Hey everyone,
It’s been a while since I’ve posted here—in fact it's been about twelves months!!! I can't quite believe how long it's been or that I didn't write 1 single blog in 2024 but I’ve been busy behind the scenes working closely with each & everyone of my clients, helping them get stronger, fitter, and more confident both in and out of the saddle & taking themselves to the next level. I made some big changes to my coaching programme last year so I now have a tiered programme system which ensures there is something for everyone to get involved at ERF & join the programme! Alongside work 2024 welcomed a new horse into my life after more than a year of not having my own! Albert joined the team in the Autumn & despite the horrendous weather it's been amazing having him & getting to know him & it's been great fun having my own horse again over the winter months! I've very kindly been loaned him & I'm so grateful to his owners for entrusting me with this special boy as he's an absolute dude. As well as the norm of horses, supporting my clients with their own journeys, running the business, training myself, managing to fit in doing a Hyrox competition & Britain's Fittest Farmer I spent the rest of the time last year renovating my first house. So it's been a busy 12 months 😅 I hope your 2024's were maybe not quite so busy, although knowing all of you I'm sure they were likely jam packed but I hope you had great years yourself & with your horses & you're excited to see the blog back!
I’m making the commitment to return to writing weekly blogs this year. This space will be where I share helpful insights, tips, knowledge and strategies around fitness, riding performance, mindset, nutrition and personal growth so you can use this blog to gather as much information as you need & help you on your own fitness journeys as well as share what's happening inside ERF & how my team of riders are getting on. If there's any specific topics you'd find useful to be covered or would love to learn more about a particular subject then let me know as I'm always more than happy to tailor the blogs & content I'm bringing out to make sure it's giving you all the help & knowledge you need!
I wanted to start the year by talking about something really important: setting goals for January.
I'm sure you've seen loads & loads of posts on social media & emails talking about goal setting & why it's important & a lot of the conversations I’ve been having with my clients this week have focused on setting goals in a way that feels achievable and motivating—without the pressure of drastic changes or using the SMART method. It’s easy to get caught up in the idea of overhauling everything in January, but real progress comes from small, consistent steps forward & doing it again & again focusing on goals that really excite & motivate you & focus on the process not solely achieving the outcome! I want to share with you all how we've been setting goals inside ERF & the system we've been using this week!
The Goal-Setting Scale
Here’s a simple way we’ve been approaching goal-setting inside my programme this week:
1. Identify Your Ideal Goal (10/10):
Imagine your absolute best outcome on a scale of 0-10 for this specific goal—what would a 10/10 version of your goal feel like? What would that look like for your riding performance, your strength, your confidence, you personally or even your mindset? How would you feel in your body? How would your riding experience change if you reached that perfect version? What would that look & feel like? How would life be at 10/10?
Identify Your Worst Case Goal Scenario
What would a zero be to you? Think of your 10 & then think about worst case scenario, what would the worst version of that goal be. How would you be looking, feeling & what would either be or not be happening? I know this may seem backwards to think about not achieving your 10 when we're talking about goal setting but it's really important you can see how the best version of your goal vs how the worst version would look as that's going to help you be able to pinpoint...
3. Where Are You Now?
Be honest with yourself—where do you feel you currently sit on that same scale, from 0 to 10? Look at what your 10 is on that goal & what would a zero be. Think about where you're at right now, where would you place yourself on that scale? Maybe you’re feeling like a 5, 6, or lower. That’s completely fine! The key here is not to focus on getting from a 5 to a 10 overnight & it's all about identifying where you're currently at so you can see where you need to go.
4. Focus on Moving Up Just One Level
Instead of overwhelming yourself with having to achieve perfection now, the focus should be on moving just one level higher at a time, not achieving a 10 right away. What small steps can you take to shift yourself from that 5 to a 6, or a 6 to a 7? This could mean building consistency with your strength training sessions, improving a particular movement pattern, maybe eating 20g more protein a day or simply making time for regular reflection on your progress. Remember to move one level it is NOT about achieving level 10 now it's about getting closer to it. Think about HOW you take yourself from where you are right now to that next level, what physically would have to happen?
