Goal Setting

MY GOALS

• To be selected for the school Basketball Team.
• To be able to run a mile in 7 minutes or less.
• To increase my daily intake of dietary protein.
• Achieve an 'A' Grade in all of my classes/subjects.

To Make The School Basketball Team

To Be Able To Run A Mile In 7 Minutes Or Less

to increase my daily intake of dietary proteins

Grade In All Of My Classes

Goal #1: Selected for School Basketball Team

• I need to improve my stamina and level of endurance. I will achieve this by implementing a cardiovascular workout 4 times a week, gradually increasing the length of the workout from 30 minutes to 60 minutes. I will use medium intensity and focus more on duration.
• I will implement dribbling and shooting skills to become better at them. I will do this for at least 40 minutes 5 times a week. In this exercise, I will focus on keeping the level of intensity high, while keeping the duration medium (a set 40 minutes).

Goal #2: Run A Mile In 7 Minutes Or Less

• I will achieve this by doing 2 things. One is pacing myself or what I like to call working on my 'stride rhythm.' The second is shortening the time in which each segment of the stride rhythm is achieved.
• My overall run consists of 4 segments. Each segment consists of a quarter mile. The first 2 segments are run at a moderate pace, the 3rd segment is run at a fast medium pace, and the final segment is run at my fastest pace.
• My plan is to establish my baseline time for each segment, and then my goal is to incrementally shorten the time for achieving each segment. I will do this in 2.5 second increments each time.

Goal #3: Increasing My Daily Protein Intake

• Have some sort of proteins daily with breakfast. Currently I eat cereal; but I plan on having a more of a 'component' breakfast, in which case one of the components will be egg whites.
• I also plan on adding proteins to each of my other meals throughout the day. This would include chicken breast, Greek yogurt, beans, legumes and lentils. For my snacks, I would include some form of protein; an example would be to have a glass of milk, string cheese, a limited amount of nuts, these would include almonds, peanuts and cashews.
• I would follow this plan closely for 5 days a week, and would be a little more relaxed with this guideline over the weekends; since the weekends would involve eating at restaurants and/or friends' houses.

Goal #4: Achieving All 'A' Grades In School

• I plan on studying/revising for every graded assignment, regardless of how well I feel I may know it.
• When I finish my homework, I will thoroughly check the work for possible spelling mistakes and anything else that may be needed, such as my calculations in mathematics for instance. I will do this, regardless of how well I feel I may have done the homework assignment. This will catch careless/'silly' mistakes.
• I will prioritize my academia above all else. I will attend to this first, before playing with friends, or swimming at the house.
• I will be very attentive in class, but will also make it a point to be quick in asking the teacher for help, and not be embarrassed to do so, as is the sometimes the case, when I feel I may 'look dumb'.

Timeline For Reassessing Goals

• SCHOOL BASKETBALL TEAM: I have set a reassessment timeline 8 weeks from now, since by then I will have played intramural basketball, which will provide a good base and gauge for my progress.
• RUNNING A MILE IN 7 MINUTES OR LESS: I will reassess 4 weeks from now because I will have trained for a fair period of time to gauge any progress.
• INCREASING MY DAILY PROTEIN INTAKE: Will reassess every 2 weeks; this way I can not only monitor my intake but also make a ritual/ habit of consuming proteins throughout the day.
• ACHIEVING 'A's IN ALL GRADED SCHOOL WORK: I would reassess this every 4 weeks, to ensure that I am not missing any assignments, and that I have retaken assignments that could be retaken for a better grade, and also ensure that I am doing 'extra credit' work -in case I need it to bolster a lower grade.

