2026 Doesn’t Need Bigger Goals, It Needs Higher Standards
After reading last week's blog, I hope you all reflected on the 14 questions and were able to think a bit more clearly before planning for 2026. If you haven’t read it yet, click here before reading this blog.
They write bigger numbers.
They pick goals for competitions.
They promise themselves this will be the year they finally “lock in.”
On the surface, that looks like ambition. But ambition isn’t the thing most athletes are missing.
Standards are. Not standards in the sense of perfection or intensity. Standards in the sense of how you show up when things aren’t ideal.
Because goals are easy to set, standards are what you live by. The gap between the two is where most progress quietly disappears.
Goals Are Outcomes. Standards Are Behaviour.
A goal is something you want to have.
A standard is something you commit to doing, regardless of mood, motivation, or circumstances.
For example:
“I want a bigger total” is a goal.
“I don’t skip accessories” is a standard.“I want consistency” is a goal.
“I communicate when my week changes instead of disappearing” is a standard.“I want to compete more” is a goal.
“I train through imperfect weeks instead of waiting for the perfect one” is a standard.
Goals live in the future, but the standards that you hold yourself to show up in your daily decisions. Your results will always follow the latter.
Where Most Athletes Overestimate Themselves
Most athletes don’t fail because they aim too high. They fail because they assume future versions of themselves will behave differently without changing anything now.
They assume:
Life will calm down
Motivation will increase
Discipline will appear in January
But nothing about the calendar changes your patterns.
If your standard this year was:
Skipping sessions when tired
Avoiding uncomfortable work
Staying quiet when training wasn’t going well
Not focusing on your recovery.
Then a new goal won’t fix that, holding yourself to a higher standard will.
The Standards That Actually Change Outcomes
Here are a few standards that consistently separate athletes who progress from those who repeat the same year.
1. A communication standard
You speak up early. Not only when things feel good. Not only when you’re confident. You stay connected, even when training feels messy.
2. A preparation standard
Warm-ups, accessories, and technical work are not optional based on mood. You respect the small pieces because you understand what they build.
3. An honesty standard
You stop pretending you’re fine when you’re not. With your coach. With your body. With your recovery. Awareness always comes before progress.
4. An average-day standard
You no longer judge sessions as “worth it” only when they feel great. You train well on average days, because that’s where most weeks are spent.
5. A responsibility standard
You take ownership of niggles, fatigue, stress, and readiness instead of outsourcing responsibility to the program or the calendar.
None of these standards are flashy. But all of them are compound.
How to Approach Your Goals for 2026
Most athletes will write down a goal and stop there.
A number, competition goal, vague promise to “be more consistent.”
But goals without standards just become pressure. For example, many athletes will say their goal is to get stronger or hit a new PB. They write the number down, circle it, and assume that showing up to training will be enough….Sometimes it is. Often, it isn’t.
Because what’s actually holding you back usually isn’t effort, it’s how you’re arriving to your sessions.
Are you consistently under-fuelled?
Sleeping poorly?
Rushing warm-ups?
Lacking intention in your session?
In those cases, writing a bigger number doesn’t solve the problem, a higher standard will.
Instead of only setting a goal, set standards for the behaviours that support it:
A standard for nutrition that fuels training to support your performance.
A standard for sleep that prioritises recovery.
A standard for how you warm up, not just rushing through quickly.
A standard for how you show up in your sessions, the intention you bring to each exercise.
When you raise those standards, progress stops being dependent on motivation or perfect weeks. It becomes a byproduct of how you operate day to day.
The Real Shift
2026 doesn’t require more pressure. It doesn’t require harsher discipline or bigger promises. It requires a higher standard for how you treat your training, your body, and the process when things aren’t perfect. If you raise your standards, your goals will take care of themselves.
— The MWBC Coaching Team
