‘S.M.A.R.T - O.F.’

If you have ever wanted to make a change in your fitness habits, your nutrition, your time management or many other areas, you have likely set some kind of goal. And perhaps without knowing it, or maybe intentionally, you have used the S.M.A.R.T. principle in some way, shape or form.

I have spent A LOT of time with the S.M.A.R.T. goal setting principle in my career, and have found it very useful and effective, IF applied correctly. I’ve trained 1000s of clients, students and fitness professionals over these nearly 3 decades, and I’ve seen where folks are successful and where they struggle with defining these steps. With a few little tweaks, that struggle can turn to success and hence help people hit those goals!

Over the next 7 articles, I am going to dive into each of the S.M.A.R.T. components to share how we can optimize them. I have two additional steps (the ‘O.F.’ above) that I use with clients to make goal setting and achievement more applicable to life. You know, for those folks who are running a business and a household, while dealing with the mental load of 2025? It’s a lot right? It doesn’t mean we can’t strive for our goals, but what I have found is that we must find the right fit for bringing our goals into our lives, rather than trying to change our lives to fit our goals.

This week, we will start the the “S”. Let’s go!

The “S” in the S.M.A.R.T. principle, as you know, stands for Specific. Often, goals which are set are too general. “I want to get more fit” is one I hear often. We want to define further by asking questions such as:

-”what does fit mean to you?”

-”what does fit feel like to you?”

-”how will you know you have achieved being more fit?”

These questions help us bring to life what it is we are after, in a much more tangible way. Maybe ‘fit’ means not getting winded when walking up the stairs to one person and to another person it means being able to squat their body weight. On the surface, this is the same goal. The person wanted to ‘get fit’. However when we consider what ‘fit’ is by their definition, the program design looks MUCH different.

Additionally, once your goal is specific, I encourage you to reflect on the following, before taking the next step with your goal:

-where does this goal come from?

-why is this something you wish to pursue?

These questions are linked to two other reasons I have found people aren’t successful in their goal achievement.

1) The goal is based on something which isn’t valid. We can name any number of outlandish ‘wellness influencer’ statements to see how people are being nudged towards habits, routines, supplements etc, that are based on false claims. More and more it can be difficult to suss out what is legitimate and what is nonsense, so consult with your trusted (and trained and certified) professionals to ensure your goal is right for you.

2) The goal is actually someone else’s. The number of times I have had a person set a fitness goal because their partner told them to or their doctor told them! I am not discounting the importance of a doctor’s direction or a partner’s support, but what I do need you to consider, is that humans only tend to actually change behaviour when they have made the decision to do so. So, if your doctor has told you to start walking more to improve your heart health, what he/she/they are prescribing is cardiovascular activity. If you really dislike walking or you don’t have a safe sidewalk or route to walk, then we’re setting up for failure. The cardio is what is important AND there are many options for cardio activity. Choose something YOU like. That will increase the chance of success!

In closing, the “S” step for less concrete goals can be tricky. If you are looking to improve your emotional health for example, that can be hard to specifically define. I invite you to consider those questions above. What does it feel like to be emotionally healthy? Or, how do you know you are NOT emotionally healthy? Perhaps you find yourself snapping at your partner and you wish to lessen that. Tracking your thoughts and feelings throughout the day can be useful to find information and patterns. From there you can set goals such as, ‘I will state that I am feeling overwhelmed and need a few moments to myself’ in a moment where you’re about to snap at your partner.

As always, reach out if you have questions, or thoughts, and I will see you back next week when we dive into the “M”!

Cheering you on!

Deanna