Setting goals is not just a way of making sure you develop as a runner. It also helps you to stay motivated. As you start achieving your goals, you build your own motivation and your running becomes more rewarding.
Here are a handful of basic pointers for using goal-setting:
- Make it specific and measurable. If you say you'll train in the mornings, does that mean rainy ones too?
- Keep it challenging yet achievable. Keep in mind that when you start being your own trainer, the distinction between optimistic and realistic tends to be a fine line!
- Make the plan to run on a regular basis. Achieving any goals will mean you need some kind of training plan and for that you need to run on a regular basis. Keeping a logbook is a good way to stick to your training plan.
- Train to cover a specific distance. Don't be too concerned with your speed and just focus on covering a distance, such as 10 kilometres.
- One of the most powerful goals to set is to enter a race. Just enter and then train towards that date. Follow a training program or schedule which you feel will help you reach this goal.