Today, I'm going to talk about something that a lot of trainers will never address: what do you actually do after you achieve your goals? What is the next step? How do I handle it emotionally? What do I do with the sense of purposelessness and lack of direction after achieving a goal.

If you can effectively move achieve your goals AND move on to the next goal or maintain what you have previously achieved you will avoid the pitfalls that most people experience.

In my experience, when people achieve their health and physique related goals it can often lead to feeling of listlessness and aimlessness. 

The problem for most people, is that concrete goals suck.

If we can help our clients move forward past their goals, the following happens:

- We retain our clients for longer and avoid disappointment.

- We potentially take our clients past the goals they had set for themselves.

- We create sustainability and autonomy in our clients. 

This is how we do it

1. Focus on behaviours, not outcomes

Being outcome focused stops our clients from getting too caught up in numbers like body fat percentage, scale weight or muscle mass levels. Although there is nothing inherently wrong with these metrics, when they are focussed on obsessively as the ONLY indicator of progress they can become psychologically detrimental. By focusing on behaviours, we take control of what we can do every day and ensure we will never fail from a lack of effort or application. 

2. Realism over idealism

Not everyone can be the next Ronnie Coleman or Michael Jordan,. Shocking, I know. Shifting the focus from ideals over physiques and performance to focusing on continuous and never ending improvement is much more psychologically healthy. This is a follow along from focusing on behaviours not outcomes: although I may not be able to win Mr Olympia due to genetics, by focusing on the right behaviours  we give ourselves the best possible chance of achieving outcomes beyond our dreams. 

3. Future plan the next step

An amazing strategy to use with clients for retention is to always plan the next step. Giving people something to look forward to shows you care and always have their best interest at heart. An example would be: Weight loss goal, reverse diet and muscle gain, fat loss phase to photo shoot, reverse diet to muscle gain for a long time with performance metrics to be looked at, cut, comp or another shoot. This is one of many possible examples. 

Focusing on behaviours, realism and future planning will more than likely lead to better outcomes for your clients than all the SMART goals in the world. IF is a far better way to work with clients for retention, longevity and satisfaction.

However, as the late, great Kobe Bryant said:

 "Jobs not finished"

See you next week. 

Whenever you're ready, there are 3 other ways I can help you:

For Coaches

1. Work with me 1:1 in a highly individualised environment, catered to your needs. Results guaranteed. Only for coaches who want to reach their peak potential.  

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3. The MPC Mentoring Masterclass - Perfect for budget options and someone who just wants a taste of what mentorship can do for them. 

For Clients

1. Work with me 1:1 in a highly individualised environment, catered to your needs. Results guaranteed. Only for clients who want to reach their peak potential.  

2. Join the best online training program around and get the results and coaching you deserve.