How to reach your exercise goals this year

It’s always the same old story. While you’re still regularly going to the gym and lacing up your running shoes in January, February has you stubbing your toes on the first obstacles. Maybe there’s an important project at work, family commitments or a cold you’re coming down with. And so, you skip a workout session.

Not to worry, you think to yourself. After all that dedication in January, you deserve a break, right? All of a sudden, it’s March. And that hard-earned fitness is as good as gone. When you do summon the energy, jogging or strength training feels so arduous, you start thinking that all this fuss about self-optimisation is completely over the top anyway. You’ll be just fine without an exercise routine. Until next January comes around with all those good intentions.

Obviously, this is a bit of an exaggeration, but parts of it might sound familiar nonetheless. To help you dodge the negative spiral this year, I’ve put together a few tried-and-tested tips to help you achieve your goals. I used these strategies to reach seventh place at the ICF SUP World Championships in the long-distance race in 2019. And to achieve multiple podium finishes in the 32-mile SUP race from Molokai to Oahu in Hawaii.

1. Find a sport you enjoy

Exercising to lose weight is extremely tough. It means constantly pushing yourself to shed those three kilos. And once they’re gone, your motivation is also lost.

So find a sport that really inspires you. Maybe your dream is to go on a mountain climb. If that’s the case, start out with some fitness and strength training. You can do this at the gym or at home using a chair to do step-ups to simulate walking uphill.

Maybe you want to go dancing regularly. Find yourself a dance studio. There are endless possibilities. Just think about what you really enjoy doing. Switch off that critical voice in your head that’s giving you ten reasons why it won’t work. Tell it why you want to do exactly what you’re doing. Be it a challenging bike trip with friends, dancing at a ball or looking down into the valley from a summit.

2. Delete «I can’t do this» from your vocabulary

There’s a wealth of research showing that positive self-talk can increase motivation and performance in athletes. I don’t mean telling yourself you’re super fit and the greatest. This may even have negative effects. What I’m talking about is self-encouragement. Particularly if you’re uttering your words in the second or third person. «You’ve got this, Annabel,» for example. Or: «Sure, this workout is tough, but Nick will smash it.» If you still catch yourself thinking «I can’t do this,» replace it with «I can’t do this yet» and think about what steps you need to take until you can do it. In my case, for example, this meant signing up for a mountain bike course at the beginning of the year. I’d like to ride in more technical terrain but don’t have the skills yet.

3. Set yourself a fun and a scary goal

Goals help you focus energy and set the direction. Just saying «I want to run a marathon» doesn’t have the same motivating effect as signing up for a specific event. The Mont-Terrible 50-kilometre run in April, for example. I’ve no idea if I’ll manage. But if it’s even just a small change I want, I’m going to have to train for it. As in train seriously. The mix of anticipation and a pinch of fear in view of the upcoming event makes me want to lace up my running shoes even in nasty weather. With a concrete goal in mind, it’s easier to dodge the February motivation slump. And even if I don’t reach the goal I set myself, which is likely, I’ll be much fitter come April than if I hadn’t set it in the first place.

However, your goal doesn’t have to be linked to a competition or event. You could also set yourself the goal of jogging a certain number of kilometres in one go before your next birthday or paddling the length of a lake before the summer holidays. How ambitious your goal should be to achieve an optimal effect depends on your personality. Studies have shown that, on average, moderate goals bring the greatest increases in performance, while some people need big challenges. Once you’ve set yourself a goal, share it with others. When you say it out loud or write it down, it becomes more real. You’ll also increase the pressure, as someone will probably ask you how you’re getting on in a few weeks’ time.

4. Keep those goals flexible

Whether you reach your goal is secondary. What’s more important is what you learn on the way. Therefore, there’s no shame in not achieving a goal or realising that it may have been the wrong one. Be proud of what you’ve achieved and tweak your goals so you stay motivated. This could be postponing that marathon until next year and tackling half the distance this year.

5. Take baby steps and focus on one thing

How do you make the most progress? By keeping at it. Athletes tend to overestimate what they can achieve in the short term and underestimate what’s possible in the long term. If you increase the intensity, volume and level of difficulty from one day to the next, you’ll soon suffer the consequences in the form of fatigue or injury. The all-or-nothing approach is a hindrance in sport as well as in life in general.

It’s best to find one aspect to focus on first. For example, you can incorporate an extra strength training unit per week if you’re already doing two to three endurance units. Or add swimming once a week in addition to dancing. If you swim a thousand metres every week, that’s 52 kilometres in a year. Not bad, eh? You can bet this will improve your stamina.

6. Trust the process

Working out is effective for almost everyone. Just not overnight. So don’t get frustrated if you can’t complete the ten-kilometre track at a record pace after two weeks of training. Instead, focus on the beautiful natural surroundings or the nice people in your new running group.

Keep in mind that the performance curve is always steeper at the beginning before flattening out. If you peel yourself from the sofa and go on a five-kilometre run, you’ll see great progress with relatively little effort. However, if you want to improve your half-marathon time in the long term, you need to make a much greater effort. You’ll experience ups, downs and plateaus during training. Don’t be discouraged. After all, you may be on the verge of a breakthrough.

7. Find your tribe

Getting out of bed on a Sunday morning to go for a run can be difficult, especially in the darker months. However, if your friendly jogging group is waiting for you and you have a coffee to look forward to afterwards, it’ll be much easier. Engaging in sports in a group will motivate and help you to overcome inner resistance.

What you should avoid, however, are groups that are all about competition during every training session. If you occasionally train above your level, you can make good progress. But if you’re always going at full throttle without making sure you get enough rest, setbacks are inevitable.

8. Celebrate the small successes

Give yourself a pat on the back when you reach a milestone. Look back and think about what you’ve achieved in the past four weeks. Remember that every little bit of exercise is better than nothing in most cases. Even if you gave up after ten minutes of what should’ve been a 30-minute run. At least you exercised for ten minutes more than if you’d stayed home. Conversely, I also use this strategy when I’m struggling with five tough five-minute mountain intervals. I tell myself I can stop after three intervals if I really can’t go on. However, after three intervals I’m usually in such a flow I can manage the remaining two.

9. Find out what type of exerciser you are

Especially when it comes to ambitious goals in sports, most people can’t follow through without a plan. Having said that, it depends on your personality. If you’re just starting out with your training, a plan will certainly provide a good framework to help you build up your performance. Some people, myself included, find an overly rigid training plan restrictive. Instead of being a pleasure, workouts quickly feel like a duty. That’s why I now use a training plan as a rough guide, but adapt it so that the fun and freedom of it isn’t lost. Go with what suits you and your training best to maintain your enthusiasm for the goal without losing the pleasure aspect. And what if you go against standard training theory? No big deal, unless you’re preparing for the Olympics.

10. Set up a plan B in case something goes wrong

Unfortunately, things rarely go according to plan in life. Which brings me back to the February slump, commitments, colds, sleet and everything else that keeps you from training. Think about what you can do if you’re forced to take a break from your workouts and how you can ease yourself back in. Remember, there’s always something. Maybe you can’t run, but you can do a few push-ups. Or some stretching. Or read an inspiring book by an ultra runner. Or do what you didn’t get round to doing because of your training. If you can find the positive in a setback, you’ll overcome them faster and easier. And you’ll achieve your sporting goals this year.

If your plans to exercise more haven’t worked out yet, my coworker Katja has a thing or two to say about why you should celebrate New Year every three months – and make good resolutions too.

How do you keep your motivation going? Let me know in the comments!