Welcome to the New Year! Often, at the start of a brand new year, we find ourselves thinking and creating a list of goals that we would like to accomplish. Being mindful of goal-consistent choices and breaking goals into small, more manageable concrete steps can be a great way to help ourselves accomplish our goals. Below are some tips on how to do just that!

Below is an example (setting a goal to run a marathon) using the SMART acronym.

S: Specific: I would like to run a 5K.

M: Measurable: running 3x per week to prepare, starting with running 1 mile each time and increasing a mile each month.

A: Action-Oriented: preparation for the big event; exercise, stretching, running on different terrain, etc

R: Realistic: taking months of time to physically prepare for the demands of a 5k.

T: set a Timeframe: would like to accomplish this goal after approximately 6 months of training.

The SMART acronym can be helpful in setting some basic parameters in reaching goals that we set for ourselves. It is often found that breaking a big goal (a 5K marathon) is more likely to be achieved when we break down the preparation into down into small, more manageable goals- i.e., practicing each week, being realistic about how long it may take, and setting specific mini goals to help achieve it (researching workout preparations, talking to others who have done this before, etc). Most importantly, don’t beat yourself up if you miss a mini-goal for the week or don’t achieve your desired goal for the day. It’s okay J Allow yourself to have a break every once and a while and then be mindful of trying again tomorrow. Be mindful also of the progress you have made thus far, and that you have set your eyes on a goal to begin with. Practice makes progress and achieving goals often take time. Try to enjoy the journey and not just the goal J Also, try to elicit a little humor here and there. It helps to keep stress in perspective.

Happy New Year and congratulations on setting new goals!

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