Why do we often struggle to keep up with our fitness goals? This episode uncovers the deeper motivations behind maintaining a fitness routine that goes beyond just physical appearances. Today I'm sharing my tried-and-true strategies that have empowered countless women, including myself, to stay active and prioritize fitness. Learn how to shift your perspective on exercise, making it a joyful and integral part of your daily routine. We’ll break down the practical steps you can take, no matter your current fitness level, and explore why establishing this routine is crucial for both your physical and mental well-being.
Join our text list to receive exclusive offers and uplifting body positive messages!
--> Text "Join" to 844-311-3767
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Shop our apparel! --> Love Your Body Now
Follow us on socials: @weareloveyourbodynow
Why do we often struggle to keep up with our fitness goals? This episode uncovers the deeper motivations behind maintaining a fitness routine that goes beyond just physical appearances. Today I'm sharing my tried-and-true strategies that have empowered countless women, including myself, to stay active and prioritize fitness. Learn how to shift your perspective on exercise, making it a joyful and integral part of your daily routine. We’ll break down the practical steps you can take, no matter your current fitness level, and explore why establishing this routine is crucial for both your physical and mental well-being.
Join our text list to receive exclusive offers and uplifting body positive messages!
--> Text "Join" to 844-311-3767
* * * * * * * * *
Shop our apparel! --> Love Your Body Now
Follow us on socials: @weareloveyourbodynow
If you've been following along to the podcast for a while now or maybe you follow the Love your Body Now Instagram page, you know that we have an apparel brand that is all about body positivity and self-love has evolved with time and I want to announce that I am now having anyone who wants to stay up to date with the apparel line and just the brand in general, any announcements that we share I have a text list that you can join. You'll also get exclusive offers with our apparel brand and you'll know when we are doing any kind of launches with different items and pre-orders. So if you want to stay in the loop with that, then you can join our text list by texting the number 844-311-3767. 311-3767 and all you have to do is text join and it'll automatically add you to our text list and you will be the first to know when we are adding new items to our apparel line or if we bring back any items that will be available for pre-order any sales. You will also get exclusive discounts for being a part of this text list and, of course, I plan to send out regular uplifting messages If you love to receive uplifting messages regarding self-love, body positivity nice little reminders, as you are on your growth journey towards loving your body, then you definitely should join, and you will also be able to send messages back to me, so if you ever have any questions or anything that resonates with you that you want to share, then we can actually text back and forth with this number. So I'm super excited to add this into the love your body now brand, and I can't wait for you to be a part of this exclusive community.
Speaker 1:All right, let's get into the episode. Welcome to the Love your Body Now podcast, the podcast for women who are ready to feel confident in their body right now and redefine what health looks like for them. I'm Savannah, your host, and together we'll be having conversations about what it means to accept and love our bodies now, while simultaneously prioritizing our health journey. We'll be debunking beliefs that do not serve us and diving into misconceptions and unhealthy narratives in the fitness world, so that we can rebuild our foundation from a place of self-love. Hello, friend, how are you doing? I wish I could hear your response, because I am just in a fantastic mood and I wish that I could chat with every single one of you and literally just have like a one-on-one conversation, because that's how much I love you and appreciate you and I just am super excited to record today's episode. I think it's because, like, I had a slow morning and then I did an amazing workout and I'm just feeling good this morning. It's a Saturday morning, the day that I'm recording this, so I'm just super excited to have this conversation because I wrote down a bunch of notes on this specific topic.
