Athletes set goals. Then, we train to achieve those goals. But, can the nature of the goals we set impact our race day performance? A 2022 meta-review in the International Review of Sport and Psychology says yes. Since we are at the very start of the dreaming season, the time is right to review goal setting and ways that we can shape our goals to maximize performance.
Since you may not be crawling the academic research journals for the latest page-turner, I’ll share some of the key insights from this article. A meta-review is an article that summarizes a larger body of research. So, it offers a good breadth and depth of the current understanding of goal-setting & athletic performance. The conclusions of this article are supported by other work in the field, and I include some of those resources in the references.
So, as you prepare to reflect on your 2024 season, and get ready to set goals for 2025, keep some of these ideas in mind about the types of goals you can set, and the impact each type may have to shape your training and your race day success.
Types of Goals
There are a variety of different types of goals we can set, and the most discussed among these include outcome, performance, and process goals. These tend to be most central to the types of goal-setting athletes do.
To summarize quickly:
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Outcome goals
These are the goals most athletes are familiar with developing. When you set an outcome goal, you are setting a long-term goal for a particular end result you’d like to achieve, such as a specific time or placement in a race. So, as you think of your 2025 season, you may consider setting goals relative to setting a PR, landing on the podium, or some other goal related to the result.
Typically, Outcome goals are not in our direct control, as weather or competition can easily impact our ability to achieve the goal. But, most athletes consider outcome goals to be very important.
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Performance goals
These goals identify the specific objectives you will need to hit in order to achieve your outcome goal(s). These are short-term goals that can help you “check in” on the progress being made toward your long-term goals. For example, a performance goal may emphasize hitting certain milestones in training by a certain date or developing certain skills to support your physical efforts.
After you identify outcome goals, think to yourself: “What sorts of things do I need to do in the short term in order to achieve that long-term goal?”
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Process goals
These goals include the specific action steps that you need to take (weekly or daily) in order to achieve your performance goals. Process goals are also short-term, but even more short-term than performance goals. For example, in order for most of us to be successful in any endurance event, we need to nail our fueling & hydration. So, the specific process of testing out your fueling and hydration strategy during every single session would be a process goal.
Think of process goals as answering the question: “How, specifically, will I do what needs to be done in order to be ready to achieve the outcome I seek?”
Impact of Goals on Performance
The types of goals we set can have a positive, neutral or negative impact on our race day performance. Broadly speaking, setting some type of goal is better than no goals at all. But, as we drill down into the specifics, we can see that some types of goals have a more positive influence on our outcomes.
To stoke our motivation, generally, outcome goals are important to encourage us to register for a race and to get in touch with our “why” for doing the training and racing. But, in the specific execution of training and racing, outcome goals can be counter-productive.
Instead, process and performance goals can have a more positive impact on race day outcomes, with process goals showing the most positive effect. Conversely, outcome goals are not correlated with substantial enhancement to race-day performance. So, while we all like to set outcome-based goals, the research tells us that these types of goals are not likely to have a meaningful contribution to the actual outcome. Interesting!
While we should continue to set outcome goals, the research is clear that in our day-to-day training – and on race day – we should focus on our process and performance goals. The benefits of this shift are numerous:
- Reduced performance anxiety
- Increased self-confidence
- Enhanced self-efficacy (especially for beginner and intermediate athletes)
Process and performance goals will shift our focus to things that are in our direct control, which lead to the benefits listed above.
When we combine outcome or long-term results-oriented goals with short-term process and performance goals, many of the above effects are enhanced. For example, when a race begins, we should focus on the process, or the specific action steps, we need to execute in order to be successful. This may include reminders to start strong, but in control of the effort, to monitor heart rate to ensure the energy cost of a given pace isn’t too much, and to stay on top of our fueling and hydration so we don’t run out of energy or become dehydrated.
But, once you get into the final miles of your race, tuning back into your outcome goals can be a great way to help you keep your foot on the gas, fight through the pain and discomfort, and push your limits right through the finish line. In this manner, the outcome goals become a carrot (or a stick – depending on what you need) to push the best effort you have on the day.
