Are your goals realistic?

We are in the midst of the time of year when many people fall off the "fitness wagon".  Colder weather, shorter days and longer nights, family gatherings, and holiday parties can trip up even the most dedicated fitness enthusiast.  When we finally reach the end of the year, many of us see it as a time to reassess and set new goals.  Three goals or resolutions that appear in nearly every top ten list of New Year's Resolutions are losing weight, getting fit, and eating healthy.  Unfortunately, these three goals also appear in almost every top ten list of broken New Year's Resolutions.

So if you are one of our consistent Metabolic Warriors, congratulations on succeeding where the vast majority of people fail, which is in making exercise a part of your lifestyle.  If you think back to the time when you began your exercise program, it is likely that a key factor in your ability to stay motivated and to stick with your program was that you were seeing results or progress.  In the beginning, the strength gains, inches lost, and weight lost can be rapid.  As time goes by, though, those gains can be harder to realize, making those goals seem even more elusive and unattainable.    This can be due to a temporary plateau, or it can be because we have set unrealistic expectations or goals. 

Are your goals realistic?  Goals are important.  They help keep us motivated, focused, and moving in the right direction.  But those goals must be achievable.  If you are striving for perfection, instead of what is reasonable, you are automatically setting yourself up to fail.  The world we live in bombards us with unrealistic images and false promises. 

We cannot escape the advertising and media images that warp our sense of what is normal.  Six pack abs, wrinkle-free skin at age 50, and endless energy into our 60s and 70s is not normal.  A small "reserve" in the belly area, some hail damage on the backside (aka cellulite), laugh lines, and a bit of slowing down as we age is normal, even for people who exercise consistently. 

Images we see on magazine covers, and celebrities selling "quick fix" products, combine to give us unrealistic body images.  And these messages start at a very young age.  It is estimated that 90 to 95 percent of girls own at least one Barbie doll.  If Barbie were a real woman, she would be 5'9" tall, have a 39" bust, an 18" waist, 33" hips, and a size 3 shoe.  Really?!  It's not just girls who are targeted and affected by unrealistic advertising or images.  Recent studies link the body image put forth by GI Joe and other action figures with eating disorders among boys and young men. 

When you set or evaluate your goals, make sure they are based on  what is achievable for you.  Since most people default to looking at their weight when determining goals, a good tool to determine whether your body weight falls within a healthy range is a body mass index (BMI) calculator.  BMI is a measurement of the relative percentages of fat and muscle mass in the human body, in which mass in kilograms is divided by height in meters squared and the result is used as an index of obesity.  You can check your BMI at http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/bmi-calculator/NU00597.

Remember, we are not Barbie, GI Joe, the celebrity on the front page of the magazine, or even our workout buddy.  We are all unique, and we each have our own attributes and limitations.  So when setting your goals, challenge yourself, but be realistic.  If you set a goal of dropping your weight from 170 to 140, did you ever weigh 140?  If so, was it 30 years ago and your are now in your 50s, 60s, or beyond?  Then perhaps a goal weight of 140 is overly optimistic.  Also, keep in mind that weight is only one measure of health, and your body composition (percentage of fat vs. lean muscle) is actually more important than body weight.

If you are already a  regular Metabolic Warrior, you have one powerful tool in your arsenal, the power of momentum.   It’s a scientific fact – something in motion tends to stay in motion. Momentum builds quickly and can lead to great results. Suddenly, you’re not only working for the goal, but also to keep your streak alive.  So keep that momentum going and that streak alive and you will see yourself moving closer to your goals. 

“You will never change your life until you change something you do daily.”
—Mike Murdock