7 End of Year Reminders I Needed to Hear (And You Probably Do, Too!)
Does this time of year leave you feeling like you need to “have it all together”? If you’ve been putting pressure on yourself to tie everything up with a perfect little bow before January 1st, let me stop you right there. In today’s episode, I’m sharing seven heartfelt reminders I needed to hear as we wrap up the year—and I have a feeling you might need to hear them, too.
This year has been one of the most transformative of my life. Becoming a mom in July changed so much about my body, my priorities, and how I show up for myself. It’s been messy, beautiful, and full of lessons I didn’t see coming. These reminders are for anyone who feels overwhelmed by end-of-year expectations or just needs a little grace to move forward.
I also discuss:
(00:00) Empowerment Through Authenticity and Self-Care
(10:08) Navigating Growth and Healing
(15:53) Embracing Authentic Self-Worth
And more...
If you loved this episode, you’ll also love…
Episode 291: 5 End Of Year Embrace Your Real Reminders
If you want more from me, be sure to check out...
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Transcript:
[00:00:00] Hey there, beautiful human. You're listening to Embrace Your Real with Me, Julie Ledbetter. A podcast where I empower you to just be you with each episode and issue a dose of real talk and actionable advice for building your confidence, honoring your body and unconditionally loving your authentic self. Stay tuned. If you're ready to embrace your real, let's get hands, girl. Hello and welcome back to another episode on the Embrace Your podcast. Today's episode is a little different kind of as we wrap up the year. I wanted to have an honest heart to heart about something that so many of us feel but maybe don't always say out loud. Life bodies, seasons. They're always changing, right? For me, this year has been one of the most transformative of my life. Having a baby in July has really shifted so much of who I am and how I see myself and what really matters. Like my body looks different. My schedule is genuinely all over the place, and some days I just feel like I'm barely keeping it together. So I want to share seven reminders that have been really hitting me deep lately that I needed to hear. And maybe you did as well. Before we dive in, though, I want to share this review. It comes from Mommy of Boys. Hey, me too. Except one boy, not multiple boys. She gave a five star review and said, Amazing. I love your passion for helping other women in their health and fitness. I'm so grateful. Thank you so much for taking time out of your day. I love these super simple reviews. I love the long ones, everything in between. So thank you for taking time out of your day to send in this review. Okay. I just want to share from the heart seven reminders that personally have been hitting me deep lately, and maybe they'll help you as well. Number one, you have to remember that your body is incredible, just as it is. Like this time of year loves to remind us of our body image issues. It feels super heightened right now. I don't know what it is like. We maybe all gain a bit of holiday weight. It's normal. Then we put a magnifying glass on our body and we pick apart every little part of it. Right. Lately I have just tried to remind myself, and I'm telling you, I'm far from perfect, but I have been trying to remind myself just how incredible my body is, even though it doesn't look the same as it did last year. At this time, I'm reminding myself that my body carried a baby. It gave birth and now is nourishing and supporting not just my baby, but my family and myself. And that is nothing short of miraculous in my opinion. And yet it's so easy to forget. Like I've had to remind myself, the changes my body has gone through are not something to fix, but something to honor. Like these changes are proof of life, of growth, of resilience, not failure. It's a daily practice to really reframe these thoughts, especially when society loves to put so much focus on bouncing back or looking a certain way, even if your body doesn't look or perform the same as it did earlier this year or last year or two years ago, you are still worthy and it is still worthy of love and care and gratitude. Your body is carrying you through this moment. It is adapting to everything that you're asking it to do. Whether that's healing, that's juggling motherhood, or just keeping you upright on hard days, it's doing its best for you. And there is so much strength in that, even when it doesn't feel like it. When we view our bodies as something to cherish rather than to critique, everything genuinely changes. This doesn't mean that we can't work towards goals or that we can't want to change our bodies, but it does mean that giving ourselves grace during this process is the utmost important. You have to celebrate what your body does for you today, tomorrow what it did for you yesterday. It is your partner, not your enemy, and it deserves to be treated this way. Number two, consistency beats perfection. Some weeks I genuinely feel like I'm on top of the world. I'm crushing my workouts again. Three, four workouts in a week, hitting everywhere up, making progress. Other weeks, I'm celebrating the fact that I genuinely managed to squeeze in like a 15 minute walk or do some light stretching or mobility between naps, feedings or right before bed. Like all of those things though, those are all versions of showing up and all of those versions of showing up count. Even if they look different, you have to remember that progress isn't about perfection or even a streak. It's about consistency over time. So whether that's movement, that's nutrition, that's mindset work, that spiritual work, whatever it is, small steps lead to big changes. Perfection is a trap that really does keep us stuck. It makes us either never start or give up too quickly and stay that focus on being consistent with what's possible for you today. I and some days that means