Aligning with Your ‘Why’
This whole goal setting approach ties directly into your values & the habits we’ve been working on building inside the programme not just this week but as we hit the New Year with the ground running we're reminding ourselves of the habits we want to be implementing & making sure we're aware of any habits that maybe aren't quite serving us as well as we'd like. It’s not just about setting your goals but also about reconnecting with why you’re setting them in the first place & you want to achieve them.
If you've followed me or the blog for a while you'll know what I mean when I say your why but if you don't know what your why is think about the deep down reason you're putting yourself through this fitness journey. For example, I want to run a 5km, ok that's great but it's pretty generic & it's not very inspiring as you're not emotionally invested in that goal whereas I want to run a 5km so that I improve my fitness so that when I'm riding I can help my horse the whole way round the course rather than getting tired halfway & watching the video back & feeling disappointed with what I see because I'm not fit enough.
What would achieving that next level bring to your riding? How would it affect your confidence? Your quality of life? Your horses' happiness? If you can get really deep with your why & really connect to your goals on an emotional level that is going to be a game-changer because it's going to seriously motivate & inspire you if it's something that is truly meaningful & important to you. If you've never gone through this goal-setting process of visiting your WHY before & only focused on the outcome to set your goals it can feel a bit odd & might even feel a bit fluffy but I can promise you getting connected with your why is essential if you're serious about achieving your goals because that's what's going to make you stick to it on the tough days because it means so much to you.
Reflection Is Key
Progress isn’t just about the numbers or getting to your 10 as fast as you can—it’s about how you feel along the way & celebrating everything you achieve through the process. I’m encouraging my clients to regularly check in and reflect on:
What’s improving?
What challenges are showing up?
What habits are helping you feel stronger and more capable?
How are you feeling in yourself?
Where would you rate yourself on that scale in relation to this goal? Are you getting closer?
Reflection allows you to have the headspace & time to regularly review where you are & how things are going & keeps you connected to your process and helps you to adjust your plan when life gets busy & makes changes to allow you to keep yourself moving forwards. Regularly reflecting gives you so much more self-awareness as you make that mental space to consciously examine your actions, habits & how you're feeling. It allows you to get really clear with your priorities, helps you to make better decisions, holds you accountable & highlights the importance of re-inforcing your good habits. The great thing about the New Year is social media was packed full of everyone doing their 2024 reflections & I'm sure you did yours. First of all it's awesome you took the time to reflect & I bet it made you super aware that there were some great parts of your 12 months but also some really challenging times but the chance to reflect allowed you to see the bigger picture, that's exactly what reflection is for so I want to challenge you if you're not someone who already regularly reflects already this year I encourage you to reflect on a more regular basis. Maybe start monthly or weekly & I can promise you with consistent reflection it's going to hugely help you on your journey & keep on track as well as really see all you're achieving.
Your Next Step
If this approach resonates with you, I’d love to help you put it into action. You can use the framework above but if you've got any questions don't hesitate to drop me a DM. My clients are already seeing the benefits of taking small, steady steps without the pressure of perfection to kick off 2025 & if you’re ready to start moving forward with your fitness and riding goals this year, let’s chat!
👉 I've got something very exciting coming in January to help you level up your riding in a supportive community & take your knowledge to the next level so keep your eyes peeled in the coming weeks! If you're reading this & thinking I really want to start my fitness journey now but I'm not quite sure how to do it & I need some help then coaching spaces are now available inside ERF!! You can drop me a message in the chat box on the right or pop me an email at katie@eventriderfitness & I'll be in touch to see how I may be able to help you. Even if it's just advice you're after please don't hesitate to reach out as I'm here to help you make 2025 your best season yet for you & your ponies!
Here’s to making amazing progress this year without the pressure & actually enjoying your journey this January.
See you next week!
Katie
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