Obstacles

• BASKETBALL TEAM: If I get injured at any time during practice then that might mean I can no longer play on the team. If I don't spend enough time practicing my skills, then that might affect my performance and possibly prevent me from getting selected by the team, or I may get selected, but get very limited time to actually play.
• RUNNING A MILE IN A MINUTE OR LESS: Where I live, in the summer it gets very hot for at least 3 to 4 months; which means, I have to make running/training a priority to get it out of the way early morning, or I won't feel like doing it at any other time. Sometimes, I want to play with my friends, and more often than not, that to me is more attractive than running. Again, this is where prioritizing helps. Peer pressure plays an important role here. My friends may encourage to go play with them, and I may give in to that. To avoid this, it is another good reason for me to finish my training in the morning.
• INCREASING DAILY PROTEIN INTAKE: It may be a chore to ensure that we have a variety of protein in the house/fridge all of the time. This means, that I have to make sure, to check every day, so that I can let my mum know if we need more protein based foods. Sometimes, especially during the school year, when I am busy with extra curricular activities after school, such as basketball, piano and scouts, it becomes tricky to try and manage mealtimes. In this case, if we have something to eat while we are 'out and about' I may not be able to always have the desired protein intake.
• ACHIEVING ALL 'A's IN GRADED SCHOOL WORK: Playing with my friends or constant peer pressure to do so, would mean I may lag behind in my school work, or I may not finish assignments properly or on time, and this could lead to difficulty in achieving the desired A grades. If I am not enjoying a particular chapter or assignment, I am less likely to devote the necessary time or energy in completing that work throroughly; therefore I have to make myself be thorough, even when it is discouraging.

Strategies For Overcoming Obstacles

• BASKETBALL: I need to make sure, that I thoroughly warm-up and stretch to ensure my body as a whole, is warmed up, flexible and ready for physical activity that involves a combination of agility, rigor and strength.
• RUNNING: Prioritizing this activity and training as the first thing of the day, when it's cooler in the summers as well as well as getting it out of the way before other interests start distracting me, will be a good strategy to make sure I am on track and progressing to hit my goal of running a mile in 7 minutes or less. I also feel, that making it a habit, will make it a routine that is a part of my day; in doing so, it'll be easier to stick to it.
• PROTEIN INTAKE: I know, that healthier I eat regarding my protein intake, the easier it'll become as time goes on. It will no longer feel like a chore. Therefore, knowing that it'll become easier with time, makes it easier for me to stick to it right now. I will also tell my family not to buy any unhealthy foods for the pantry or fridge, and to only have healthy options available. This way, even when I might want to eat unhealthily, I'll be forced to keep eating healthily, specifically focusing on protein intake.
• 'A' GRADES: Given that the biggest obstacle I see here are to play with friends, I would ensure that my phone is turned 'off' and that my family tell any friends that knock on the door, that 'I am unavailable' during/until a certain time. This way, I won't have and interruptions or distractions to affect my priorities regarding my goal for getting 'A's in school work.

When You Reach Your Goals, How Will You Feel?

• BASKETBALL: I'll be very excited to play and will also feel very accomplished and deserving of the opportunity.
• RUNNING: I will feel relieved because this has been a goal of mine for a long time. I believe, that I may also feel 'fitter' because of my new found accomplishment; and by virtue of my training, I believe I will actually have become fitter.
• INCREASING PROTEIN INTAKE: I believe I will feel better overall. My understanding from my Father, is that intake of protein throughout the day, regulates the metabolism in a way that contributes to a better overall feeling of wellness; also a feeling of less hunger, especially the craving for junk foods.
• All 'A's IN SCHOOLWORK: This will make me feel very ecstatic because this could be the first time, that I will have all 'A's since 6th grade.

My Feelings -If I Do Not Reach My Goal.

• BASKETBALL: I will be very upset that I did not get selected for the team, but I also know that this experience will make me train that much harder for the High School Team.
• RUNNING A MILE IN TIME: I would be sad that I failed. And would reassess why I might have failed, and would then train to try and achieve it again.
• PROTEIN INTAKE: To be very honest, I'm not so sure, if there's a definitive way to measure this. i can guess and estimate, but if I was to guess and feel I was not reaching my goal, i would simply eat more protein daily. Perhaps, I'd make certain that any snack I have were only protein, this way I can ensure I get a minimum amount of protein into my body.
• A GRADES: I will be very disappointed since this will how I will always remember finishing my last year before high school. I will re-commit and try and do better in high school.

THE IMPORTANCE OF SETTING GOALS

• I feel it is important to set goals because it gives us a kind of a step by step map, to guide us in the various achievements we want. These achievements are important for a better and more successful overall life, be it personal or professional.
• Setting goals and having a step by step method to achieve them also let's us pin point where we could do better and what needs to change; none of this would be possible without setting goals.