Macon Magazine

Shawn McClendon is an ACE-certified personal trainer and fitness writer who helps men and women over 40 to make their fitness comeback. Follow him on Substack (@shawnb2bfitness) and YouTube (@shawnb2bfitness). by selecting a different approach to eating and to exercising. For example, maybe you decide to eat a Paleo-type diet, and you join a fitness class for three days per week. You track your weight and waist circumference once a week, and when you hit a plateau – because you will – you make adjustments until you reach your desired 20-pound weight loss. This results-based fitness objective is a perfectly acceptable approach to changing your body that many use successfully. Some, however, may find such an approach to fitness occasionally demotivating and even boring due to the focus specifically on the weight. If that's you, here's an alternative approach to setting a fitness objective. 2 T H E S P O R T - B A S E D F I T N E S S O B J E C T I V E With this approach, your goal is to accomplish something very specifically attached to a sport or fitness activity. Consider the following examples: • Running the whole Macon Labor Day Road Race this September • Placing in your age class in the Macon Labor Day Road Race • Returning to the sport of your youth (basketball, soccer, flag-football, tennis, etc.) • Joining a bodybuilding/fitness competition (such as the NPC Middle Georgia Classic recently hosted by Legends Fitness) I highly recommend this approach. You know why? Because even though your goal isn't necessarily to lose weight, you're very likely to achieve your weight loss goal as an indirect result of the physical activity you're engaging in, particularly when paired with a decent diet. I achieved the most weight loss ever when I got back into pick-up basketball games in my late 20s/early 30s. Thing is, I had no desire to lose weight; I just wanted to play some basketball. You ever notice and admire the fit physique of a track sprinter or a gymnast? Remember: They don't set goals to have a specific type of body; their bodies are a result of a sport- specific goal. 3 M A K E I T A G A M E A third way to set a fitness objective, which is a combination of both methods I've previously mentioned \ to "gamify" the process. In other words, maybe you set a goal to lose a specific amount of weight, but you make it a game by joining an online weight loss challenge, or you partner up with a friend who also wants to lose weight, and you add things to look forward to, such as weekly incentives for reaching goals. Either way you choose, I highly recommend the setting of specific fitness objectives when it comes to creating the body you desire. The key is to have something to narrow your focus, and the more fun and exciting it is, the better. T his is for my career high- achievers out there. You're accomplished. You set out to get a college degree, and you got it. You may have even gotten a couple of graduate degrees. Don't forget those extra letters on the front of, or on the end of, that signature! In the corporate world, you're getting it in. You got the job, and not only are you rising in the ranks, but you're making your mark on the company, and perhaps even the industry. If you're a businessman or businesswoman, you've built an impactful, successful business that you're proud of. You set your objectives, and you accomplish them. As they say, you're continuously "leveling up" and "securing the bag." Could such an approach to fitness be the secret to getting fit and healthy without really trying? Here's what I mean. It's typical for us to use an objective-oriented approach when it comes to our careers, and yet, many of us haven't necessarily thought about using such an approach when it comes to our health and our bodies. What I'd like to suggest is that "objective-oriented fitness" is a way that you can get the physical results that you want, in an indirect, often much more fun, manner. Say, for example, that your goal is to lose weight. You know you'd like to lose maybe 20-30 pounds, so you've started walking and adding more vegetables into your diet. You're doing some of the right stuff, but you're not getting much of any results. Why? Because you need a bit more focus. A very specific fitness goal can provide the focus you need to start getting results. It's important to realize, though, that there are levels to the type of objectives you choose to go after. Consider the following: 1 T H E R E S U LT - B A S E D F I T N E S S O B J E C T I V E Say that you set a goal to lose 20 pounds. This is a common approach to getting in shape that is usually followed "Even though your goal isn't necessarily to lose weight, you're very likely to achieve your weight loss goal as an indirect result of the physical activity you're engaging in." August/September 2026| maconmagazine.com 115

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