Your mindset is a powerful force that can either move you towards or away from achieving your goals. When you start visualising what you want, believing that it’s possible, and taking action towards your desired weight loss goal, it becomes more likely to materialise and last.
Most people feel determined and excited when they start trying to lose weight but it can be easy to quickly lose motivation and fall at the first hurdle. Not only can realistic goals help you change your behaviour and form long-lasting healthy habits, but they can also help you to reframe temporary setbacks as learning curves rather than failures.
Set multiple goals for greater success
A behavioural research study conducted on behalf of the British Dietetic Association found that setting goals increases the likelihood of achieving significant weight loss over the course of one year. Interestingly, it also showed that participants who set multiple goals lost significantly more weight.
So why is goal setting so effective, and why does it often mean the difference between success and failure? Goals can help transform your daily habits, your mindset, and your confidence because they help you to:
- Lay out a clear plan for change
- Measure your progress
- Stay focused, determined and motivated
How to set effective goals
Healthcare guidelines recommend that you aim to lose between 5 to 10% per cent of your body weight within 12 to 24 weeks—but don’t let this limit you. Research shows that setting more ambitious goals energises participants more and ultimately leads to better results.
It’s important to choose a long-term goal that will keep you feeling motivated, inspired and excited even when you feel overwhelmed or have a bad day. Ask yourself what achieving this end goal would mean to you and how it would make you feel. Once you have a long-term goal in mind, think about how you’re going to get there. This is where your short-term goals come into play.
A lot of people set vague goals such as “I will do more exercise” but in order for goals to be effective and easier to stick to, they need to be Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-based—it’s easiest to remember this as the acronym SMART.
So instead of “I will do more exercise”, you could try “I will attend fitness classes three times a week for the next four weeks to increase my physical activity levels”. You can see how this second version follows the SMART criteria below:
Specific: Sets out a specific action and the purpose of that action
Measurable: Attending a class is a unit of measurement which needs to be completed three times a week for a period of four weeks
Achievable: You have the time, resources and motivation to achieve this goal
Relevant: Increasing physical activity levels is relevant to the ultimate goal of losing weight and the type of exercise is something you enjoy
Time-based: You have specified that you will do this for the next four weeks
Take Action ⚡
Write down three short-term goals that will help you get to your destination (your long-term goal). Remember to make them SMART. When coming up with smaller, more short-term goals it’s important to create a structure that works specifically for you to ensure that you can keep moving forward.
Pro tip: “Write out your end goal and keep it posted somewhere visible (like the bathroom mirror or the fridge) to remind yourself of why you started your weight-loss plan in the first place. It can help you to stay on track when you want to give up.”
Madeleine Hawkes, Head Weight Loss Coach
It can also be really beneficial to share your goals with your coach, a supportive friend or family member, and check in with them regularly. A study by psychologist Gail Matthews found that those who sent weekly progress reports to a friend accomplished significantly more than those who had unwritten goals.
Now you’ve got your road map with a destination and the path to get there. Next week we’ll talk about ways to monitor your progress towards these goals.
If you’d like some support in goal setting, then you can book a goal-setting session with one of our friendly expert coaches whenever you like.
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¹Avery A, Langley-Evans SC, Harrington M, Swift JA. Setting targets leads to greater long-term weight losses and ‘unrealistic’ targets increase the effect in a large community-based commercial weight management group. J Hum Nutr Diet. 2016 Dec;29(6):687-696. doi: 10.1111/jhn.12390. Epub 2016 Jun 14. PMID: 27302147; PMCID: PMC5111772
²Durant NH, Joseph RP, Affuso OH et al. (2013) Empirical evidence does not support an association between less ambitious pre-treatment goals and better treatment outcomes: a meta-analysis. Obes Rev 14, 532–540.
While we’ve ensured that everything you read on the Health Centre is medically reviewed and approved, information presented here is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. It should never be relied upon for specific medical advice. If you have any questions or concerns, please talk to your doctor.
