July-August 2010
Do you have some idea of what you would like to accomplish in the near or far future, but don’t know how to do it? Are you participating in Trek for Health and want to see real results during the six-week program?
Set a goal. And not just any goal — make it a S.M.A.R.T. goal.
S: Specific: Be clear and concise about your goal. Ask yourself, who will do what and how will they do it?
I will increase my steps by 1,000 steps every week for six weeks.
M: Measurable: How much change do you expect to make?
I want to go from 5,000 steps a day to 8,000 steps a day by the end of the six-week Trek for Health Program.
► I will increase my steps by 500 per day by the end of each week of the program.
A: Attainable: Do you have the skills and abilities to achieve this? What barriers could possibly interfere with achieving your goal? If you just had ankle surgery, setting a goal of 10,000 steps a day is probably not attainable.
► I will get up at 6 a.m. to walk while my family is sleeping, three days this week.
R: Realistic: Is your goal realistic? Setting a goal to walk for two hours a day, every day, might not be possible with your current responsibilities.
► I will walk for 30 minutes a day, four days this week.
T: Time-related: Make sure you have a timeline for achieving your goal. To say that you will walk more is too vague and does not say when you will achieve your goal.► I will increase my steps by 100 every day this week, so that by Saturday I will be up to 8,000 steps per day.
Having vague goals will get you nowhere and cause frustration and a lack of interest in achieving anything.
Setting S.M.A.R.T. goals can help you achieve your dreams, no matter what their size.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
