“If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be.  Now put the foundations under them.” ~Henry David Thoreau, Walden, 1854

As I write this, I am sitting in a coffee shop on the South side of Minneapolis, Minnesota.  I have just finished walking for an hour around Lake Calhoun, one of the beautiful string of lakes and parks that help to make this city such a delight.  Even though I am traveling on business here today, I made time for this walk – regular walking is a critical component to my achieving the goal that I shared last time.  (The weather here is so nice today, it really was not a challenge at all to get myself out walking – today the challenge was to quit at an hour!)

I am going to be sharing just a bit more about my health goal for next year.  I’m doing this for a couple of reasons.  First, I want to clearly state to the world, and of course myself, exactly what I am going to do.  (The how I am going to do this comes later – I certainly don’t know all of the how yet, but I have faith that I will find it.) Second, some of the ways that I have formed this goal, and am now committing to it, may be of use to some of my readers.

To recap, last time I shared that I had committed to the goal of getting myself back in shape in the coming twelve months.  I made this goal public on this blog to get leverage on myself.  Getting leverage on yourself can be a very good thing indeed.  So can making a public commitment to getting something accomplished.  I realized today that I had not been very specific in the details that I shared about that goal.  Here are those missing specifics:

  1. By July 1st, 2011, I will weigh no more than 195 lbs (dressed in summer workout gear including shoes).    This is very specific.
  2. My bodyfat percentage will be no more than 15% and I will have this professionally measured by a personal trainer at my health club.
  3. I will also be very aerobically fit.  I will measure that this way: I will be jogging at least 3 times per week for at least 30 minutes each time at a pace no slower than 10 minutes per mile.  Additionally, I will be bike riding at least 3 times per week for at least 1 hour each time at a pace no slower than 10 miles per hour.

Now that is a decently written goal for me and here are some of the reasons why:

  1. It is doable in the time frame (barely!).
  2. It is very measurable.
  3. It does take into account some larger aspects of my life. (I must be aerobically fit and has a healthy ending bodyfat percentage – it isn’t just about my ending weight.)
  4. Accomplishing this goal will open up lots of other aspects of my life as well.

Okay.  Enough for today about my getting in great shape goal.  Here is a question for you: Should you always share your goals publicly?  I say no.  Next time I’ll talk more about the why and why not of this.

Till next time faithful reader…Jack

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“It is never too late to be who you might have been.” ~George Eliot