By Emily Carson, Contributor 

At Pace University, we’re Setters. We know what we want and set standards for ourselves based on our academic and physical goals. The best form of success is having a balanced life that incorporates fitness goals for overall health.

How do I set the Pace For My Goals?

We each start for a reason, and with a purpose in mind— whether it’s for our physical, mental, or emotional health; a reason is not a goal until you actually have a plan to achieve it.

To create a plan, direct your attention to something you’d like to improve and think about the ways in which you could accomplish that. Perhaps you want to start incorporating more cardio to lose body fat or gain muscle mass through weight training and prioritizing your protein intake.

Whatever your goal is, goals aren’t reached overnight. If goals were immediate, we’d have nothing to work towards.

Learn to become comfortable with the pace of your goal. Progress takes time, and we owe that dedication to ourselves for our own wellbeing.

Any goal is a good starting point to begin your fitness journey and build your routine.

Keeping my Goal on Pace:

Certain goals are quicker to obtain than others. Nonetheless, it’s your effort and consistency that gets you there.

Motivation & Discipline

One of the most discouraging factors about the gym is not having the motivation to go. Additionally, a lot of us know we want to get more muscular or leaner, but don’t have an exact vision of ourselves in mind.

My first tip would be to find some fitness influencers that interest you– whether it’s their lifestyle, diet, or workout regimen. If it’s for their physique, make sure that they’re around your height and same gender. Everyone’s body composition is different, but looking for someone with a similar build makes the build you desire more realistic to achieve. Whenever you don’t feel like showing up, or just lack the energy, look at their posts and remind yourself why you’re working out. Obviously, everything posted on the internet should be taken with a grain of salt, but the idea is that if someone else has achieved the goal, there’s a 100% chance you’re capable of accomplishing it as well.

In terms of not being in the mood to workout, I’ve found that it becomes easier when you stop waiting for motivation and start valuing discipline. Motivation is temporary, whereas discipline is what continues to give us the drive to obtain what we want regardless of our excitement about doing it.

Stop thinking about the gym as something optional and treat it like going to your classes. Once you make a habit of going no matter how you feel, the less you’ll debate in your head, and it’ll become normal for you to just show up.

Time Management

The challenge of the gym isn’t working out, it’s dedicating the small amounts of free time within your day to exercise. There will be those days where you are completely crammed with work, or have classes back-to-back, but there are 24 hours in a day. At least 10 minutes could be dedicated to a weightlifting exercise, or short incline walk.

You have too much on your plate to ponder about whether or not you have the time to work out, so just do it! Otherwise, you’re wasting the time you have now! Every minute contributes to your progress, so don’t let your beliefs of what or how long a workout should be, deter you from daily movement.

Rest Days & Consistency

Taking a rest day is normal—whether your body needs time to recover or you just didn’t sleep well the night before. However, a rest day doesn’t mean lounging around the entire day or doing nothing beneficial towards your health. The purpose of recovery isn’t about being inactive, but the restoration of our bodies!

Maybe instead of your usual workout, you decide to cook yourself a nutritious meal, hit your protein goals, or take a walk outside. Setting your pace in your fitness journey is all about staying consistent with the activity that keeps you feeling your best and healthiest.

A day, or even a week outside of your usual routine, does not erase the progress you’ve made. Your consistency is met with the energy you return to your workout, the intention of reaching your set goals, and sticking through with your workout plan.

The persistence of returning to the gym is what determines your consistency, and the more time you dedicate, the easier it becomes!

At the end of the day, everyone has their own fitness journey. Setting and keeping your pace at the gym means committing to yourself and following through even when it’s difficult. Trust that every small effort contributes to reaching your goal— because it does.

There are several gyms located on Pace’s campus that are accessible to all students. The next time you get the chance, check out the gym on the basement floor of One Pace Plaza with many weights and cardio machines!

 

HEY! I’m Emily Marie – a first-year majoring in Business with a side hustle in Psych. I’m a gym rat & city girl 24/7 aside from when I hike on top of a mountain peak for my daily cardio.