like a full workout and others that means like stretching or walking. You have to remember though, that both of those are wins. Consistency is about building trust with yourself. It's about proving that you can show up even when the circumstances are not ideal. That trust becomes the foundation for progress and it actually compounds week after week and you slowly reaching your goals. So I need you to let go of wanting or needing to do it perfectly and. Genuinely celebrate every step that you take, no matter how small it is. Your fitness journey or any other goal that you're working for is not ruined because you had to slow down or take a detour. Life happens and sometimes our plans have to adjust accordingly. What I've learned is that these off moments don't erase the work that you've done right. They're just a part of the process. And really acknowledging that is so freeing, progress is about building something sustainable, and that means honoring the ebb and honoring the flow of your energy, your time, your life circumstances. There is no need to pressure yourself to always be on. Progress happens when you show up for yourself, however that looks like today. I cannot stress that enough, so please do not forget that progress isn't linear and consistency beats perfection every single time. Repeat that to yourself every single day. The third reminder is that you don't have to have it all figured out. I really, really needed to hear this one right now. Like, we have to constantly remind ourselves that life isn't about having everything perfectly plan or even, you know, knowing the next step at all times. Hardly anyone on earth really has this figured out. It's about really navigating the unexpected with as much grace as possible. This year, more than any other year in my 34 years of life has taught me that embracing the unknown can lead to some of the most meaningful growth. Like when you let go of the need of control, you create space for new opportunities and lessons to emerge. This season of life is messy. My season of life is chaotic, but it's beautiful. It's genuinely it's part of the journey. And I think that it's easy to get caught up in the idea that you need to have all the answers, especially when you are navigating big life transitions. But the truth is that none of us have it all figured out, and that is okay. Life isn't a test that you need to pass. It's an experience that you are meant to live. Let me say it again. Life isn't a test that you need to pass. It's an experience that you are meant to live. So if you are feeling uncertain or you're feeling overwhelmed, know that you're not alone. You are genuinely not alone. You are allowed to take things one step at a time. Trusting that clarity will come when it's meant to. For now, focus on being present and open to the lessons. This season is here to teach you. And there is one thing you know Blake is five months right now as I'm recording this. And just like the transitions that he is making milestone wise and just like develop mentally is so astonishing how fast people said like, don't blink. It's going to go by so fast. And I'm like, I know this is feel. This feels like it's going like going by so slow. And I look back and I'm like, my gosh, it's going by so fast, you know, nap, transitioning, all these different transitions that he's going through. And if there is one thing that I have to remind myself and have been reminding myself is I just have to take it one day at a time, one thing at a time. This is the first. This is my first kid. I don't know what the heck I'm doing, to be honest. Like, there is so much conflicting information out there for sleep and for feeding and for all of these different things. And so I just have to just trust that clarity will come when it's meant to you and just take it again day by day, by day by day. I don't need to have next week figured out. I don't need to have next month figured out. I'm just going day by day. Number four, your goals do not expire on December 31st like this. New year. New year, new you. Pressure is everywhere this time of year. But here's the truth. You don't need to have a fresh calendar to have a fresh start. Your goals don't just magically reset when the clock strikes midnight on January 1st. Like, genuinely, this means that you didn't fail. It means that your goals are still work in progress, and progress happens every single day, not just in January. And the only timeline that matters is the one that works for you. And so I personally have learned to stop putting so much pressure on these arbitrary deadlines and really instead focus on these sustainable habits that align with my long term vision. Right. Big goals are great, but they don't mean anything without the small, consistent actions that bring them to life. Again, let me say that again. Bagels are great, but they do not mean anything without the small, consistent actions that bring them to life. So as this year winds down, remember that there's no rash, really. There is genuinely no rush. It is not a race. No one is counting. No one is holding you to a specific deadline. You know, you don't need to fix everything before the new year or have all of your resolutions mapped out by December 30th 1st or January 1st. Give yourself permission to go at your own pace knowing that meaningful progress doesn't have an expiration date. Number five. The fifth reminder is that you are doing better than you think. My gosh. Please, please, please hear me when I say this. When I look back on this year, I realize how often I underestimated myself. There were so many days that I felt like I wasn't doing enough, whether as a mom, as a wife, as a business owner, as a friend in my. Fitness routine. My gosh. The list goes on and on and on. But when I take a step back and see all that I've managed to navigate and accomplish, I am reminded that I am doing better than I give myself credit for. And I bet you're doing the same thing. You're downplaying your progress, are only