By now, most people have already set their goals forthe new year and have begun working on them in earnest.Unfortunately, less than half way into January, many peoplehave also hit their first snag or setback as well, and as aresult have slipped in the mental focus and motivation department.

There are many fantastic ways to get focused and motivated,but often the most difficult thing to do is keep that driveand ambition alive for more than a few weeks and see your goalthrough to completion.Setting goals in writing is an essential step to success, but howdo you stay focused on them?One technique I have used ever since my very first bodybuildingcompetition 18 years ago, is…</p?

The “contest countdown calendar.”

I have used it ever since, through 28 competitions and it willwork for you too, for any fitness goal.

I purchase a desk or wall calendar – the type that shows eachweek stretching horizontally across the page with an open blockof space for each day (or I make one on my computer in word or excel).

After I set my goal and place a deadline on it, I do NOT stop there.I take out my calendar and start counting backwards from my targetgoal deadline to the present day.

T-minus 117 days….

T-minus 116 days…

T-minus 115 days….

I also fill in my workouts for the entire 3-4 month period, which isthe typical length I allow for my mid-range goals like contest prep.

you would be shocked – pleasantly so – just how focused this keeps you.Even better still, you get MORE and MORE motivated with each passingday you countdown because the deadline is getting closer

Deadlines are absolutely critical to your success. Little gets done withoutdeadlines.

There is a saying in management and psychology that “work will alwaysexpand to fill the time allowed for it’s completion.”

Remember term papers in school? when you were given a term paperassignment and you had the entire semeseter to do it, did yourun home that first night and get crankin on it?

How about after a week? two weeks? A month? TWO MONTHS?

probably not, eh?

If youre like most people, you put it off until the last minute and youbarely got it turned in on time. In fact, there are always a few peoplewho pull all nighters the night before!

alas, the power of the deadline!

In your fitness endeavors, if you dont have IMPENDING deadlines thatgive you that twinge in your stomach that says “take action now, or else!”then you find it very easy to say to yourself, ‘ I have plenty of timeso this one cheat meal doesnt matter… it doesnt make much differenceat this point if I skip this one workout… I have time to make it up…”

And then, just like the term paper, you are scrambling at the last minuteto reach your weight goal. But in the case of your body, the consequencesare more severe and painful than just a bad grade or late penalty.

Inevitably, you succumb to crash dieting and overtraining or other unhealthyfast-weight-loss madness, which eats up your own muscle like a hungrycannibal and sends you spiraling into the dark pit of metabolic damage andthe inevitable plateau and weight gain that follow.

But the solution is so simple: Count your way down to success!

Don’t stop with setting goals. Put deadlines on your goals. then put your goal countdown on paper, reviewyour goals every single day, AND know, every single day, how many daysthere are until your target goal date. You will stay more consciously focused andeven better, your unconscious mind will go to work for you in keeping youmotivated, on track, and on schedule. You’ll come in for a landing on yourgoal deadline date like an F-16 landing on an aircraft carrier.

I just did my countdown calendar earlier this week… T minus 117 days til mynext bodybuilding competition, and thanks to this simple but powerfultechnique, I’m already focused like a laser beam and have been makingsteady progress without so much as a hiccup…

Put this simple tip into use today… You will be VERY pleased with the results.

Tom Venuto, NSCA-CPT, CSCS
Author, Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle
www.BurnTheFat.com
www.burnthefatinnercircle.com

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