Kicking Goals in Quarantine
As we explore new Physie frontiers (who thought we would ever be doing online lessons via Zoom?!), I wanted to share some ideas about how GG members can stay on track with improving their Physie, from home.
Physie is a competitive sport, but have you ever considered that you are in fact your own competitor? We all love the excitement, camaraderie and sense of achievement we get from performing with our rivals on the competition floor, but I am suggesting another way we can get that same sense of achievement. If we treat ourselves as our competitors, we can bring our best-ever Physie skills back to the floor with us later in the year.
The below technique can be applied to your own Physie practice, or parents can use it to guide their daughters. It can be applied to any area of life GG Belles might want to improve upon.
SMART Goal Setting
SMART goal setting enables you to structure and track your goals and objectives. In order to make your goal SMART, it needs to be: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Timely. I will explain each of these elements below using a Physie example of being able to do the splits.
Specific
The more specific you can be, the better the chance you will be able to achieve your stated goal. Questions you may ask yourself include:
- What exactly do I want to achieve?
- Where?
- How?
- When?
- With whom?
- What are the conditions and limitations?
- Why do I want to reach this goal? What are possible alternative ways of achieving the same?
Example: I would like to be able to do a the splits correctly before the Interclub competitions in August. To do this, I will need to improve my flexibility and posture. I want to reach this goal to score as many points as possible in the Floor Drill, for myself and for my team later in the year. If I cannot do a full split, I will make sure I am as close as possible, with correct positioning including hips square to the front, legs straight and toes pointed.
Measurable
This means breaking your goal(s) down into measurable elements. You will need concrete evidence of your progress. Defining this makes your goal clearer and easier to reach.
Example: Each week I will measure how far off the ground I am to track changes. I will take weekly progress photos and send them to my teacher to get feedback on my posture.
Attainable
Weigh up the time, effort, and other costs associated with achieving the goal. Then, plan and start working towards it! Investigate what the minimum acceptable level would be for you if you are unable to reach the maximum within the timeframe you set.
Example: I want to be able to do the splits before I compete in Champion Girl in September. If I make time to stretch and practice for 20 minutes everyday, and get feedback from my teacher each week over the next 20 weeks, it should be possible. If I cannot achieve the splits for the Interclubs, I will be happy if I can get as close as possible, with the correct posture.
Relevant
Why do you want to achieve this goal? What is the objective behind the goal, and will this goal really achieve that objective?
Example: I want to achieve this goal in order to increase the number of points I can earn for my work, making me a better competitor. This is relevant to me, as the splits forms part of the choreography in my Floor Drill this year.
Timely
Give yourself a deadline, and go after it. Keep the deadline realistic and flexible to maintain your morale; being too stringent can actually discourage you from doing the work required.
Example: If I cannot achieve the full splits in time for the Champion Girl, I will keep working with my teacher towards being able to do it for Teams.
Finally, when setting SMART goals, it is very important to frame your plan in a positive way. Energy flows where attention goes, so don't 'stop procrastinating', but rather think of it as achieving a daily step toward your goal.
Try writing your goals out and sticking them to your bedroom mirror as a daily reminder of what you want to achieve. Making a pretty poster using your favourite colours and some inspirational Physie pictures could be a fun school holiday activity.
We can't wait to hear stories of our GG Belles achieving goals in competition with themselves during quarantine!
A big shout out to our teachers who are doing a wonderful job helping us navigate a new way of doing things. Thank you for all you do for the club.