Speaker 1:On this specific topic, because I feel like this is such a common struggle that I see women have when it comes to their fitness routine and having a regular fitness routine. So I want to share with you my best practices, my best tips that I personally have followed, and things that I have helped women in the past before and like tips that I've shared in the past before and stuff that I've included in my wellness program that I used to have, and I think that these are really going to be helpful tools if you really like dedicate yourself to them and like actually apply them, because you know to hear tips and advice is one thing, but to really apply it and practice it is a whole nother thing. So let's dive into today's episode. Okay, so, whether you are maybe you are kind of regularly working out and like have somewhat of a consistent routine. Maybe it's like a here and there, hit or miss type of thing, but you don't go like a long time without having some kind of routine. It's maybe like you're just super busy and you have a hard time, like making it a priority every single day or just like super regularly, but like it's still somewhat a part of your life. Or maybe you really do struggle with keeping a fitness routine, whether you have had one in the past or maybe you haven't ever really had one before and you're looking to get into fitness. All all of these tips that I share today, no matter where you are at in your fitness journey, you can apply into your life and you just have to be mindful of where you are at. But trust me, like with the tips that I share, we're going to be talking more about just like the different seasons that you're in and the different fitness levels and the different consistency that you have. We're going to be talking about all of it.
Speaker 1:So the first tip that I want to share in regards to getting back into a fitness routine, or having a fitness routine that you stick to regularly and making it just like a part of your lifestyle is really uncovering why a fitness routine is important to you in the first place. And I know that probably every single fitness influencer that you follow probably says this, or maybe no one says this, but they kind of just like cover it on a surface level type of deal. And I want you to actually take the time to figure out why a fitness routine really does matter to you and I want you to really take out the aesthetic part of it. And I know that that can be challenging for some people, especially if, like that's why you're wanting to get into it is because maybe you've experienced body changes weight gain or, yeah, like body changes is pretty typical for a lot of women as we get older and if we're not, you know, as physically fit or active as maybe we used to be I know some of us grew up playing sports and then, once you're done playing sports, it can be challenging to continue the workout routine because it's always been something that was automatically integrated into your life and you know the programs and exercise routines were always just already there for you and set up for you.
Speaker 1:So then kind of like going from having that to transitioning into adult life and real world problems and then trying to navigate fitness by yourself. It can be like a whole another challenge. And, trust me, I understand it because I grew up in sports all the way up until when I graduated college. So navigating that like, trust me, I understand. But how can you really start to better understand why fitness really does matter to you outside of aesthetics? Because, I get it, we all have this perception of what our body should quote-unquote should look like, or what we want it to look like or what it used to look like. I get that. We all internally struggle with that piece of it and then we want to combine fitness into that part of our perception and our belief when it comes to our physical body and it comes to our fitness. But, trust me, when you can really do your best to separate fitness and physical aesthetics, fitness and exercise and working out becomes so much more enjoyable, so much more sustainable and is way easier to become a part of your lifestyle and integrate into your lifestyle. Just trust me on this.
Speaker 1:Again, I know, I know, I know it's so much easier said than done, but once you have it as like a regular habit and a regular routine, then maybe you can start to really like use fitness um to. If there are, like certain aesthetic goals that you have, then that can be maybe more of a focus. But first, like let's lay down the foundations. Let's like lay down the groundwork. Let's first start to establish these habits before we focus on how you can like work on aesthetics or like work on physical goals, because they're not necessarily bad to have, not trying to like deem them as like evil.
Speaker 1:But as someone who really like has struggled with body image all her life and has used fitness as a way to try and like control my physical body, it can be a really huge internal struggle that can be really hard to navigate, especially when you're really just like wanting to prioritize your health and fitness and try to heal your relationship with your body. I really recommend focusing on okay, what are the reasons that like having a fitness routine is going to benefit my life, and when you can start to start asking these questions and like really starting to like think about your day to day, like, for example, if you are someone who really struggles with feeling tired all of the time, or maybe you have struggles with like getting up and around places, like if you feel like just like walking through the grocery store, like walking from your car to the grocery store or, you know, going up and down the stairs is like really challenging for you to the point where it's like this is like really affecting my life. Like I think about you know my lifestyle and when I like travel and stuff like that, I like to go a lot of places and that requires like a lot of walking and sometimes I like to go on hikes when we're traveling and it's like if I wasn't taking care of my physical body, doing those types of things would be less enjoyable. Therefore, I would be like less present in the moment and I wouldn't get as much out of it because I would be like physically struggling and I wouldn't be able to just like enjoy the whole process and like the entire time that I'm there. So start to think about things like that. Or maybe you have kids and let's say, your kids are really active with activities and like you're running around all the time with your kids and it just feels so exhausting being able to take care of your physical health. It's going to make things like that feel less exhausting. Now I'm not saying it's going to take away like how I mean, if you're super busy, like yeah, that's going to exhaust you, but if you are also prioritizing your physical health, then you're going to be able to keep up a lot better and it's not going to be so it's not going to be such a hindering thing in your life. So it's like little things like that. How can you start to think about how fitness would improve those little areas of your life, and it may even help to really like journal about this. And if you haven't listened to my episode where I talk about how you can like really journal effectively, then definitely check out that episode it was a really recent episode so you won't have to scroll back too far but really how you can go deeper with yourself and understand why fitness is truly important to you.
