Five Ways To Achieve Success

So you want to achieve some goals. You wanna get back into working out and feel better, look better, lose a bit of flab and generally perk up a little. Well, its tough!! I have 5 ways that could help you achieve success.

1) Set a time frame

Possibly the most important of the five is setting a time frame. Perhaps you have an important event coming up. A reasonable time frame is anywhere between 3-6 weeks. I’m talking about a small transformation here – not looking at anything too drastic.

2) Create clear goals

If you do not have clear goals, then you will be floundering around, wondering what to do. An example of a clear goal would be somewhat like this: ‘I want to have to wear a belt with that pair of trousers.’ An unclear goal would be somewhat like this: ‘I want to have a little more definition on my arms’. ‘Little more’ could mean anything – there is a vast scale on which it could be placed so it is not particular enough. Your goals must be particular so that you can efficiently gauge if you have attained them or not.

3) Set achievable goals

As well as being clear, your goals must be attainable. For example, if you have a 3 week time frame and say ‘I want to be able to fit into those trousers’ and currently you can barely get it past your hips, then you have no hope of being able to achieve that goal unless you don’t eat a thing. Your goals must be achievable. However, don’t make them too easy. Perhaps try to make goals that are a step on the road to your ideal. Make them achievable so you avoid setting yourself up for failure.

4) Journal your day

This one really works for me. If you keep a running journal on your day – on what you eat and drink, and what you do for exercise, it forces you to think every day and enables you to look back and analyze. Even better, put it up online so people can read it and comment – can help you change for the better.

5) Stick to your plan

A plan is very important. If you have clear, achievable goals in a reasonable time frame, then you must be consistent with your diet and exercise. If you are not consistent and you do not stick to the plan, then you will not see results. If you give up part way through, you will not see results. If you eat something you ought not to, you will not see results. For example: I decided to give up eating sugar – refined sugar – or anything with refined sugar as an ingredient – and during my three week time, I refused to eat anything with sugar. I did my best to avoid it and unless I unwittingly consumed something containing sugar, I successfully refrained. I stuck to my plan. Three weeks is a short time. If you focus hard and stick to your plan, you will see results.

So, if you do these five things, I can’t actually guarantee that you will see success – because I don’t know what exercise you are doing or what food you are consuming. But if those two components are excellent, then you will see success.

However, there are cases when you may not see success at the end of your time frame. What do you do then? Check back next week as I have reasons to celebrate despite apparent failure.

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But what if I fail?

Have you ever wanted to get rid of extra body fat for good? Do you dream of finally getting those six-pack abs by completely changing your lifestyle so that you’re eating healthier and working out on a consistent basis? If you’re anything like me, you’ve set out to accomplish that feat many times over, and yet have never actually never got to where you want to be.

Let’s say the goal is six-pack abs (it could be bigger biceps, or thinner thighs, the goal is up to you). Many people really want abs but so few have them, why? I’ll put the failures into two groups (there are other failure groups but for now we’ll just look at these two);

• Group 1: For many people the reason is because they just don’t have the knowledge on how to do it. They do their best but no matter how hard they try and how disciplined they are, they still fail. If you’re in this group, keep reading Take Fit!

• Group 2: Others do know essentially how it’s done but are scared that if they try and get abs, and then end up failing – they’ll prove to themselves and others that they don’t have what it takes.

If I had to put myself into one of the above groups it would be the second. It’s embarrassing to fail at something especially if it’s to do with your body.

The safe option is to play it safe, workout a little, eat healthy when you can, but don’t try and aim for anything big. Folks, with that attitude nothing ‘big’ will happen. You might see a little improvement at first, but eventually you’ll get into a rut and things will be as per normal.

Failure is a good thing (if we let it be), and it is certainly nothing to fear

…failure is not the opposite of success, so when you fail, the least you should say is ‘I am not successful’. Just because you have failed does not imply that you are a failure. Failing is necessary to enable you work toward your success. But the problem is we take failure to be a hit against us succeeding. We take an example of Thomas Edison the inventor of the light bulb who couldn’t say he failed 1,000 times but said that “the light bulb was an invention of 1,000 steps”

Here is a man who according to common sense failed 1,000 times, but to him those a thousand attempts were a step in line of success. Remember success is not a destination that we want to reach, for we can never get there. Success is a journey and on this journey there are stops of failure and perseverance. Both are on the same road, more like on a continuum.

Source: http://www.takingitglobal.org/express/panorama/article.html?ContentID=19807

Translate this to the fitness sphere, if you fail one time, you simply take a step back and find out what you’ve done right, what you’ve done wrong and then try again. Learn from your mistakes and you’ll get closer and closer to your goal with each time you fail.

There’s no shame in failure unless you don’t try again

It’s time for me to move out of group 2 and into a new group, ‘those who try and keep on trying until they succeed. Very cheesy I know, but it’s the best way to explain it. Over the next 3 months I will be documenting what I eat and how much I exercise online. I’m going to start my journey towards six pack abs (progress pictures and all). If I fail, I fail – so what. I’ll learn from my mistakes and try again. If I succeed, great! I’ll formulate some new fitness goals and attempt to reach them.

NOTE: Look out for daily Twitter updates which will outline what I’m eating and what exercises I’m doing!

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Goal Setting: Why do most people fail?

Do you have a goal? Maybe you want to run a marathon – or get in shape for your wedding. Perhaps you want to go down a few sizes – or start bodybuilding.

Well I’m sorry I don’t have a quick fix. If I did then I’d be a millionaire. I have a very slow, difficult fix. But it is a lasting one. This fix is all about goals. Setting achievable goals that you can reach with a little hard work.

Focus on achieving mini goals

So I’ll call them mini goals! I’m talking about small weekly achievable goals. Maybe you want to eat less. Start by eating a smaller dinner. That can be a weekly goal. Write down all the things you want to achieve fitness wise. Some ideas are: cut out sugar, get back into running, lift weights, be able to run in a 5k race, swim 1500 meters without stopping, cut down on portion sizes, drink more water, etc.

Now you need to look at the easiest of those you could possibly achieve. If you want to be able to run a certain distance, then firstly set a short term goal. Start running every day for just a few minutes – maybe 10-15 or more or less. If you want to drink more water, then start by drinking 6 glasses every day. If you want to lift weights, then do a small number of reps 3 times a week.

Don’t set yourself up to fail

START SMALL! If you wanted to be a race-car driver… you don’t just go buy the hottest car and start racing. Quite simply you would crash and burn. First you’d need your license. Then you would need to know HOW to drive and maneuver the difficult courses. You’d need to know exactly how to handle a car. Then you would need sponsorship, a car, helmet, gear, a pit crew, etc. Rome was not built in a day and neither can you expect to get to your dream instantly.

Take action

So go now and write down all the goals you want to achieve. Then break each of these down into smaller more achievable goals. You know yourself and what you can achieve. If you’re starting from scratch then the goals need to be as small as possible. I suggest you set goals 4 weeks at a time. No more than this. Each week should build upon the previous so you can look back and see your progress. I also suggest you start as soon as possible.

What are you waiting for? Go set your goals for the first four weeks and focus on the small, not the big. If you look at the big you will just get disappointed quickly. Focus on the small and achievable and you will be flying.

Go!

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