Setting Goals in Strength Training

When training for strength, or in any exercise program for that matter, one of the most important aspects of success is in setting and maintaining realistic goals. This will not only motivate you to achieve those goals, but also provide you with a framework to follow in your daily or weekly routine. Each goal, when achievable gives you the feeling of a winner when you reach it and allows you the opportunity to set new goals. This fluidity and ever-moving framework works on itself so that each step becomes important and obtainable, allowing you to continue ahead with confidence. Strength training is often mistakenly thought of as being synonymous with weight-lifting, however it is much more. Although the two carry many of the same principles in practice, weight-lifting is in actuality only a subset of strength training. What they have in common is how they are performed. The performance and work-outs are done in repetitions of one basic movement. Each repetition, or rep, is done a number of times continuously to form what is called a set. The total workout is then composed as a number of sets. To set reasonable and realistic goals in strength training, you can follow some of these simple rules, the first five of which represent the highly recognized S.M.A.R.T. system of goal setting and project management popularized by Peter Drucker.

1. Specific. Be specific in the goals you set for yourself. What do you want to accomplish? Don't make it outlandish. Make it just out of reach of what you can accomplish now. If you can do 30 sit-ups in a set, make it your goal to be able to do 50. There should always be hard and fast numbers involved in your goals.

2. Measurable. In weight-training this is easy. Almost every aspect of weight-training is measurable. As long as you follow step 1 by using numbers, step 2 follows naturally.

3. Achievable. Set a realistic goal. Don't aim too high. You will get up the mountain by reaching one ledge after the other. Be aware of what your current limits are and recognize what others around you can do.

4. Realistic. Your goal must be set in the real world. You are never going to be able to lift a car over your head or swim the length of the Mississippi River. Leave that for the comic books.

5. Time. Set a date by which you mean to achieve the goal. Giving yourself a time restraint will push you into action.

After the S.M.A.R.T. system is followed, it will help to think of these other tips more specific to strength training itself:

1. In setting realistic and achievable goals there are a couple of rules to follow. In training for strength with weights, the weight load should be at 80% of your maximum. Reps should be done in sets of 5 with 4-7 sets per session. Rest for 2-6 minutes between each set. Keep your speed somewhere between 60-80% of your maximum. Sessions should be done 3-6 days per week, depending on your specific goals.

2. Keep a journal or record of what you are doing daily. Each session of your training should be just a little better than the last. Your journal will show you your progress and make you feel good about what you can see you have achieved from the beginning to the present.

3. Figure out how far you need to progress in each session scientifically. Take your starting point, your goal, and your time frame into consideration in reaching achievements in each session. For instance if you can do 6 reps in your sets and your goal is to do 12 by the end of the next 6 sessions, then you should be adding one rep to your sets each session.

4. Don't be hard on yourself if you do not achieve your goals. At first, you will not be sure what you can do in the time-frame you set for yourself. Each goal you set is part of learning about yourself. Ask yourself if you really tried to achieve your goals. If you did try, then allow yourself a little more time or adjust your goals accordingly. Don't strain yourself into injury. You'll never reach your goals that way.

5. Have a second set of long-term goals. These are just for fun and motivation. You need something in the future to look forward to and your long-term goals will provide just that. Each time you reach your basic short-term goals you will see yourself as being able to achieve the long-term goals.

Strength training is no different than any other project management. Goals should be created using the S.M.A.R.T. method and measured accordingly. In no time you will see your strength and determination grow as you achieve the body and health you have been wanting.