Speaker 1:Again, let's try to separate how fitness and like exercise and working out. Let's try to separate that from aesthetics, because, first of all, you are going to be able to do way more with your physical body and aesthetics when it comes to nutrition, as opposed to exercise. Because if I see this all the time, where people are like really upset with their physical body maybe they've gained weight, um, and they're really like struggling with that and I hear so many people be like I need to, like, start going to the gym, like I need to do these things and like, yes, exercise will help with that. I'm not I'm not saying that it won't help, but you are going to see physical results way better and like way more effectively when you actually focus on nutrition. Because, let me tell you, when I physically looked like I was in the best shape of my life, like I'm talking like really toned physical abs I only worked out like 30 minutes a day. That's all I did, and I literally looked like I was like this, like incredible athlete, and it was because of my nutrition. Like it, yes, like exercise was a piece of it, but my nutrition had so much more to do with it. Like I was so disciplined when it came to my nutrition in a way that I had never been in my life, and that is where, like, I literally saw physical changes the the most I had ever seen in my life. Again, yes, exercise plays a plays a part in it, but nutrition plays a much bigger part of it. So, so that's why I'm like, yes, like, let's work out if you're trying to lose weight. Like, yeah, like, but I'm like very much.
Speaker 1:Like exercise is hard for us, right it's. We're literally having to exert energy and, if it's not a habit, our body naturally wants to preserve energy. Like it's just it's survival instincts. Like, literally, it's a survival instinct to want to preserve energy, which is why working out can feel so challenging for us sometimes and it's like all we want to do is lay on the couch because that's literally preserving energy, which is a survival, survival mechanism. That our biology, just that's just how we are like, that's just how it is.
Speaker 1:So if you're like already trying to establish a fitness routine because you just like, don't like your body, that only goes so far for you. And if you can like develop a relationship with exercise that makes it fun, makes it enjoyable, makes you like look forward to it and like you enjoy the different challenges that you're giving yourself, it's just so much easier to establish the habit. Like I wish I could shout it from the rooftops because I've been there, like I know, I know what it's like when you're exercising because you hate your body. It's like this these two like negatives going against each other. You already don't enjoy exercise and you're doing things to like push yourself because you feel like that's the only way you're gonna like your body. So you're already like not liking exercise and then you're already not liking your body and then you're trying to put it all together. That only takes you so far before it's just like screw this, like I'm not doing this, this is too hard, I don't even like it. Like all of these things compiled against you.
Speaker 1:So if you can really start to like understand why fitness can really enhance your life and do so many amazing things for you, and like there's just so many good things that can come out of like focusing on your, your physical fitness and making it enjoyable, like oh my gosh, I keep saying like I need to stop. Okay, but when you discover different hobbies that allow you to focus on fitness so, for example, dancing that's not something we usually think about when we think about exercise. I know a lot of people enjoy gardening, even just going for a walk. Yes, like all of these things may seem like they're not super effective, but trust me, if you enjoy them and it means that you're going to do them regularly, that's going to do a lot for you in the long run, as you are starting to establish these habits with your fitness routine. And guess what, when you start to establish those habits, your trust in yourself starts to go up, your confidence starts to go up and then it just trickles down and it may lead to you incorporating more challenging exercises, more challenging workouts, because you've already built that confidence in yourself of those repetitive habits and routines of just doing things and showing up for yourself in ways that you enjoy. So that is the first tip that I wanted to share.
