7 Fitness Goals We Should Make (and How to Accomplish Them!)

Is setting fitness goals stressing you out? This year try something different. Instead of focusing on how you look, focus on changing your habits and actions. Simply wishing you look different or lose weight will just remain that. A wish.

Instead, set health and fitness goals that are actionable. For example, a goal like training for a specific event has a lot more power and intention behind it, making it much more likely you’ll achieve your goal. Look for more specific fitness goals examples below.

Make sure you set realistic goals by following the SMART goals technique.

Focus on body goals that will make you stronger, increase performance, and actually get you healthier. The outside *will* follow!

Fitness Goals for Women (and Men)

Below is a list of fitness goals for beginners and athletes alike that are worth pursuing and will change your health and your life for the better.

1. Commit to Movement Every Day

It really doesn’t matter what type of movement it is. However, moving your body will improve your mental and physical state. And it will certainly support any fitness and body goals women may undertake.

Regular exercise improves your memory, focus, and learning abilities by increasing brain plasticity (*), it can upregulate many processes linked to improved health outcomes. In fact, it is so powerful it can really act as a drug (*) Running for just 15 minutes a day or walking for an hour can make you happier and even help you sleep better (*).

No matter what your goals, this one is simply crucial for anyone’s health and longevity.

Accomplish It by:

• Put a recurring meeting on a co-workers schedule several times per week to go for a brisk 20-minute walk (or more!) Or do walking meetings!
• Build that time into your day. I like to look at my weekly schedule on a Sunday and strategize my workouts for the week ahead.
• Instead of riding that elevator at work, take the stairs several times a day. Better than reaching for that candy jar that’s staring at you!
• Build high-intensity interval training (HIIT) into your regiment. According to the American College of Sports Medicine, HIIT training improves insulin sensitivity, blood pressure, and body composition equivalent to moderate-intensity training. (*)

2. Get 7-8 Hours of Sleep Every Night

It is very well-known that short-term and long-term sleep deprivation and poor quality sleep lead to a number of poor health outcomes. There is a ton of peer-reviewed research to support this. (*) Proper sleep will help you crush those workout goals!

Accomplish It by:

• Wake up at the same time every day (including the weekends) and limit naps to 20 minutes in the early afternoon.
• Avoid caffeinated drinks after 2 pm and limit tobacco and alcohol close to bedtime.
• Get sunlight exposure as close to waking time as possible and similarly avoid blue light within 1-2 hours of bedtime which suppresses melatonin necessary for sleep.
• Keep your devices out of your bedroom and create a dark and peaceful environment.
• Exercise regularly, but avoid vigorous activity 3 hours before bedtime.

3. Give Intermittent Fasting a Try

Intermittent fasting (IF) isn’t a novel idea, but it’s certainly having a wave of popularity recently. And for good reasons. Research on both human and mice models shows that it can kick off cellular autophagy (a metabolic process by which body recycles old damaged cells)(*), (*).

IF has been linked to a number of positive health outcomes ranging from positively affecting insulin resistance and weight loss (*) which can improve cardiovascular health; IF can lower the incidence of cancers(*), help those undergoing cancer treatments (*), reduce the incidence of neurodegenerative disorders (*).  It may even improve sleep, your mood, and can promote longevity. (*) And who doesn’t want that?!

Accomplish It by:

• Read my Guide to Intermittent Fasting for Beginners.
• Start with a simple 16:8 protocol. Fast for 16 hours (just water, clear tea, or black coffee or clear bullion for sodium are allowed). Eat normally for 8 hours.
• Increase your fasting periods slowly.

4. Stretch to Increase Your Flexibility

This is one of my 3 personal fitness goals for this coming year. We all know that stretching after any physical activity is important especially following high intensity and impact activities (*). It will help support your overall exercise goals.

And hey, going into a split anywhere is a great party trick!

Accomplish It by:

• Take up yoga or pilates! there are plenty of affordable classes available and you can even do it at home following a YouTube video or an app.
• Build-in 10-15 minutes to stretch after every single workout into your schedule.
• Use Pinterest to search for good stretching exercises that target specific areas.
• Build it into your daily routine. Have a yoga mat and a foam roller by your bed at night ready to go (this can help with that sleep goal above, too!)

5. Drink More Water

You’ve heard this a million times. On average, our bodies are 60% water at any given time (*). Water is life, but many either don’t drink enough water, drink water that is missing any minerals and nutrients, or displace it with sugary and caffeinated drinks which exasperates the problem.

Staying well-hydrated is very important to ensure every process in your body is firing at max capacity. Not drinking enough water can slow your metabolism and weight loss (*). You may mistake thirst for hunger, leading to weight gain. It can make you feel sluggish and hinder performance in the gym, lead to dry and dull skin, and even cause some gastro issues to name a few.

Accomplish It by:

• Work up to 2 glasses of water upon waking to re-hydrate after a night
• Drink 1 glass of water about 30 minutes before and an hour after a meal to ensure maximum absorption of nutrients.
• Use MyFitnessPal to track your water and drink consumption
• Eat more vegetables and fruit with high water content
• Add fruit to your water to infuse flavor and make it more hydrating without sugar
• Drink water that has a high TDS (total dissolved solids) count to get more essential minerals into your body.

6. Practice Mindfulness and Gratitude Daily

Surprising maybe for some, but research is clear that feelings of gratitude and self-love will go a lot further than self-criticism to help you attain your set goals (*)

The latter is very destructive and will just keep sending you down the same well-rehearsed path of behavior. In a way, you are the writer of your own story and you need to pick the story you want your brain to tell so your body will follow.

Accomplish It by:

• Start journaling every day and write down the things you are grateful for and the things you accomplished.
• Notice the negative thoughts, and consciously replace them with a compliment or a positive thought.
• Start your day by meditating even if for 5 minutes. Visualize how you will get one step closer to your goal. Write down the 3-5 tasks you want to accomplish that day.

7. Get Stronger and Increase Your Muscle Mass

The focus on strength as one of your gym goals will help you feel proud of your accomplishments sooner. It can help you shed body fat by increasing your metabolism, as you are getting healthier and fitter.

Accomplish It by:

• Hold a plank 4-5 times a week and increase the amount you can hold by 15 seconds every week (or faster) until you can hold one for 4-5 minutes.
• Join a barbell lifting class. They are everywhere! Not only will you learn to lift heavy weights, but the instructors will help you with the correct form. Having a personal connection to the people in the room may increase the likelihood you will actually go.
• Similarly, functional training is very popular. See if you can find a class near you. Kettlebells anyone?
• If you’re not comfortable with heavy weights or don’t have access to a class, or a personal trainer, you can use your own bodyweight to build muscle.

Share these fitness goals for 2020 with a friend by pinning this Post and start today!

More health and fitness goal examples here!

XO, Marina