This week was the start of our Fitness for Myeloma Chapter Event. It will be a continuing event each month, and we will be having a topic of focus each month. For January we want to start the new season with tips to make successful goals, work to set a plan, and provide tools to help you achieve the goals you set this year. 

To start SMART we need to remember: 

S- Be Specific: clearly define your goal

M- Make your goals measurable

A- Make sure they are achievable 

R- Your goals need to be relevant to you

T- Give yourself a timeline

To be specific it’s essential to be clear in how you define and map out your goal. Without specifics of what you want to achieve it’s harder to see the vision behind it and achieve.

 “Dreams without GOALS are just dreams”- Your goal could be very different, there is no one goal type to have. Such as gaining strength, flexibility, yoga (which we will learn about next month), learning to eat better, more restful sleep, go on vacations etc. 

Make a specific plan: 

• Find ways to sleep better: whether it’s to talk to your doctor about how to help you sleep, find ways to relax (bubble bath, soothing music, disconnecting from technology an hour before bed or relaxing cup of tea) 
• Connect with support groups (Myeloma Coach by HealthTree, LiveStrong at the YMCA, or other groups through church or social media) 
• Walk/Run a 5k or other distances (with family, friends, for a cause or just for fun) 

Measuring your progress can be done by signing up for a specific race, planning that vacation date, write out your flexibility plan, log it in a journal or use a smartwatch to track your fitness goals. Make it work for you, and don’t be afraid to give yourself incentives to reach it.  

Achieve what you set out through keeping yourself accountable. When you’re specific with your goals, set it up to work with your situation. If we set a goal that’s beyond our ability it’s harder to stay motivated and on target for getting there.

Make sure you plan for goals that are relevant to you. A few things to think about and plan for when setting your goals: 

• Are you a morning person or a night owl? Plan your workouts for the time of day you’ll be most accountable for. 
• Do you like listening to podcasts or watching shows while doing cardio? 
• Find a buddy to walk/run with. 
• Try new activities that excite you. 
• Are the medications or treatments you are on affecting sleep, fatigue, appetite? 

Pick a timeframe. If your goal is to walk a 5k by May then set up a plan for yourself to reach that timeline. Such as walking 15-20 minutes Monday, Wednesday and Fridays through January. Increase that time to 30 min in February, and to follow that timeline of 40-45 min in March and so on for April till you hit your goal in May. 

Keep in mind these goals are to help inspire you and motivate you. Some days will be great, other days you may not be as motivated. That is ok! No goal should be for perfection, but improvement. Sometimes that improvement is just in our mindset for the day. 

As a group we had a great discussion getting to know each other, making suggestions for what’s helped one another and enjoying an overall conversation with one another. We are looking forward to many more of these events to get to know each other better and to learn new skills and grow as a community.