Is It Worth Setting Huge Goals or Does Seeing Small Wins in My Tracker Provide Better Motivation

Why Your Huge Goals Make You Quit (And Small Wins Feel Pointless)

When you're asking, 'is it worth setting huge goals or does seeing small wins in my tracker provide better motivation,' the real answer is you need both, but 99% of people connect them incorrectly, which guarantees failure. You've felt this before. You set a massive goal like “lose 50 pounds” or “bench press 315 pounds.” The first week is exciting. You feel a surge of motivation. By week three, that goal feels impossibly far away. The scale has only moved 4 pounds. The bar feels just as heavy. You get discouraged and quit. On the other hand, maybe you’ve tried just focusing on “showing up” and tracking small things. You go to the gym, you log your workout, but you feel like you’re spinning your wheels. Adding 5 pounds to your squat feels meaningless when you don’t have a destination in mind. This is the core conflict: huge goals feel inspiring but crush you with their weight, while small wins feel achievable but pointless on their own. The solution isn’t to pick one. It’s to build a “Goal Stack,” a simple hierarchy where your daily actions (the small wins) are directly connected to a powerful, medium-term objective. This system turns vague ambition into a clear, actionable plan that fuels itself.

Stop quitting. Start winning.

See your small wins add up. Build motivation that lasts.

The Dopamine Trap: How Your Brain Responds to Goals

Your motivation isn't a mystery; it's chemistry. Understanding it is the key to never quitting again. When you set a huge, audacious goal, your brain releases a massive flood of dopamine. It’s the same chemical hit you get from a big win. This feels amazing-it’s the “new year, new me” energy that gets you started. But it’s a trap. That initial dopamine rush is temporary and your brain quickly adapts. After a few weeks, the simple act of working toward that distant goal no longer provides the same reward. The motivation dries up, and the daily grind feels like a chore. This is where most people fail. They mistake that initial rush for true motivation and have no plan for when it disappears. Small, trackable wins work on a different system. Every time you hit a personal record-even a tiny one like one extra rep or 2.5 more pounds on the bar-you get a small, fresh hit of dopamine. It’s not a massive flood, but a steady drip. This steady drip is what builds a habit loop. Your brain learns: “When I do this action and track it, I get a reward.” This creates a self-sustaining cycle. The mistake is thinking you have to choose between the two. The huge goal is the map-it tells you where you're going. The small wins are the fuel-they provide the constant energy to keep driving. Without a map, you're just driving in circles. Without fuel, you're not going anywhere. You need both to reach your destination. You have the concept now: a big goal for direction, small wins for fuel. But let's be honest. Can you prove you're stronger than you were 8 weeks ago? Not 'I feel stronger.' I mean the exact weight and reps. If you can't pull up that number in 5 seconds, you're not tracking wins. You're just hoping you're making them.

Your progress. Your proof.

See how far you’ve come. Get the fuel to keep going.

The 3-Layer Goal System I Use With Every Client

Stop thinking of goals as one big thing. Instead, build a 3-layer stack. This framework connects your daily effort to your ultimate vision, making motivation automatic. It’s the exact system I use to keep clients on track for years, not weeks. It turns abstract ambition into a concrete, day-to-day process.

Layer 1: The 6-Month Vision Goal (Your 'Why')

This is your North Star. It’s not a number on the scale or the bar; it’s an identity or a feeling. This goal should be emotional. It’s the answer to the question, “Why am I even doing this?” Forget SMART goals here. This is about painting a picture of the person you want to become.

Good examples:

• “I want to be strong enough to handle any physical task life throws at me.”
• “I want to look in the mirror and feel proud of the person looking back.”
• “I want to have the energy to play with my kids without getting winded.”

This isn't your workout plan. This is the reason you'll stick to the plan on a cold, dark morning when you’d rather stay in bed. Write it down and put it somewhere you see it daily. This is the anchor for everything else.

