Therefore, Be It Resolved . . .

Training for the Vanport City Triathlon kicks off every year in January. There are two reasons for this. The first is that it's the middle of winter; the days are short and many folks, myself included, are trying to stay active. The second is that many of us make health-related resolutions around this time of year.

Whether you have specific fitness goals, are trying to lose weight, or are just looking for a free endorphin boost every now and again, there's no better time than now to establish new patterns for 2012.

A few years back, I came across some work by John C. Norcross PhD from the University of Scranton, focused on setting and achieving goals.

One of the things I found most interesting about his research is that for those setting goals, there is no one “type” of person who is most likely to be successful. Instead, Dr. Norcross has found a few traits about the process of goal-making which can help anyone become more successful in achieving their goals (the following is adapted from an article which appeared in the Wall Street Journal):

• Make your goal specific, realistic, and attainable. 
• E.g.- “I will be able to run 3mi in under 45min by the end of January (the Training Schedule goals were written with this in mind).” 
• Make your statement a positive one. 
• E.g.- “ I will exercise twice per week,” is preferable to “I'll spend less time watching TV.” 
• Declare your goal publicly. 
• Once you have taken the time to formulate your goal, be sure to share it with others who know you. 
• Check in periodically with someone who can provide support and accountability. 
• This is one of the great things about training for an event. You are part of a community and we're all aiming for 8/4/12! Stay in touch by reading the blog, leaving comments below, organizing a training event for others, or joining us for one of the training triathlons.

You can use the player below to access the NPR interview if you'd like:

Happy New Year!