Achieve Daily Wins with your Running Goals

Published by

Scott Wood

At iNform we take the word ‘goal’ seriously. A ‘goal’ is different from an aspiration, desire or intention. For us, a goal is a specific outcome that you have a strategy for, and determination to achieve.

The well-known Goal Framework acronym SMARTER is a framework that we as Exercise Physiologists use to help keep us accountable to creating a great strategy to help you succeed. You can read endlessly on this topic from authors more qualified than me, but if you are unsure of what SMARTER stands for it is as follows:

Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Relevant
Time-Bound
Evaluated
Reviewed

I won’t delve deeper into the specifics of each of these domains in this article. Rather I want to talk to you about an aspect of living within a goal framework that I enjoy the most. I am talking about the concept of Daily Wins.

If I am training for an event in 6 months time I should have a rough idea of what the next 6 months will look like. The next month should be quite clear, but the following week is spelled out in BOLD font. This means I know exactly what I need to do each day this week to help take me closer to my goal.

Every day that I complete my task for that day, I win. If that task is my long run and I get it done, I give myself a pat on the back for the win I earned. If the next day my aim is to recover and that includes a leisurely walk with the dog, a warm bath and a gentle stretching session, guess what? I win again. It is incredibly satisfying to pat oneself on the back for taking a bubble bath I can tell you!

It is not essential for a runner to have a goal at all times. In fact I encourage all of my runners to spend at least some of the year deliberately goal-less (I will tease this topic out in a future article).

A SMARTER Goal is a serious commitment. And truly committing yourself to a Goal can become burdensome. If you have an intelligent daily plan you can eliminate the sense of burden by celebrating your Daily Wins.

Photo by Jill Wellington from Pexels

Scott Wood

Scott Wood is a long standing member of the iNform team and an Associate Partner. He is particularly interested in working with runners, improving movement patterns and musculoskeletal issues.