Speaker 1:The second tip is to consider what has worked for you in the past and what hasn't worked for you in the past. Now I understand if maybe you don't have a background in working out and in fitness and this is the first time you've ever started to implement it. Obviously, like this will be a little bit different. But even think back to, like when you were really young and you were a kid, and maybe you used to play outside a lot and maybe you used to play a sport when you were really young. It's okay to think back to whatever age you were, when there was some form of fitness. Maybe you used to dance, maybe you used to garden with your mom or dad, I don't know. Just start to think about more so, physical activity versus structured exercise and working out Physical activity is going to help you start to think about what has worked for you in the past before versus what hasn't, and then, after you've done that, I also want you to consider what season you are in in your life, whether you were a really young kid, or maybe you were a teenager or early 20s whatever age, I want you to think about like the season that you were in, because if you were someone who has like three kids and you work full time and you know life is super busy, that is a very different season from when maybe you were in your early 20s and you worked a part-time job and that was basically the only responsibility that you had.
Speaker 1:Obviously, it might have been a lot easier to have a consistent fitness or physical activity incorporated into your lifestyle during that season. So this is something that you need to be super realistic with yourself and just take it as data. Take it as information. Don't take it as like, oh, I wish things were like that back then or things are so much crazier, and like feeling sad about the situation that you're in right now. That's not the purpose of looking back and trying to figure out what has worked for you in the past or what hasn't worked for you in the past and what seasons you were in. The whole point of that is just to take data and try to understand.
Speaker 1:Okay, well, I used to be really regular at going to the gym three days a week back when I don't know, like maybe a year ago, and I was doing that, okay, so if you were being really regular during that time and going to the gym three days a week, but you fell out of it somewhere along the way, what were some of the things that you did that helped you stay consistent? Did you have a friend that you would meet with at the gym? Were you signing up for classes? Did you have a different work schedule? Start to look at that and see what season were you in that made it more simple for you or made it easier for you to stay consistent and how can you like take some of those things and apply it to where you're at right now? Or, if you know that you've tried to work out in the past, let's say you've tried to establish a regular routine of going to the gym and maybe you tried to do that in the morning before work and you tried to do that like three times a week and you have tried that multiple times and it never works out. Well, by looking at that situation and understanding, okay, I've tried these things in the past before and I struggled to stay consistent, can you ask yourself why you feel like you couldn't stay consistent or why you struggled to stay consistent? Was it because you were super tired in the morning and just like never got up to your alarm? If that's the case, can you think about okay, I really do want to make it a priority in the morning, but every time I've tried it in the morning, it never works.
Speaker 1:What are some ways that you can set yourself up for success, to really start to establish those habits of working out in the morning? Can you put your alarm clock far away from you from the bed? You put your alarm clock far away from you from the bed. Can you you know, um pack your clothes ready to go, like everything that you need to go in the morning. Have it ready. That way, it's not anything you have to worry about in the morning. All you have to do is wake up, change and go. Can you establish some form of accountability whether you're signing up for classes. Maybe that way it's like there's people that you're going to meet there, whether you don't know anyone, but maybe you befriend the instructor and you have that just a little form of accountability, like it may not be much, but all these little things that you can integrate and start to add in to increase your level of success or increase your probability of succeeding and sticking with it. Or maybe you sign up with a friend, like that is even taking it a step further.
Speaker 1:But really just start to analyze that data, see what has worked for you in the past, what hasn't. What did you like? What did you not like? Why do you think it didn't work? What hasn't? What did you like? What did you not like? Why do you think it didn't work?
Speaker 1:Don't be hard on yourself. Don't kick yourself for maybe past attempts at trying to make this work, because if you are someone who maybe has really always struggled with establishing a fitness routine, it's not necessarily because you're incapable. It may just be because you haven't found the ways that you can better set yourself up for success. Remember, it's our body's natural tendency, and like nature, to want to preserve energy and if you really haven't ever had to establish this routine for yourself. It's going to be challenging, like having to establish any kind of habit or routine is always going to be challenging. And just because it's fitness related and maybe you haven't haven't established consistency with that yet, does not mean you are incapable.
