When You Don't Have Access to a Gym or Equipment
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"If I can't do my planned workout, then what was the point of doing a workout at all?” Or, "If I don't have the equipment I normally use to get an effective workout, it's impossible for me to get a worthwhile workout in, so I'm just going to skip it." I bet you've said these two things before! I hear you and I catch what you're throwing. But girl, I’m going to dish it to you real: Every single one of those are excuses. And it’s those exact thoughts that are holding you back from building the body you want.
In this episode of Embrace Your Real, I help you break through your mentality of thinking you need to have a perfect gym setup or a perfect workout routine. I remind you to not let the facilities, or lack thereof, hold you back from building the body you want, or getting in any movement at all.
TRANSCRIPT:
Hey, hey, beautiful human. Can I steal five minutes of your time? I have something super important to share with you, but I promise I'll be very quick. You're listening to my weekly bonus episode of Embrace Your Real with me, Julie Ledbetter. I'm about to give you a quick tip 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 it, let's go.
Hello and welcome to the Embrace Your Real Podcast. In today's episode, I am going to help you a break through your mentality of you thinking that you need to have a perfect gym setup or a perfect workout routine, and reminding you to not let the facilities or lack thereof, how timely a facilities hold you back from movement at all. But before we dive in today's episode, if you haven't all ready subscribed to the podcast, be sure to do so. That just ensures that throughout this time you are constantly every Monday and Thursday getting notifications when a new podcast is up so that way you can have fresh inspiration and motivation right in your ears. As we walk through this time together, I want to be a voice for you, I want to encourage you, I want to stand beside you in this time. So be sure to subscribe to the podcast.
Also, if you haven't all ready rated and reviewed the podcast, it would mean the absolute world to me if you just took less than 60 seconds and do so. That just helps spread the message of the Embrace Your Real Podcast out into the world, and you guys know I want this message of authenticity and bravery and vulnerability and just real talk to get out into this world. So if you could do so, that would be incredible. In the upcoming shows, I'm actually going to be reading some of their reviews and I hope to read yours. All right, let's dive into today's episode.
Now, I know what you are thinking, "If I can't do my planned workout, then was the point of the workout at all? If I don't have the full hour today, then I'm just not going to do the workout that I initially had planned." Or, "How timely, if I don't have the equipment that I normally use to get an effective workout, then it's impossible for me to get a worthwhile workout in, so I'm just not going to do it at all." I hear you. I catch what you're throwing. But girl, you are listening to the Embrace Your Real Podcast, so you know your girl is going to dish it real to you and every single one of those things that I just stated, those are all merely excuses. It is those thoughts that are going to hold you back from building the body that you want.
You see, the truth is your transformation doesn't depend solely on the planned workout or the length of the workout or the equipment that is available or not available to you, but your transformation does depend on doing some sort of movement. Notice how I said movement, not workout. That's because your transformation just depends on you moving your body. That is it. And more specifically, your transformation depends on you moving your body consistently. I've said it before and I will say it again. Building the body that you want depends on consistency, not perfection. I will say that as many times as you need it because I need that to be ingrained in your mind and your body so that every single day you show up and you remember that any sort of movement is honoring your body. All right?
I love this quote from Jeff Olson. It is a quote that I remind myself whenever I feel like excuses are taking over my mind. He says, "If you will commit to showing up consistently every day, no matter what, then you have all ready won well more than half the battle." And furthermore, the next quote that I'm about to share with you, it sums up beautifully why showing up everyday helps you win more than half the battle because simple disciplines, little productive actions repeated consistently over time, add up the difference between failure and success. You see, movement no matter how simple, will ultimately add up to a major transformation in the longterm.
So the next time that you want to toss in the towel because you can't do your planned workout or because you don't have the full hour to dedicate to your scheduled workout or you don't have the right equipment or the equipment that you are used to using, you have to remember that all of those things are just excuses. You don't need to get that perfect workout in every day. You don't need to have a full hour to commit every day, and you don't need to have the equipment that you're normally used to using to build the body that you want. What you need is to consistently move your body.
I get it. You want to crush your movement the way that you want to crush a workout, but when that is not an option, you have to ask yourself this, "What is the next best thing?" And if that's not an option that day, ask yourself, "What's the next best thing?" And you've got to continue to ask yourself that until you find some type of movement that you can do in that moment. It's about finding things that you can control. I understand we live in a world of unvariables. We live in a world of uncertainty and we live in a world where we don't know what's going to happen tomorrow, but if you can commit to asking yourself what is the next best thing and do what you can in that moment, do what you can with what you have in that moment. That is all you can do that day and let that be enough.
You see, some days, my only option for movement is cleaning my bathroom or doing laundry. You know what? I've learned to tell myself, "Hey, that is still movement and that is still honoring my body." You have to remember that your best each day will be different every day. Your best today could be only 70% of what your best was yesterday or tomorrow. At the end of the day, your best is all that you have in that moment. And when you to do the best with what you have in each moment, those moments add up and those are what creates extraordinary results.
While we're on the topic, I need to say this. You need to stop obsessing about what you think the perfect exercise is for more toned abs or triceps or more defined shoulders or whatever muscle group you want to be more toned. You need to stop thinking that there is a perfect set and rep ratio. Obsessing over those things can be so paralyzing, and speaking from experience, it will lead you to no movement over time at all. Girl, I have to dish it real to you. Your body won't look much different if you decide to do two sets of 12 instead of three sets of 12 that day because you don't have as much time to complete your workout. You just got to do what you can with what you have.
Three sets of 12 or two sets of 12 is better than zero sets of zero. You catch what I'm throwing? And your body is not going to look much different if you decide to do weighted setups versus weighted V-ups, or tricep pushups versus tricep extensions. At the end of the day, movement is movement. So where ever it is coming from, a cardio machine that day, a dumbbell, a body weight exercise, playing with your kids, cleaning your bathroom, doing your laundry, movement is movement and movement is honoring your body. Remember that in this time of uncertainty, remember to do what you can with what you have.
That is all that I have for today's episode. I love connecting with you guys in my DMs, on Instagram. Be sure to screenshot this, post it up on your story, share the aha moments, share what you feel like this message is really speaking to you right now, especially in this time of uncertainty and I can't wait to connect with you. I love you so much and I will see you guys in the next episode.
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. Ledbetter. 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.