I am hesitant to write about New Year’s resolutions as I am sure that everyone is being pressured to make resolutions and find a way to actually keep them this year. I’m not big on making resolutions but I am a firm believer in setting goals. Not just at the beginning of the year but throughout the year. Goals can help you stay on track and make you accountable. But goals/resolutions can also become pitfalls if you aren’t realistic or specific. So if you have decided to set some new goals for your health this year, here are some suggestions on setting SMART goals.
The most important thing about any goal is understanding what steps are necessary to achieve that goal. Although a goal is the ‘bigger picture’, there are often multiple steps, objectives, and milestones that must be accomplished before you reach that goal. For instance, if your goal is to control your blood pressure with diet and exercise, you need to outline strategies that will lead to achievement of lower blood pressure. You can’t just stop taking your blood pressure medicine; you have to think about how you will do it.
To achieve your goals, you have to be SMART! This means that your strategies must be
• Specific
• Measurable
• Accountability recorded/Adaptable, if necessary
• Realistic (“difficult but possible”) and
• Timed (deadline given).
Specific. When considering your goals, write down exactly what you hope to achieve. Sometimes this requires additional thought. For instance, if you just want to stop taking you blood pressure medications, you may be more focused on not taking the medications than getting your blood pressure to a healthy goal. If you are not sure what goal blood pressure (cholesterol, blood sugar, or body mass index) should be, speak to your health care provider.
Measurable. Finding ways to determine if you are moving towards your goal is important to keep on track. If you are going to increase your level of physical activity to improve your blood pressure or lose weight, write down the number of minutes you plan to exercise per week and the number of times per week. If you just say, ‘I’m going to the gym more often’, that’s difficult to measure. But if you state a goal of 150 minutes of activity per week, you can measure whether or not that was achieved.
Accountability. This is one of the downfalls for many goals and resolutions- there is no accountability. It can be difficult to hold yourself accountable for personal goals so you need to enlist the help of a family member or friend. If you are the only person aware of the goal, it’s easy to forget about it or get off track when you it becomes difficult. But if someone else is following your blood pressure or blood sugar with you, you are more likely to achieve your goal.
Adaptable. Having strategies that can be adapted is also very important because it’s rare that things will work out exactly as planned. If you are going to walk at the mall 4 days a week, you need to have a back-up plan if there is a blizzard and you can’t get to the mall or your transportation is temporarily unavailable. By thinking about alternatives, you can avoid getting off track.
Realistic. We often set goals that are unachievable which sets us up for failure. If your goal is to lose 40 pounds, I’m not suggesting that you should settle for losing 20 pounds but you must be realistic about the goal. If it took you 15 years to gain the weight, you can’t expect to lose it in six months. Talk to a health care provider or fitness professional about realistic goals. Don’t be afraid to set short term goals (10 pounds in three months) and long-term goals (20 pounds in one year).
Timed. The purpose of giving yourself a deadline for meeting your objective is not to determine whether you passed or failed. The purpose is to determine if you are on track to meeting your goal. If you are doing everything that you planned and things are going well, that’s wonderful. But if you are not reaching your goal (blood pressure is still high, no change in your weight), then it’s time to consider new strategies. Do you need to see a dietician? Is there an underlying medical condition that needs further evaluation? The time should not be a negative factor but an opportunity to reevaluate your strategies to ensure that you meet your goal.
To those of you who have New Year’s resolutions, do your best to be SMART!!!
I wish you much success and a new year full of good health!