Speaker 1:Now this next tip kind of goes hand in hand with the previous tip and it's really just being super realistic with yourself and where you are currently at right now regarding your fitness routine and your habits and your season of life. Because I see this all the time and I see people do this when I've worked with people in the past like I see this all the time where someone will want to start incorporating fitness in their life and they overcommit and I'm not saying that it can't be done, because there's plenty of people out there who just wake up one day and they decide, like you know, the pain of not incorporating this into my life is way too much more than not having it in my life. I think I I don't know if I said that right, um, but like it is definitely possible to just wake up one day and want to change your life and just like implement all these awesome habits. But if you are someone which, if you read the title of this podcast and you have struggled in the past to like stay consistent on a regular basis, then you may want to try this approach, and this is an approach that I highly highly recommend, which is to meet yourself where you're at and take things very, very, very slow. I know nobody wants to take things slow, especially if you were like I need to change my life yesterday, but when you can meet yourself where you're at, here's the thing.
Speaker 1:When it comes to the human brain and trying to establish too much all at once, it is a contradicting what's the word I'm trying to say? Like it is contradicting to our identity and that's just like our brain's perception of who we are. When it comes to our identity, and if you are trying to establish all this change all at once, your brain again natural tendency it's in its nature is to do and make choices that align with the identity that we carry with ourselves. So if we are someone who maybe has always struggled with prioritizing fitness in our life and that is the repetitive belief that we have told ourselves, and it is the truth that we carry about ourselves that we are not someone who is physically active or we are not a person who likes to work out. We are not this, this and this, and then all of a sudden, you decide one day that you are going to be that person.
Speaker 1:Well, the underlying like, on a subconscious level, our brain has repeated these truths and these beliefs over and over and over again. It is almost like it is ingrained into our DNA. And I'm not saying you can't like undo it and start to develop new beliefs, but that shit takes a long time to like, redevelop and just basically develop new beliefs. The longer, obviously, that you stick to something and you repeat will come with time and you'll start to develop a new identity. But this is why I highly recommend doing it at a very slow pace, because if you overwhelm your brain and basically contradict it to like what it believes that its identity is, it's naturally going to self-sabotage. And that's where a lot of self-sabotage comes into play.
Speaker 1:In a lot of my beginning episodes I talk about the psychology behind the self-sabotage when it comes to our health and fitness is that if you are doing all of these changes but your identity is like I'm not a fitness person, I don't work out, I hate working out, I'm, you know, I'm not fit, I don't do these things, then your brain is going to try to do whatever it can to basically prove that its belief is correct, because our brain never wants to be wrong. That's why, having arguments with people, we're always the person that's right. Right, it never wants to be wrong. So when you're constantly contradicting it over and over and over again at such a high caliber, it's going to be like, ah, like, and then it might like, you might go into freeze mode or you might go into um.
Speaker 1:You know, whatever your triggers are to self-sabotage, it's your brain's way of protecting itself and its identity and its beliefs. So you kind of have to be, you kind of have to outsmart your brain in a way, because your brain's so smart, it's going to want you to stay the same so that it, like, is still aligned with your core beliefs about yourself. Talking subconscious level, because you may say it on like a surface level and say, no, I am a fitness person, whoo and. But you don't actually believe that because all your life you've been telling yourself that you're not a fitness person or you don't work out. You have to meet yourself where you're at. You have to meet your brain where it's at, to where you're making a small change where your brain isn't like signaling all these alerts and be like, oh my gosh, like she's doing things that don't really align with who we are. Oh my gosh, like, let me find a way to self-sabotage this. You have to do it to where your brain is like oh no it.
