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When working with clients who are frustrated they haven’t yet achieved their desired fitness results, one of the most common problems I see is that they are attempting to achieve many goals all at the same time. Often these goals contradict each other, resulting in confusion. If the person remains confused for long enough, he or she begins to believe that the goal is unachievable.

Whether you are a fitness novice or seasoned expert aspiring to achieve new things, clear and specific goals will create your path to results. Knowing how to set clear and specific goals has been characterized in many ways, I recommend using the S.M.A.R.T. goal method (from Wikipedia):

S=Specific. 
M=Measurable/Meaningful. 
A=Attainable. 
R=Relevant/Realistic. 
T=Time-bound.

Defining your goals will help you to get fitness results, but it’s not the end-all, be-all answer. You must not only define your goals, but also evaluate them.

Ask yourself, is the time frame I have for this goal realistic? Do my goals conflict with one another? Do I need assistance, help, or guidance to achieve this goal? Do I have the knowledge necessary to achieve this goal?

The answer to each of these questions is an important clue in revealing your journey toward results.

After you have determined your personal goals, I suggest you prioritize them. What is the most important goal you have? Do other goals support you in achieving the most important goal? Do you have one large goal and a variety of small goals that will help you get there?

Once you’ve defined your goal and prioritized, create a realistic plan that takes you forward step by step until you’ve achieved your objective. Realize that your plan may have to include health and fitness education, either through books or the services of a personal trainer. If you’ve set an athletic goal, you might employ the services of a sports specific coach or a nutritionist.

As a trainer, I use this method to help clients achieve their personal fitness goals all the time.  

I recently helped one of my clients, Ellie, a 65-year-old woman with artificial joints and some other health challenges, to progress from three modified push-ups at a time, to three sets of 10 modified push-ups, all the way to one full-body-weight push-up!

Ellie is proof that you should never give up no matter what your age. Visit my blog to read more about her story and see a brief video of her in action.

Remember, using this method to set health, fitness and athletic goals will allow you to measure your success or failure to achieve them. If you missed achieving your goal, refuse to give up. Instead you can reconfigure your plan and identify strategies that did and didn’t work for you, set a new time frame and continue forward.

Jes Reynolds is a personal trainer in the Ann Arbor area and the author of http://www.jesreynolds.com. She writes on several fitness topics including how to get fitness results, core strength training and exercise for abs. Want to stay connected to what Jes has to say about fitness? Subscribe to Jes Reynolds by e-mail.