Monday Tip: Setting Realistic Goals

Oct 26, 2020

Monday Tip: Setting Realistic Goals

Happy Monday morning everyone! When we take that first step on the path toward a healthy lifestyle change, we may have grand ideas of the immediate body composition we want. The problem is, change – any change – takes time and a steady amount of effort to achieve. What we wish we could have overnight could take, weeks, months and years to achieve. And, in this world of instant gratification, it is very difficult to wait.

When you aren’t seeing those immediate changes, it’s easy to give up, but a good trainer will help manage your expectations and teach you to create realistic goals for yourself. Losing 30 pounds in 3 weeks is not only unattainable, it’s an unhealthy goal because of the frustration you may feel when it doesn’t happen as quickly as you had hoped. And, in turn, it could make you lose sight of what you have accomplished at the end of those three weeks.

Always check in with yourself and answer these questions: Do you feel better? Do you sleep better? Do you have more energy? Is it easier to move around and do daily things? Is it easier to climb stairs without losing your breath? Do you feel better about yourself then you did when you started this program? Focus on those successes. Celebrate them, because they were hard earned. No matter how small you may think they are, they are still getting you one step closer to your ultimate goal.

Setting un-reachable and often unrealistic goals is one of the fastest ways to stop a weight loss program in its tracks. That first failed attempt at reaching that goal is all it takes for people to give up and tell themselves it’s never going to happen. This self-fulfilling prophecy is so damning to a person’s mental health, that it will become true.

Set Mini Goals. Don’t shoot for the moon right away, especially if you are just getting back into the gym. Instead of saying I want to drop 10 pounds this month, instead say, “I want to be in the gym for a minimum of 16 visits this month”. Just changing the narrative from a weight number to something such as the goal of gym visits works on a few levels: 1. it makes them more accountable for getting into the gym, and 2. if they complete that goal, they will probably get a bonus result when they step on the scale.

Always take some time to re visit your goals, alter them, change them as needed, set new ones along the way, write your goals down and look at them often. Know and accept that a healthy weight loss program is a marathon, not a sprint, it takes time and focus. Even if you only lose a ½ pound 1 week that’s still progress, so be happy and proud of even the little successes. Realistic goals will help improve physically but perhaps more important mentally, it will boost your self- esteem and remind you of your journey.

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Client of The Quarter: Q2 2024

By Ray Cattaneo • 01 May, 2024

Steve has been crushing it ever since joining IPT in Dec 2023. He continues to stay consistent with his nutrition, cardio and exercise. He always pushes past his limits in every workout which has resulted in losing body fat mass every month! He lost a total of 35.7 lbs of BFM since joining! Steve Lepping has transformed his life for greatness!

Client of The Quarter: Q1 2024

By Ray Cattaneo • 07 Feb, 2024

Andrea has been at IPT since July of 2023 and has been the definition of consistency! She always makes adjustments to her nutrition and exercise when needed and pushes herself in workouts every single time. Each month she exceeds her goal of losing body fat mass, and has lost a total of 24lbs of BFM since joining! She's able to chest press 25 lb dumb bells and can do a full pushup without any assistance now. You can really see the difference in how Andrea carries herself and the confidence she has now compared to her first day at IPT. She completely transformed her life for the better!

Client of The Quarter: Q4 2023

By Ray Cattaneo • 03 Nov, 2023

Rey has been here since early June & has never missed a session! He's on-point with his tracking for nutrition and always does his cardio. He has hit every goal since he started and has lost 49.6 lbs of body fat mass and gained 3.8 lbs of skeletal muscle mass. Down from 48.9% BF to 36.6% BF. The health of his knees has improved drastically and he continues to have an exceptionally positive attitude!