The NSW Office of Sport issued updated guidelines regarding lockdown rules in NSW from Sunday 19th September.

• There is now no limit to the duration in which outdoor exercise and recreation can take place including in areas of concern.
• Outdoor gatherings of up to five fully vaccinated people (not including children aged 12 and under) will be allowed in a person’s LGA or within 5km of home (previously only fully vaccinated household members could gather outdoors, or up to two fully vaccinated people from different households).

• Ensure that all three types of goals (outcome, performance and process) are set - Setting only outcome goals is psychologically destructive but occurs quite often because of the overwhelming emphasis we tend to place on winning in our culture. Coaches must emphasize the importance of setting process and performance goals. 
• Follow the SMART principle when setting goals; ensure your goals are: Specific, Measurable, Action-oriented, Realistic and Timely. Make goals specific – Setting general goals such as “improve your presentation” is easy but it becomes hard to determine how to go about improving your presentation without specific criteria or directives. Each skater should understand the action that they need to perform to achieve the goal.
• Write goals down – Physically writing down your goals will force you to visualise the goal and is the first step to making a commitment to the goal. Writing good goals (those that are Specific, Measurable, Action-oriented, Realistic and Timely) can be challenging. 
• Regularly monitor progress – Revisit goals frequently as a regular part of your training. 
• Use short-range goals to achieve long range plans - For example, if you want to try out for a junior team, or compete at Nationals, you should look ahead to the test requirements and strive to pass those tests well before the selection process commences. Setting up a weekly and daily practice plan with specific criteria for perfecting moves in the field, program elements, endurance and strength training including the number of trials and/or run-throughs are important short range goals for your long range plans.
• Set practice as well as competition goals –  Goals related to work ethic and attitude during practice are also essential. Showing up on time ready to skate, entering warm-up with enthusiasm and paying attention to the coach and team captain are examples. Goals can include complementing others on good effort or reducing negative thoughts at practice. Practice goals should also involve using mental skills such as imagery to help with skill learning, strategies, presentation and working through competitive anxiety. 
• Start small – Start by recording all of your goals, but work to prioritise the top three and strive to achieve those. Once they are achieved, you can move down your list.
• Make sure goals are internalised by the athlete – It is important that skaters feel in control of their goals. Ensuring that skaters accept and internalise goals is one of the most important features of goal setting. If skaters set their own goals, they will most likely internalise them. 
• Consider personality and individual differences in goal setting – Coaches should also keep in mind that skaters’ personality characteristics can determine how goal setting should be accomplished and what goals should be set. For example, some skaters might be more independent than others and able to adapt to setting their own goals compared to those who need more direction. Some skaters might have negative attitudes about setting and following goals; it is important for coaches to not overreact. Forcing skaters to set goals is ineffective because individual commitment is necessary. Rather, expose skaters to goal setting by working with those who show interest. Over time their success should convince the less committed that goal setting is worthwhile.
• Set positive goals as opposed to negative goals – Goals can be stated either positively (e.g., increase the number of times I land an axel) or negatively (e.g., reduce the number of times I fall on an axel). Whenever possible, set goals in positive terms by focusing on behaviours that should be present rather than those that should be absent. This can help skaters focus on success rather than failure.
• Seek support of goals – Significant people in a skaters life can help ensure goals are achieved. In addition to the coach, this usually includes parents, family, friends, and teammates. Educate these individuals about the types of goals that you are setting for yourself and the importance of their support in encouraging progress toward the goals.
• In the case of Synchro and TOI, set team as well as individual performance and process goals – Goals for the team can be set just as easily as for individuals. Coaches should also consider involving the team in setting some of the team’s goals.