Setting goals can be a great way to grow as an athlete. Dream of something you want to achieve, get to work, cross the goal off the bucket list; rinse and repeat. Goal setting isn’t for everyone, and if it’s not your jam, that is totally fine! You can still be a successful athlete and have fun without being a goal driven person.

For those of us who are goal driven, I thought I would write about some ways to help you think about different types of goals and how to create and execute a plan to achieve these goals. While you can create goals at any time of year, it certainly is a popular time to be setting new goals as we approach the new year.

Starting from the big picture and then getting more specific, I’ll talk about how to analyze and answer these general questions:

What do you want to achieve? Is it realistic? How will you achieve it? How will you measure progress along the way?

Write a list of goals or things you want to achieve. For example, a goal could be to complete your first marathon; run a trail race; become more consistent with strength training; eat healthier meals to fuel your training; qualify for the Boston Marathon; increase your speed; etc.

Then, divide your list into two columns: long term or short term. You can decide what you quantify as long term vs short term, but generally short term would be considered a year or less, whereas long term would be considered over a year.

Now with your two lists, identify which goals are performance based and which goals are intrinsically motivated. For example, qualifying for the Boston Marathon is a performance based goal because it is dependent on the result of a certain race. On the flip side, increasing your running speed is an intrinsically motivated goal because you can quantify the achievement of this goal on your own time without completing a specific race in a specific time.

Now that you’ve got your different types of goals within your long term and your short term lists, prioritize each goal as either an A, B, or C goal. A goals are your main priority; the ones you really want to achieve and work hard towards at this time. B goals are ones that eventually you really want to complete and will be happy when you do, but if you run out of time or something happens that you’re unable to complete within your predetermined timelines, you won’t be too heart-broken. C goals are goals that you would be extremely pleased if it panned out, but given the nature of the goal and the reality of life, it’s somewhat unlikely that you’ll achieve them this time around.

The above type of A/B/C goal labelling is different from A/B/C goals within a race. In a race setting, you might set an A goal of a certain performance outcome that would happen if you had the absolute perfect race day in the world. The B goal is an outcome you would still be really happy and proud of, and the C goal is something you’ll be satisfied with but may need to take another crack at a higher ranked goal. You can set these goals for each specific performance based goal as you begin the training blocks for each event.

Lastly, write down how you are going to achieve your goals (at least the A and B ranked goals) and how you will track your progress along the way. For example, you could track your progress to running a certain half marathon time in a race by doing a 10km time trial ~8 weeks out from the race; keep a journal to monitor the nutritional value of your meals; keep a well-being journal to ensure your mental health is taken care of; etc.

Then, get to work! You’ve outlined the goal, how you will achieve it, and benchmarks to hit along the way. Work backwards from the goal and determine what you need to start doing today to begin your journey of chasing your goals!

To recap, these are the steps to set, plan, and execute goals:

1. Write a list of goals

2. Divide the list into long term and short term goals

3. Identify which goals are performance based goals and which goals are intrinsically motivated

4. Rank each goal as its importance to you (A/B/C)

5. Determine steps you will need to take in order to achieve your goals

6. Create micro goals to monitor your progress throughout the journey