Speaker 1:We, you know sometimes, like going on a walk is fine, like it doesn't mean that we're trying to be a fitness person, when we're totally not. And it's like doing those little baby steps. And then, once you establish those routines and those habits, then it's like, okay, I'm going to bring it to the next level now, but like, again, another baby step. So if you are, for example, someone who maybe just like does, never like, never works out, never exercises, but you want to start doing that, and you say, okay, I'm going to start really small and I'm just going to go on like a five to 10 minute walk on my lunch break, that's it, that is all I'm going to do. And let's say, you say like I will do this three to five days a week. That way it's like if you don't get the five days a week, but maybe you get three, it doesn't feel like you failed, it feels like, okay, I still accomplished the goal, um, and you're starting to do that pretty regularly.
Speaker 1:Then it's like, okay, I have officially been able to go on my walk for five to ten minutes during my lunch break for the last week, or two weeks or three weeks, however long you want to just really try and focus on that specific habit, then maybe you increase the amount of time you go on your lunch break, or maybe, instead of increasing it, you start to implement more of those five to ten minute walks throughout your day, not just your lunch break. So you see how it's like very small, very minimal, doesn't feel like you're doing a whole lot, and you can like sprinkle this in in, like in different ways, so it doesn't just have to be the walk. Maybe you decide to do the five to 10 minute walk during your lunch break, but also on top of that, um, something completely separate. Maybe you're gonna I don't know add in um, uh, let me think, uh, maybe you're going to increase your water intake by like three um water bottles a day instead of maybe you barely only drink one, and so those are like two small little things that you're focusing on, but they add up right and you can continue to increase those small little increments every single week, every single two weeks. Again, meet yourself where you're at, be real with yourself and meet yourself where you're at and don't be so hard on yourself.
Speaker 1:Again, these things take time and, honestly, the slower you can go with it, I think is more of like an establishing solid, foundational thing that you can do for yourself than trying to go 100 miles an hour like jump into the deep end and like do it all at once, because, again, I see this a lot where people do do that and they're successful with it for maybe like six months to a year. Well, let's not say a year, let's say like for three to six months. They are consistent and successful with it and then maybe something like tragic or just like really crazy happens in their life. That is like very you know, it's like adversity hits basically and they kind of just like lose grip of everything that they accomplish because life happens. That's just how it goes if they don't have like a strong foundation and they were just doing all of that fitness stuff because they were trying to lose 50 pounds and it's just much easier that for them to revert back to old habits because they tried to skip so many steps.
Speaker 1:You get what I'm saying. So that's why it can be so powerful to take things very, very slow, because it's almost like you're building blocks from the ground up, as opposed to trying to build the whole thing in one one day. I hope that makes sense, okay, next tip how can you layer in multiple ways of support for yourself? And yes, I'm sure the first thing you think about is an accountability buddy. But here's the one thing that I'll say about accountability buddies is they're great, but if they are not like on another level, so if they're not like on a higher level than you, then sometimes accountability buddies can also be. You know the reason that you don't really really push yourself, and here's what I mean by this.
Speaker 1:So me and my husband we're both we regularly work out okay and for the most part, we both eat pretty healthy. However, because we're kind of like at that same level of commitment and, yes, like, if he's doing really well in his fitness routine and nutrition, then I'm more likely to like follow into that. But because, again, we're at the same level, basically, of commitment, that's the best way I can explain it if he decides like oh, you know, like I actually don't want to work out as often, or you know, he kind of like slips up a little bit. I am very likely to also slip up, and that's because we're just at the same level of commitment and you know our identity when it comes to health and fitness of who we are. We're just at, we're just at a very similar level. So, um, we're very easily influenced by the other person. And that's what happens with an accountability buddy You're very easily influenced. So if you're at the same level and you, you guys like slip up, quote, unquote, whatever, um, whatever you want to call it, uh, like you know, at the same um, intensity, I guess, then that other person isn't always going to be the best person who pushes you Like, yes, sometimes they will be, but other times they won't.
