Setting and Keeping New Years Resolutions

It’s that time of year again karate Instructors absolutely love! Why do we love new year? Well because it’s not as hard to motivate you lovely lot!

We’ve all returned from our Christmas break and our dojos are full of students with renewed energy and passion for karate!

We’ve got beginners starting, bringing a breath of fresh air and enthusiasm to the dojo.

So, how do we keep this going after the NEW YEAR - NEW ME excitement has worn off?

Here are some of our TOP TIPS for setting goals, how to reach them and making adjustments to your lifestyle that will actually last to February and BEYOND!

1) Be specific about your goals

Set your goals, if you are a youngster training - the sky is your limit! Aim high. The opportunities are here for you to do just about anything! Want to earn your next few belts? Get to class and do the work. Want to be a champion? - Try competing. Then try and successfully compete to win medals. Want to become a Sensei one day? Become a Cadet Leader. Want to have awesome kicks? Work on your leg strength and flexibility. Want to be like one of our elite athletes? Train with them. Train like them. Concentrate like them. Perform like them.

For adults, the situation is often rather more complicated. Adults have to juggle their karate training with responsibilities, jobs, dependants, ailments etc. We need to be a bit more realistic and specific about what we want to achieve and how we are going to do it.

Progressing through the belts system is the most obvious concrete and achievable way to set goals and reach them. How far you you like to go this year?

If you are a lower grade it is certainly within your reach to be promoted a couple of times in 2024.

If you are brown belt, you can work towards that black belt.

If you are a dan grade, what specific aspects of your karate need improving? Are there any Katas you don’t know? What would you like to improve about your overall health? Do you want to work towards your next dan grade, would you like to train in Japan etc. The opportunities are here! Goals do not always have to be physical. What do you know about the history of karate and shotokan in particular. You can deepen your knowledge through reading books and articles. Shotokan Karate Magazine is published right here in the UK and features articles and interviews with the Worlds leading shotokan practitioners. You can learn a lot just through research. Ask yourself these questions and be honest with your answers. Training with a purpose in mind will result in improvement.

2) What is your action plan?

So you have decided on your goals, now what? What do you need to do to reach them? Now is the time for ACTION.

If you want to reach your next belt, download and print the syllabus and practise at home. Ask your Sensei or any senior grades in your class to help you. Download Grace Sensei’s combination or Kata videos and practice at home. There is no such thing as a difficult technique or a difficult Kata. It’s either impossible or it’s easy. The process by which it migrates from one category to the other is called P R A C T I C E.

What used to be impossible becomes easy through; practice.

If you miss classes, you are missing out on practice. Therefore if you can’t make a class, attend a different one in the same week, or two the following week to make up for the hour of practise that you missed. If you are an adult, treat your training like you would treat an appointment at work - for example - I have an appointment every monday night to work on my physical and mental well being. I have an appointment with my goal. I have an appointment to leave my house, socialise and take a break from all my responsibilities (even if it is just one hour). Make that commitment to yourself and you won’t regret it.

If you want to improve your fitness, take part in extra classes. Or start running, strength training or cycling to supplement your karate training. If you want to improve your flexibility, stretch more at home or try yoga. Challenge yourself. I have decided to do an 8 minute stretching routine everyday for 30 days, if you’ve been to any of my classes I am sure you will have suffered through it already but a few days in it became easier and my hips and hamstrings are less sore after training.

If you want to lose weight, track what you eat/drink and see what changes you need to make. I realised late last year I was drinking far too much coffee and fizzy drinks to the point where if I hadn’t had it, it gave me headache. I decided to swap to decaf and drink sparkling water instead of pepsi max on Mondays to Fridays. The first few days were the worst and after that I felt so much better. Now I don’t even bother with fizzy drinks at the weekend because I feel awful after I’ve had any. The little changes will add up and make a difference to how you feel. RTK have a fitness and nutrition professional Rob Head Sensei who can help you. Send him a message.

Draw up a plan of action and do everything within your power to stick to it.

3) Write it down, tell people and be accountable

You are far more likely to stick to your goal if you ask for the support and encouragement of others. Take ownership of your own actions and have the belief in your own ability to succeed.

If your goal is to hit your next grade or medal in Kata at the next comp, that let the work begin now. Have a look in your attendance card and see when you are next eligible to grade and DO THE WORK.

Nothing worth having comes easy. Your Sensei’s and your karate friends can help you hit your targets in practical ways. Your parents can help you hit your targets by getting you to class and not letting you skive if you are feeling lazy. Sometimes, you have the best lessons when you’ve had a long day and don’t really want to go and train.

Who is on your motivational team? Share the load, they will be so happy to see you focusing on a goal.

Together - nothing is impossible.

4) Don’t give up!

This is the most important tip. NEVER GIVE UP. Once you allow yourself to give up on your goal - then it is over and you will experience failure.

So, if you miss a couple of classes due to illness, no problem. It happens. You can still practice by watching videos online of katas or kumite. Then, extend your target by a couple of weeks. Goals can always be modified. Be kind to yourself and be stronger than your excuses.

Perseverance, consistency and discipline is the key. You have to keep on trying. If your actions are consistent and you stay committed to your goal, you will experience success.

Researchers report that it takes 66 days to form a habit. How long does it take to break it? Just 9 days is the average.

If you have already put that much work in, don’t let go of it!

5) Reward yourself when you succeed and then start again!

So, if your goal is to grade and you do everything you need to experience success, then the reward is the next belt and the congratulations of your peers. Celebrate, smile, tell others and be so proud of yourself. Now you know how to achieve a goal. You’ve survived the process and deserve the reward. All this builds your confidence, your character and your self-belief.

Set the next goal and keep going.

If your goal was to lose weight and you have lost a clothing size, buy yourself something new. Find ways to reward yourself that won’t see you falling back into bad habits and having to start the process all over again.

Set a new target - such as the next clothing size down or simply to maintain for a certain time period.

The reward for work well done, is the opportunity to do more. To become more. Each week you can become better than the week before.

Focus on You.