Goal Setting to Achieve
In the lead up to running my first marathon, I heard a lot about the 'post-marathon blues' an (understandable) emptiness some people feel after completing a goal that they've devoted every waking minute to for months!
Whether it was smart to do so or not, a few weeks before I had even run my first marathon, I couldn't help begin to plan what I'd do after I had achieved my goal.
I love training and fitness, but find that without specific goals in mind, I don't have a lot of discipline and find it hard to get into a routine. For this reason, I prefer to have specific and measurable goals which I can work towards and this keeps me motivated and focussed.
I didn't want to 'waste' the fitness I had built for my marathon by losing motivation and direction after I had done it, so it was important to me to have some new goals set shortly after the completion of my marathon. This is certainly not to say that I don't recognise the importance of recovery and a mental/physical break after such a long lead up to an event, and as you will see I have included this recovery time in my short term goals (and I am currently enjoying my lack of routine!)
Committing your goals to paper makes you much more accountable to them (publishing them to a website even more so!) so I recently sat down and started working through what I wanted to achieve in the next 18 months. I applied the SMART approach to my goal setting, making sure that each of the goals I set was Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely.
Although I am not 100% sure which of my long term goals I want to attack first, I have put a timeline on making that decision and have a fair idea of the paths required to get to either of them (ultra marathon or Ironman in 2011).
My New Fitness Goals
Short term (1 day - 3 months):
- Running: Give legs time to recover from Marathon and build back up mileage (to 30km+ long runs)
- Running: Start doing speed work (measure progress with fortnightly Corporate Cup 4km events)
- Cycling: Start building mileage with weekly long rides
Mid term (3-12 months):
- Amy's Ride: 100km cycle event
- (By Christmas 2010) decide if I will commit to training for Ironman December 2011
- Start swimming early 2011
- Join a triathlon club
- Complete another running event of marathon or ultra distance
Long term (1-3 years or longer):
- Half Ironman
- Ironman
- North Face 100km trail run
As well as setting these goals, I have also created a race plan for the next 18 months. This includes possible 'key events' (depending on which long term goal I follow) as well as other local events that take place throughout the year. (I will be publishing this shortly and will link it here).
One of the key things I need to work on (as I identified in my lead up to the Gold Coast Marathon) is getting my pre-race nerves under control! As such I will be trying to include as many events as I can into my calendar, with the aim to become more comfortable with 'race' environments and the lead up to them.
Goal Setting References
I found John Newsom's article on goal setting a really useful reference. John Newsom is a top level kiwi coach and a host of my favourite podcast 'IM Talk'.