Speaker 1:I hope this is making sense. So, for example, for me, an ideal accountability buddy for me would be someone who is like, really, really dedicated, like I'm talking way more dedicated than I am, and that's because I am already at a level where I'm dedicated but I could take it a step further, and it's like I need to be around the person or the people who take it a step further more than I do, because then that's going to bring me to my next level, as opposed to if I'm going to be in accountability with a friend who maybe I'm more of their next level, then they're honestly probably going to bring me down like less because they're trying to match my level. But there's always this like little in between of like you guys kind of like meet in the middle, if that makes sense. So if I'm someone who's super dedicated to my workouts and then I want to add in an accountability buddy but they're maybe just getting started with their fitness, they're kind of gonna I don't want to say hold me back a little bit, but I'm not gonna be pushing myself as hard as if I were working with someone who was at an even higher level than myself. So accountabilities buddies are great, they're fantastic.
Speaker 1:Me and my husband, like, we're great at accountability for each other. Not that we're super, um, we don't really like uh, what's the word? We don't really depend on each other, I guess, but being around each other when we're both dedicated is great accountability. However, again, if one of us isn't, then it automatically kind of brings that other person down, because you're naturally going to be influenced by the people that you're around. So what I'm trying to say is, yes, get an accountability buddy. They're freaking amazing and it will help you take things to the next level.
Speaker 1:But also understand that about your accountability buddy, they are, like what their level of dedication and commitment is to their fitness level? Um, because if they are maybe a little bit less than you, then you need to and and adding in accountability is a priority for you then you need to make sure that you're also adding in like higher level accountability whether that be, um, I don't know. Like you get a personal trainer, that would be a perfect example of accountability at a higher caliber, because obviously that person already has a very established fitness routine, but maybe it's like joining a community and you're surrounded by more than one person. So if your regular accountability buddy isn't feeling it that day, you still have like a whole group of people that you can lean in on and use for accountability and use, help them like keep you inspired and motivated. So just have that.
Speaker 1:Be mindful of that type of support when it comes to accountability buddies, because I see this also where people like will you know? They'll say okay, like let's be accountability buddies, and they'll kind of like fully depend on the accountability buddy to hold them accountable and to me, like that's not what an accountability buddy is. If you are depending on the other person to make you show up, to maybe guilt you into showing up or whatever like, that to me is like you're just going to drag the other person down if you hold that type of weight in them because no one is going to make a change. Let me restate that you are not going to be making changes person down and for you to expect them to make you do things that you are not making yourself do, that is not fair to the other person. Now it's different if, like they, you're like, ugh, like, or if you have to meet maybe you decide to meet at the gym regularly and maybe you had a bad day or something again like, don't drag the other person down and try to like convince the other person that you guys shouldn't go that day, because that's not, you're not being a very good accountability buddy when you do that. But if they are someone who is like no, like, like I get you had a bad day, like let's go and do this workout, so again they're just like more so, radiating positivity and reminding you why it matters to you, then that's like the great, that's a great accountability buddy but just wanted to say that about accountability buddies.
Speaker 1:As far as, like adding in other layers of support, think about ways that, again, you can make having a fitness routine easier in your life, whether you have your workout clothes ready to go, that's that's one way. Maybe you start following a workout program. To me, that's like simplifying, establishing your fitness routine. Especially if you're, just like you, already struggle with getting into the gym or starting your workout. It's going to be much easier to just hit, play or get started if you're following a program, as opposed to you get to the gym, which was already an obstacle in itself, and then you have to try and figure out what you're going to do. Make it easier on yourself by following a workout program, deciding what you're going to do before you get to the gym, and then also figuring out ahead of time when you plan to work out and just like that. These are all layers of support for yourself. Again, setting yourself up for success.
Speaker 1:What was the other one that I wanted to say? Oh, how can you also give yourself like multiple options of different ways you can work out. So, again, maybe you're taking things slow and you're just trying to integrate physical activity into your life more. I personally like to have lots of options of what to do. I sometimes will go on a run, I sometimes will do a workout at my gym, sometimes I'll do a workout upstairs, and sometimes I like to go on my trampoline and jump, and so it's like I have all of these different layers of what I can do for exercise, what I enjoy, how my body's feeling. It just is. It diversifies. I'm like, did I say that right? The different ways that I can stay active.
