Setting Effective Health Goals

 

Stephen R. Covey reminds us that Habit 7: Sharpen The Saw is the single most important thing we can do. At first that might sound selfish, but when you consider that you are your most important asset, it makes more sense. How will you provide for yourself and others if you aren’t prepared with knowledge, strength, and health? Setting and working toward personal goals is the key to keeping your saw sharp.

It’s little wonder then, that improving health is the #1 goal people set for themselves every year. Good health is vital to everything else you want to achieve. If you want to be able to play tag with your children or grandchildren, visit a foreign country, hike the Grand Canyon, or enjoy your retirement, you need to have health sufficient to the task.

We watch what we eat, we check our blood pressure, we meet with doctors, and we exercise—not because we’re focused on any one of those individual elements of our lives, but because we’re focused on the things we hope to do today, tomorrow, and next year.

With that perspective, you’d think it would be easy for all of us to be health-conscious, but often we aren’t. Exercise takes time, sometimes it hurts, sweating isn’t exactly fun, and all of us lead crazy busy lives. Besides that, less-than-healthy food is terribly tempting! Even so, if we want to continue to lead busy, fulfilling lives, we had better make sure our mind and body are up to the rigors of the day.

What is your health goal for this year? Take a minute today to write your goal in your planner and schedule the time necessary each day to help ensure it happens. You may want to use a Goal Setting Form to work through your goal, break it down into small segments, and set deadlines when you’ll complete each step. Track your progress on our Health And Fitness Tracker, which gives you space to track your daily goals, exercise sessions, water intake, and the meals you eat.

It often takes a little while to see the results of diet and exercise. If you don’t see progress quickly, it’s easy to lose motivation. But when you track your efforts toward your goals, you’ll have a physical record of your work. This is a great way to ensure you have visible progress each day. Tracking your efforts adds motivation and encouragement even before you see any other results. That may provide the exact motivation you need to keep going. Let’s make this year your best yet!