Layer 2: The 90-Day Performance Goals (Your 'What')

Now we get specific. Your Vision Goal is the 'why'; these Performance Goals are the 'what'. These are measurable, time-bound objectives that prove you are moving toward your vision. Based on your 6-month vision, what tangible results would prove you're on the right path in the next 90 days? Pick 2 or 3 at most.

If your vision is to “feel strong,” your 90-day goals could be:

• Deadlift 1.5x your bodyweight for 1 rep.
• Perform 5 unassisted pull-ups.
• Hold a plank for 2 minutes.

If your vision is to “feel proud of how you look,” your 90-day goals could be:

• Lose 12-15 pounds of body fat.
• Drop one pant size.
• See visible definition in your shoulders.

These goals are challenging but achievable within a 3-month timeframe. They are the bridge between your long-term vision and your daily actions.

Layer 3: The Weekly Process Goals (Your 'How')

This is the most important layer. These are the small, trackable wins. Process goals are not outcomes; they are actions you have 100% control over. You can’t force your body to lose 2 pounds this week, but you can control whether you go to the gym 3 times. These are the things you log in your tracker.

Connecting to the performance goals above, your weekly process goals would be:

• Complete 3 full-body strength workouts.
• Eat 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight on at least 5 days.
• In each workout, add 1 rep or 5 pounds to your main compound lifts (squat, bench, deadlift, overhead press).
• Sleep 7+ hours on 6 out of 7 nights.

This is where the magic happens. Every time you check one of these off, you get that small dopamine hit. You see the streak in your tracker. You are no longer focused on the massive, distant 90-day goal. You are focused on winning the day. And by winning enough days, you automatically achieve your performance goals, which in turn brings your vision to life.

What Your First 30 Days of Tracking Will Actually Feel Like

Be prepared: the first two weeks of this system will feel underwhelming. You’ll add 5 pounds to your squat, and your brain will scream, “Who cares? You’re still 100 pounds away from your goal!” You will log your third workout of the week, and the voice of doubt will whisper, “This isn’t making a difference.” This is the critical period where most people give up. They are still addicted to the idea of massive, overnight change. You must ignore this feeling and trust the process. Your only job is to check the boxes on your weekly process goals. That’s it. Around week 3 or 4, something shifts. You’ll open your tracker and look back. You won’t just see one workout; you’ll see a chain of 12 completed workouts. You won’t see one lift; you’ll see a graph where your squat has gone from 135 pounds to 155 pounds. This visual proof is irrefutable. It’s data. It’s the evidence that silences the voice of doubt. This is the moment your motivation becomes sustainable. It’s no longer based on a feeling or a distant dream. It’s based on the undeniable fact that you are making progress. By month two, you won't need to force yourself. You'll be motivated by the desire not to break the chain. You’ll see the progress and become addicted to the process of winning, one small, tracked victory at a time.

Frequently Asked Questions

The Right Size for a "Small Win"

A small win is a single, controllable action that moves you toward your 90-day performance goal. It should be something you can achieve in one day or one workout. Good examples include adding 2.5-5 pounds to a lift, doing one more rep than last time with the same weight, or hitting your daily protein target.

Handling a Missed Goal or Bad Day

One bad day means nothing. Perfection is not the goal; consistency is. Aim for 80-90% adherence to your weekly process goals. If you plan for 4 workouts and only make it to 3, you still won. The purpose of a tracker is to see the positive trend over months, not to achieve a perfect record over one week.

When to Adjust Your Goals

Review your 90-day performance goals every 90 days. If you achieved them, celebrate the win and set new, more challenging ones for the next 90 days. If you fell short, analyze your process goals. Were you consistent? If not, that's the problem. If you were consistent, your performance goal was likely too aggressive. Adjust it to be more realistic and go again.

Tracking Metrics Beyond Weight and Reps

Absolutely. Progress isn't always linear on the barbell. Track other wins that align with your vision. Take progress photos monthly. Track your energy levels on a 1-5 scale each day. Note how your clothes fit. Log your sleep quality. These are all valid, motivating data points that prove the process is working, even when the scale is stuck.