Speaker 1:Okay, last tip that I just want to leave you with is be okay with letting go of like expectations, and what I mean by that is, again, if you maybe used to do, I don't know, like power lifting I'm thinking of myself power lifting when you were in high school and college and that was the way that you stayed active and you loved it or whatever but now you are super busy and you don't live super close to a gym, or maybe it takes like 15 minutes to get to a gym somewhere, but you really just want to start working out again and feeling good, and maybe working out at home is the best option for you. It's okay if it looks different than how it used to Like. It's okay. We don't have to do the same things that we used to do just because we thought that that's what fitness had to look like in our life. Or maybe your fitness routine doesn't look like the fitness influencers that you follow on Instagram.
Speaker 1:Your fitness journey and the things that you do to stay active and just enjoy and take care of your body does not have to look like anyone else's, and the sooner you can let go of those expectations and even expectations of your physical body image again, the sooner you are going to enjoy things more, you're not going to view exercise and working out so strictly and it will be so much more sustainable for you. That is the goal right To establish these habits, to establish a strong fitness foundation. These habits to establish a strong fitness foundation and make it sustainable and a part of our lifestyle, so it's not something that feels forced and feels like we dread all the time and feels like we hate. Exercise is meant to enhance your life. Always remember that. It is not meant to make you hate exercising, and there is a difference, I think, between wanting like doing a challenging workout because you love the challenge and because you love pushing yourself and how you feel after. There is a huge difference between that driver for that type of workout versus doing it because you feel like you have to and you feel like that's the only way to have an effective workout and you feel like that's the only way you're gonna lose weight, like. No, I hate that.
Speaker 1:The fitness industry has like taught us that and ingrained that in that in us, and I used to believe that too, because, again, I grew up playing sports and so my exercise was literally either training for my sport or conditioning at practice or whatever. So my workouts were honestly pretty brutal. Sometimes, and especially when I got to college, my workouts were so freaking brutal. And then I graduated college and had to do workouts on my own, and the workouts I started doing were during COVID, at home and for 30 minutes, like no longer than 30 minutes, and I was like this is like I should be dying and I'm not dying. I mean I am dying, but like not in the same way that I did when I was like conditioning for softball and working out and doing like an hour and a half long workout and doing two workouts a day.
Speaker 1:It looked very, very different and for a long time I thought this isn't enough, like I'm not pushing myself hard enough and that's just because I just adopted that belief that that's what fitness had to be. But no, fitness can be. I can do it from home and still have it be super effective. I can do it for 30 minutes. It doesn't have to be an hour, like if trainers are telling you you have to do at least a minimum hour workout every single day, like anyone who tells you your fitness has to be this way, has to be that way, like run for the hills, because fitness and health, it's meant to work for you. It's not meant for you to like do things because so-and-so said you had to do them or because you saw this fitness influencer do them a certain way. It's meant for you and for you to find ways for it to enhance and improve your quality of life.
Speaker 1:So I know that this was like a little bit longer episode, but that's what happens when I take notes before my podcast and I actually stay on track with what I want to say and I just had a lot to say about this. But if this episode was helpful for you, please let me know. Please leave a review. I'm really trying to increase the amount of people who leave reviews, so if you could just like take one minute to leave a review, tell us what you think about the podcast, because I'm really trying to increase the exposure of the podcast and that happens with reviews. So the more reviews we can get, the more Apple and whatever other platform is going to push the podcast.
Speaker 1:So again, thank you so much for tuning in today and listening. I will chat with you soon. Thank you so much for tuning into today's episode. You have no idea how grateful I am to have you as one of the Love your Body Now listeners. If you are loving this podcast, it would mean the world to me if you subscribed and left a review. This helps me get the message out to more women just like you who are also committed to their journey. And if you love this episode, please be sure to share it with someone who you know needs to hear today's message. Together, we can help more women recognize their self-worth and build their confidence from a much deeper place, just like you're doing right now. Let's help change the world, one woman at a time. All right, talk to you soon, friend.