance goal. I hope some of this is making sense.

The Plan
You MUST have a plan. You have your good goal now, so how are you going to get there? Do you know what it takes to get there? What resources are available and what can you afford? If you have a lofty goal you need to know how hard it is going to be to get there. So many people start from a true beginner and want to look like a magazine model in 6 months time. The problem with this is that magazine model has fantastic genetics, looks good as their 40 hour a week job, and has been working at their body for years...Do you have fantastic genetics? Do you have unlimited time to work toward this goal? Can you stay dedicated for years? I will never bullshit someone and tell them you can look however you want to look. Its not being mean just realistic. I will never look like Jay Cutler. I will never look like Ashton Kutcher. I just don't have either of those genetic abilities. It doesn't mean that I can get look somewhat similar with the proper training and dedication however. So know what it takes to get you to your goal so you can plan accordingly. The plan must address your available time also. If you only have 1 hour 3 days a week you must plan for that. Also what resources do you have. Do you have a dietitian, trainer, or friend who can help you. Can you afford that? If not what program are you going to choose that is available for less money out there.

Putting it Together
Lets use an example of how to put this in action...
Trainee goal: Drop 6 pants sizes by summer
Performance goal: Run one of those 5k mud races by summer
Plan: I have 4 days a week to dedicate 1 hour each day. I will split my weight workouts upper and lower body twice a week. The other 2 days I will dedicate to sprinting, jumping, and plyometrics for the first day and distance running on the final day. I will use compound movements for my weights and lift heavy to get stronger. I will eat better food to include getting 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight in. I will cut out fast food and soda with the exception of 1 or 2 times a week.

This is a rough outline without getting into detailed planning but you get the idea. This could be very attainable in a 3-6 month period of time as long as the trainee is consistant with the plan.

Lofty goal plan
Here is an example of my lofty goal and what it has taken me to get where I am at. You can see how much more work and involvement is put into a lofty goal. You got to ask yourself can you dedicate yourself to doing something like this.
Goal: National qualifying total in the USAPL for powerlifting 275lb category (1600 total qualifies) by the end of 2013.
Performance goals short term: 500lb squat by June, 330 bench by June, 540 deadlift by june
End of 2012 goal: 550 squat, 360 bench, 600 deadlift.
Plan: spend money to get trained by Josh Bryant (highly sought out trainer), train 4x a week never missing a weight training session. These sessions last about 1 1/2 hours with a very high volume of weight lifted. Eat 300g protein a day and roughly 4000 calories a day. 20 minutes a day dedicated to mobility and rehabilitative stretching. Video tape lifts to make sure form is good.

Where I started: bodyweight 200lbs, bench 185, squat 235, deadlift 275. Spent 16 months never missing a workout. Used basic 5/3/1 program plan. Ate in excess of 5000 calories a day. Video taped lifts to get better form. Did 20 min a day of rehab/mobility work.

So as you can see the higher the goal is the more you have to dedicate yourself. I have a 2 year plan of not missing a workout. Everyday I am doing something to reach my goal. I spent 20 bucks for the 5/3/1 program and educated myself to make the improvements I made to reach my 1223 total. Now I spent much more money to hire a top level trainer to write me a program.

Now you got to look at these examples and see where you fall. Are you a new trainee looking to look better and feel better. Are you a competitor? Are you an athlete (inter mural or otherwise)?  What goal do you have and whats your plan?

These two things are critical to success. I believe everyone puts too much into a "looks" goal. You don't have to look perfect. Looks are individual to a person which makes this world have variety. You should be happy with yourself and not feel like you have to look like a supermodel to be happy. Plan to better yourself and look and feel better. Its about health, confidence, and feeling better. I believe everyone can get their weight in the healthy range, look great, and still have a life if they plan properly. Isn't that what life is all about???

As I said this article is not for advanced trainees or competitive athletes or fitness models. These people revolve their lives around fitness. This is for the average person who wants to improve their looks and fitness. The 40+ hour a week worker who has limited time to dedicate and wants to have more confidence and live a longer healthier life.

Hope this made some sense.