Why Your Fitness Goals Might Be Working Against You (and How to Fix It).

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Have you heard of Goodhart's Law? If you've ever set a fitness goal—like dropping 10 pounds or running 5km in under 30 minutes—you've probably fallen into its trap.

Here's the gist: "When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure."

In other words, when you fixate on a single number—like your weight on the scale—you might make decisions that don't actually improve your health, strength, and fitness in the long term.

Essentially, you start to rig the system to get your win.

How This Plays Out

Let's say your goal is to lose 10 pounds. Sounds reasonable, right? But when the scale won't budge, you might make desperate choices to force that number down—like slashing calories too severely, cutting out whole food groups like carbohydrates, doing endless cardio, or avoiding strength training because "muscle weighs more than fat, right?" Suddenly, your scale weight starts to change, but at the cost of the bigger picture: looking, feeling, and performing better.

Or maybe you're aiming to master your bodyweight and do ten pull-ups. If you chase that number at all costs—you might start compromising good form just to squeeze out that extra rep, skipping mobility work, or neglecting other muscle groups—you might reach your target only to find yourself sidelined with an injury. Sure, ten pull-ups is cool, but what's the point if you get there broken?

A Different Approach

Most of us think in soundbites that sound good: lose 10 pounds, run 5km, bench press your bodyweight—without exploring the story behind that specific thing. What's the bigger picture? Ask yourself: What am I actually trying to improve?

You want to lose 10 pounds but why? To feel more comfortable and confident?

You want to run 5km? Awesome; why? To prove to yourself you can do it or to keep up with the kids?

You want to bench press all the plates? Send it—but ask why?

No wrong answers here! What's the mission behind the metric? Once you find it, keep the goal the goal!

Next up...

Use multiple metrics. Instead of tracking just ONE thing, pick multiple things. Sure, track your scale weight but also monitor how your clothes fit, your energy levels, blood work at the doctor's, and your strength progress. Pick a series of metrics with interlocking arcs to cover each other and build a clearer picture of progress.

Rotate metrics or adapt periodically. To help avoid gaming the system, change up or add layers to metrics over time. For example, you might use scale weight at first but later include body fat measurements to track lean muscle mass and ensure you maintain it. Or instead of just focusing on your 5km PBs, also track your heart rate on easy runs to highlight recovery improvements.

Identity over outcome. To complete a marathon, you become a runner—yet not all runners run marathons. Running 26.2 miles is an outcome (an impressive one at that), but if your aim is to become a runner who just so happens to run marathons, focus on that identity first. That means every run is a win. You don't have to reach a certain performance or distance. Every run is a vote toward becoming a runner; get enough of those and boom—you win, 26 miles or not.

Numbers can be useful guides, super motivating, and fun to chase down, but they shouldn't control your decisions. Keep your eyes on the big picture, and you'll achieve better results that actually last.

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P.S. If you enjoyed this week's Thursday Three, please share it with a friend.

Thanks,

Jamie