01 Jul Fitness free agency: What training goals do you want to sign on for?

The calendar has flipped to July 1st, but in many parts of the country they’re calling it LeBron 1st.
Today marked the first day of free-agency for arguably the best class of free agents in NBA history, with LeBron James leading the way. The list of All-Stars basketball players who are free to go wherever they wants continues with lots of other greats, such Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Dirk Nowitski, Amare Stoudamire and Joe Johnson.
When it comes to personal fitness, we’re free agents at any point – free to pick and choose what methods and what equipment we want to sign on with to stay fit.
The NBA teams will come to LeBron and Co. with lavish offers and all they have to do is sit back and choose.
For the rest of us who are looking to stay fit, it’s up to us to do the work – both physically and mentally.
To help with the mental part of training, this is the first in a series on Fitness free agency: What training goals do you want to sign on for?

It’s important to set goals and not just aimlessly go about things like running, lifting weights, riding bikes, etc. Set goals and you just may reach them. Set some that are lofty goals and even if you come up short you’ll be a lot better off.
Here are some possible goals which you may want to use, or may help you think of others. Tweak if needed to fit your current fitness level:
* Lose 20 pounds
* Drop your body fat 5 percent
* Exercise 3-4 times a week
* Be able to jog for 20 minutes straight on a treadmill or outside (add more time if you’re already in decent shape)
* Complete a 5K race
* Bike ride 25 miles
* Increase your bench press by 25 percent
* Eat better
* Keep a workout log
* Fit in a favorite old pair of jeans again.
There you go with a starter list. As I stated above, tweak these goals or add your own. You’re a free agent to sign up for any fitness challenges you want.

At Home Fitness consultant Aaron Dorksen’s blog deals with a variety of fitness topics, ranging from workout tips, motivational ideas and feature stories on how exercise impacts people’s lives. E-mail him with comments, questions or ideas for future blogs at aaron@athomefitness.com