focusing on what didn't go as planned. I need you to take a moment to acknowledge how far you've come, whether that's physically, mentally, emotionally, financially, spiritually. Think about the challenges that you face this year, the ways that you've grown, the ones that you've experienced, no matter how small. Progress isn't just about these big milestones. It's about showing up for yourself day after day after day. Even when it's hard, you are doing enough and you are doing amazing the work that you're putting in. Even if it feels invisible, is creating change and is creating growth within you. So stop being so hard on yourself. Trust that the version of you right now is exactly where you need to be and give yourself credit for all the things that you've accomplished along the way. The sixth reminder is growth doesn't always feel good. Growth is often romanticized as this super inspiring journey of self-discovery and transformation. But is it like? Is it really? The truth is, growth can be messy. It can be uncomfortable. It can be downright painful. This year, I've learned that evolving into a new version of yourself means that you have to shed the old one. And the process isn't always peaceful, and it definitely is not easy. It is full of moments where you are questioning yourself. You feel stuck. You're grieving what you used to have or what you used to experience, or you just have this discomfort that makes you want to quit. I know it feels hard right now. It just means that you are in the middle of something incredible. You have to remember that growth doesn't always look or feel the way that we expect it to, but that doesn't mean that it's not happening. Oftentimes, the most meaningful progress happens in those moments that we feel like we're at our breaking point. This discomfort is proof that you're stretching yourself in ways that will ultimately lead to transformation. So I need you to stay with it. Trust that struggle is a part of the process, and that on the other side of discomfort is something stronger, wiser and more aligned with who you're meant to be. Growth isn't supposed to feel easy. It's supposed to feel real. And the seventh and last reminder is that healing is not linear. It does not have a deadline. I know I talked about this like progress not being linear, but I think that we have to realize that healing isn't always linear either. Like postpartum recovery has been genuinely. I'm not joking. One of the most humbling lessons in patience and surrender. I have come to terms with the fact that healing, whether that is physical, emotional, mental, spiritual. This is not a straight line. Some days feel like breakthroughs where I'm starting to feel like myself again and other days feel like these incredible setbacks and weeks of setbacks where I'm frustrated and I'm questioning how they even made any progress at all. Like healing, I believe, happens in layers. And every step is progress, even if it doesn't look like it. The moments where you feel like you're starting over, those are not failures. Those are a part of the process. It's easy to want to rush through the hard parts, but true healing requires time. It requires grace, and it genuinely requires this willingness to let things unfold as they're meant to. There is no deadline for feeling whole again. I need you to give yourself permission to move at your own pace. Trust that the journey is just as important as the destination. And healing is never about perfection. It is about allowing yourself to move forward, no matter how slow or messy it feels. So there you have it. Those are seven reminders that I personally needed to hear before the New Year. And I'm hoping and praying that some of you guys needed to hear them as well. All of this sums up to give yourself lots and lots of compassion and trust the process along the way. Let me quickly recap the seven reminders that I talked about in today's episode. Number one, Your body is incredible, just as it is. Number two, consistency beats perfection. Number three, you don't have to have it all figured out. I definitely don't. I'm going day by day, sister, and you can do a number for your goals. Do not expire on December 31st. Number five. You're actually doing better than you think. Number six, growth doesn't always feel good. And last but not least, number seven. Healing isn't linear and it doesn't have a deadline. If you love this episode, I know you also love Episode 291 five End of Year. Embrace your own reminders. I will go ahead and link that in the show notes that you can easily go check that out. But I hope that this just encouraged you, inspired you in some way, shape or form. I just want you to know that you are doing amazing whether you are in this post. Season like I am. Maybe you're pregnant and you're about to be in a postpartum season. Or maybe that's not your story at all right now. Maybe you're just in a totally different season of life. Things are changing or things have been hard. You've gone through some hard, hard things this year. I hope that this gives you encouragement in some way, shape or form. I love you so dang much. I mean it. And I'll take in the next one. All right, sister. That's all I got for you today. But I have two things that I need you to do. First thing, if you're not already following me on the gram. Be sure to do so, Julie. A lot better. Yes, it's with an A in the middle for that Daily Post workout. Real talk, healthy tips and tricks and honest accountability to keep your mind and heart in check. The second thing, be sure to subscribe to Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode. Thank you so much for joining me. It means the absolute world. And I'm going to leave you with one last thought. The most beautiful women that I have met in my life are the ones who are completely confident and secure in being authentically themselves. Remember that beauty goes so much deeper than the surface. So go out there and embrace your real because you're worth it. [00:00:00]