Here’s my experience with setting goals for a 50-mile race. I had a specific outcome goal for this race to set an altitude-PR, and to go under 10 hours. In order to achieve this, I would need to focus on process-oriented goals that included pacing smartly, staying patient at the front, and managing my energy by fueling with 250 calories/hour and hydrating with 20-24 ounces of water w/ electrolytes per hour.
When the race started, the crowd took off. I know from experience that this is not how I race best. Rather, I do best when I just focus on me and my effort, letting the field do whatever it does. After about 20 miles, I started reeling in the field, one after another fading as I kept on my effort. For the first 35 miles or so, I didn’t even look at pacing or timing at all. I simply focused on my effort, eating, and drinking. I made sure to smile at the other racers, and to thank the volunteers, as this practice of gratitude helps me feel better and stronger as I race.
Once I got to 35 miles, I checked in on my pacing. I was on track to set the PR, but I was close to hitting my time goal. At this point, the outcome goal became the carrot and the stick to help me work through the pain, to continue running strong. I would identify rabbits, and start picking them off, keeping my mind distracted from the pain. In the end, I set the PR, I hit the time goal, and as an added bonus, I was the 3rd overall female, and 10th OA among both men and women. By focusing on the process for the overwhelming majority of the race, and then connecting with my outcome goal at the end, I was able to get the very best out of myself on the day, with a better-than-anticipated outcome!
Tips to Set Your Goals
It may seem like I’m telling you to avoid outcome goals. That’s not the case. Rather, keep on setting your outcome goals. They are important to give an overall focus to your training and planning, especially when motivation wanes. Using an outcome goal during low motivation times can help provide some focus, and encourage you to get out of bed when you just don’t feel like it. In fact, write down your outcome goals and put them right next to your alarm. When it goes off, read the goal and get out of bed.
However, outcome goals have limiters, which can be best supported by incorporating process and performance goals. During a tough training session or during race week and the start of race day, put the outcome goals aside. Too much focus on outcomes during this time will increase pre-race anxiety, as well as cause errors in execution and decision-making. For example, if we are too tied to a particular time or placement, we may overshoot the pacing in the early part of a race, only to fade out in the later miles.
To improve your confidence and skill, use process and performance goals to shape your actions – both in training and during racing. Process goals, in particular, are most helpful to provide a sense of control and self-efficacy. This is important because self-efficacy is a key determinant of improved race-day decision-making and problem-solving.
Let’s play out an example.
- Outcome goal: Place top 5 at an Ironman race. This is the long-term goal that frames everything else.
- Performance goals: 1) Monitor chronic training load to hit key targets at 20 weeks out, 12 weeks out, and 3 weeks out, 2) Manage an average training load of 800 TSS, with a peak TSS of 1200, 3) Work toward peak volume of 14,000k swimming, 250 miles cycling, 40 miles running (monitored by check-ins at 20 weeks out, 12 weeks out and 4 weeks out). These are shorter-term goals that help you get a “check” on progress.
- Process goals (for training): 1) Swim 4x/week, 2) Cycle 5x/week, 3) Run 5x/week, 4) Dial-in fueling & hydration strategy by practicing during every workout, 5) Maintain a strength routine 2x/week, with mobility 3x/week, 6) get a massage every 2 weeks. These are short-term goals as well, with specific action steps you can take on a weekly or daily basis.
As you read through the list above, you can see that the goals get increasingly more task-focused and specific. As such, process goals create a solid outline for how to work toward that top 5 at an Ironman race. On race day, process goals may look something like this:
- Stay focused on all available metrics to gauge my best effort on the day.
- Nail my fueling and hydration.
- Avoid distractions or letting others’ actions set my pace
- Focus on a smart start – strong but in control
You may be thinking: But, Maria, I don’t care about the podium. That’s okay! Your outcome goals don’t have to be about the podium. But, maybe you want to finish in a certain time or set a PR. The same process applies. What is the overarching long-term goal? Maybe you want to finish before the cut-offs? Or, maybe you want to finish faster than you did on a previous attempt?
Then, think through: what do you need to do in order to make that happen? And, how will you execute those things you need to do in daily and weekly training? Be specific to give yourself a clear action plan.