“The trouble with not having a goal is that you can spend your life running up and down the field and never score.”
~Bill Copeland
Here are 5 concrete ways to help your personal training clients set goals for themselves.
1. Write them down– This cannot be underestimated. The action of doing this reinforces your client’s intent to complete the goal. Writing it down acts like a contract that they will feel obliged to carry out.
2. Don’t make them too lofty – Studies have shown that the drop-out rate is higher with high weight-loss expectancy. Many of my clients want to see results immediately and are often discouraged when the weight doesn’t come off quickly. This is why quick-fix books and magazines sell so rapidly. People want it now. This is not a race. This is a journey and it will take them as long as it does. By setting realistic goals and reaching them, your client’s confidence and self-efficacy will sky-rocket, thus making them more successful in the end.
3. Visit them daily – Have your clients put their written goals where they can see them. I have clients writing them on their bathroom mirror, on a rock that sits on their desk, on a piece of paper taped to the refrigerator. It’s very easy for people to forget what their ultimate goal is when they are faced with something that would make them feel good immediately (ie. A bottle of wine, a donut, bag of chips, etc). Encourage them to set their cell phone to send them a reminder a number of times a day (ie. Lose 4 pounds by February 1st).
4. Plan ahead – As your client draws close to the end of the time frame that they set their goal in, tell them to be thinking about their next goal! This will help them focus their attention of being fit for life. Furthermore, goal setting will help enhance their motivation.
I once took a group of clients to an event called Femsport. The training for it was intense and every lady reached her goal of completing all of the obstacles in the event. The training was exciting as we saw everyone improve in their fitness. In the weeks leading up to the event, we knew that we had to do something else to carry on the momentum and the excitement of talking about a future endeavor helped us all to stick with a training program so that we would be ready for the next thing!
5. Make them SMART Goals– I am sure that you have hear of this acronym for goal setting, but it really is brilliant and effective!
You are never too old to set a new goal or to dream a new dream.
CS. Lewis
