#43 - Setting Goals for Next Year: Process Over Results

Coach Santana (now officially Dr. Santana!) and Coach Trent discuss their approach to setting goals for training, health, and life. It's easy to buy into the idea of resolutions and setting lofty results-oriented goals, and it feels good to do it! I'm going to squat 500 next year! I'm going to get down to 15% body fat next year! I'm going to lose 30lbs! These results or number oriented goals sound good, and setting them gets you thinking about what kind of person you'll be in the future, having achieved the goal. In fact, you often get a little dopamine hit just imagining yourself at the finish line, victorious.

 

Therein lies the trap. Focusing too much on the end result gives you a little piece of the satisfaction of obtaining the goal, without doing anything to help you toward that goal! Instead, Coach Robert and Trent like to focus on process-oriented goals, changes you can make to your daily habits and behaviors that will lead to progress in the right direction. Process oriented goals also acknowledge the fact that many of the variables that play into how much weight you can lose, how much muscle you can gain, or how much more you can lift -- whatever your goal is -- we don't have much control over. Life stuff happens, and often has a big effect on our ability to hit certain numbers and how long that process will take. However, by comitting to a process rather than a number, you can set yourself up for positive progress, and not feel guilty about falling short of some arbitrary target.

 

Thanks so much for listening this year. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

 

Weights & Plates: https://weightsandplates.com

Robert Santana on Instagram: @the_robert_santana

 

Trent Jones: @marmalade_cream

https://www.jonesbarbellclub.com