STAYING FIT AND HEALTHY IN 2025.
As we end the year 2024, the festive season will see us get along with our loved ones.
The drinks and food would trickle down as we need to share; we have to be cautious about our fitness and health to stay in shape for 2025. The holiday should slightly reflect our discipline to get our health in check and ready for a new year challenge and opportunity.
One of the best methods for setting achievable New Year fitness plans is to use the acronym SMART, which stands for specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound.
By providing a clear, reliable goal-setting strategy, SMART helps turn good intentions into results. We have to be specific, as vague goals are challenging to attain. If you don’t specify something, you won’t know when you’ve achieved it. Write down a specific number of pounds you want to lose.
Your fitness goal should be quantifiable so you can track your daily progress. With a measurable goal, you can know for sure when you’ve reached a milestone.
Set realistic fitness goals to keep you from getting discouraged. Be honest about your current fitness level and what you can reasonably expect to accomplish, considering your schedule and other commitments.
Relevance is the why behind your goal — think about how accomplishing that objective would enhance your life. When your fitness goal is relevant to you, you will be more motivated to put in the work necessary to achieve it.
Setting a deadline for your fitness goal will prevent you from feeling aimless and push you to stay on track so you don’t stray from the timeline. Make sure your deadline is realistic yet challenging.
If your New Year fitness goals contain each of these characteristics, you will be far more likely to reach them.
No matter how enthusiastic you are, don’t forget that pushing yourself to the max every day might not help you accomplish your New Year’s fitness goals for 2025. Many goals fail because we start strong but quickly get burned out or injured because of overdoing it. Overuse injuries and fatigue can derail training and progress toward your fitness objectives.
Build a rest day or two into your weekly exercise routine to avoid burnout or injury and ensure your workout schedule is sustainable. Listening to your body will help you recognize when you need to take a break. You can still get your blood flowing on a rest day by engaging in an active recovery activity like an easy walk or gentle yoga session. By working smarter, not harder, you’ll achieve your New Year’s fitness plans in no time.
Article by Chike Okoye.
