The importance of goal setting.

When it comes to working out, what is your goal? Is it to tone up, build muscles, lose weight? People often start going to the gym with the ambitions to achieve all that, but forget to break down their goals to more specific ones. How much weight do you want to lose? What is healthy for you? And what is your time limit for this?

I think that people often underestimate the importance of setting goals. It's what you need in life to move forward and to progress as a person, not just with your fitness and your training. It's important to set a time limit on when you want it achieved by, and make it realistic. Push yourself, make your goals big, but still realistic.

And reward yourself. Reaching a goal is rewarding enough, but boost yourself a bit extra towards reaching your goals. I usually reward myself with new gym clothes, which makes me even more excited to keep working out in the gym towards my next goal. But it could be anything, little or small. A new pair of shoes, new make up, something that you aren't allowed to buy until you have reached that goal.

Here's two pictures of me, pictures taken exactly two months apart. I'm no where near where I want to be with my body and health, but I am really getting there. These pictures just proves that goal setting, hard work and determination makes a big difference:

Don't think that I have it all figured out, I really don't, but I am working on this every day. Whenever I am near reaching my goals, I set up new ones. Always give yourself something to work towards.

This is my list of goals:

• Cut out sugar. Sugar makes me moody, makes me feel tired and really isn't needed in my life. There's a big difference in want and need, I really don't need sugar. This goal isn't just for a time being, its something that is needed worked on every day.

• Climb Ben Nevis on the 18th May to raise money for charity. And climb at least one Munro / mountain before then. 

• Have visible abs before our holiday to Sweden the 23rd June.

• Start reading more books. I've always had problems relaxing, I need to move and do something all the time. A goal for me is to be able to relax enough to sit down and read a book. It's always possible on holiday, but never at home. So this is a big one for me, at least two hours a week is a good start.

These are my goals for now, name one of your goals if you want to by pressing "comment" under this blog, post it as "name/URL" (it doesn't have to be fitness related). And remember, don't ever compete with anyone else but yourself. You can use people as inspiration, but never compete with anyone but yourself. Everyone is different, that is what is beautiful in life. We all develop, change, look and think different. So focus on yourself, and your goals.