Everyone has new years resolutions. Resolutions are goals to help improve a person’s life. Most of the time, these goals are centered around health and fitness. Gyms across the country see spikes in new members the month of January. While this may be inspiring to some, the sad reality is that most of those numbers go right back down to where they were by February.
Here’s a guide on how to make and keep good new years resolutions as a martial artist.
#1 Be Honest
- While we’d love to give 100% of our effort into our training, life doesn’t add up that way.
- We are made up of many hobbies, relationships, commitments, and goals that make it difficult to give our full self into our training.
- While this doesn’t mean give up, it means be realistic.
- Someone who wants to make it to the gym twice a day every day of the year may need to reconsider if they have 2 jobs and a family waiting for them at home.
- When you’re honest with yourself about goals, they become more manageable and realistic!
#2 Be Ambitious
- Many humans are creatures of habit. Not many can be spontaneous with something as important as their workout schedule.
- Resolutions are meant to be a change of pace and to push yourself to grow.
- Find something that is a little out of your comfort zone, yet still attainable!
- If you normally train Kickboxing, try Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and vice versa! Or if you go to class twice a week, try to add one or two more per week.
- To spice up your already intense training schedule, tell yourself you’ll do one minute straight of burpees non stop after every class.
- Something simple yet different will stretch you to achieve more.
#3 Be Focused
- In a world of instant gratification and short attention spans, focus can be a struggle.
- Incorporate mental engagement into not only your martial arts training but other areas of your life.
- Writing down your resolutions will strengthen your resolve and make your ambitions real.
- Little reminders like phone notifications or sticky notes on the door can also help keep you focused on whatever task you set yourself on.
- Finding an accountability partner can also improve your chances of success. Having a person to walk that journey with or remind you of your goals can be a huge help.
- The best athletes are focused on their goals and how to get there. They don’t focus on their failures or what they don’t like. They focus on the bright future ahead.
#4 Be Specific
- Being specific in your goals increases the likelihood of you attaining them.
- Vague or general goals can be indecisive and dangerous to a growth mindset.
- Specificity limits apathy and compromise in your goals to drive you into the version of yourself you want to be.
- Martial artists focus on details to improve. Having “better technique” can look like many things.
- Specific doesn’t have to mean complex. A goal as simple as “be mindful of hand placement or footwork” can be a year’s worth of work.
- Something specific with numbers and timelines can help (“I want to lose 15 pounds by May”).
#5 Be Fearless
- Don’t limit yourself to things that make you feel comfortable!
- If you’re used to setting physically-focused goals (I want to be faster, stronger, etc), try to establish a technique-focused goal (better footwork, head movement, etc) and vice versa.
- Growth never comes without discomfort, it’s ok to be fearless in your pursuit of a better self.
- In the same way, don’t be afraid to reach out. Asking for help is an important part of reaching your goals.
#6 Be Intentional
- Most people who set resolutions quit before February even comes around, but messing up once or twice doesn’t mean you’ve failed entirely.
- Be intentional about how you pursue your successes and failures while working towards your goals.
- Stay aware of what helps motivate you and how you can respond to failure.
- Remind yourself each day why you have established those goals, and you will be able to achieve them.
- Everybody has days they don’t want to go to the gym. But champions aren’t made from rest days.
- Stay the course and be intentional about the martial artist you want to become, whether it’s for fitness, competition, or anything else.
Every martial artist should have resolutions. The secret is that they don’t have to start or end in January. Make goals and pursue them year-round!
