Fitness Q&A

 

A workout plan can be great and still feel hard to stick with.

Motivation fades. Progress feels slow. Travel throws off the routine. Discipline starts to feel confusing. And suddenly, the thing that looked simple on paper feels a lot harder in real life.

Not to burst your bubble, but the plan might not be the problem.

In this episode of Embrace Your Real, we are getting into the mindset side of fitness that matters just as much as the workouts themselves. I’m answering your questions about motivation, plateaus, travel, consistency, and the line between healthy discipline and pushing yourself too far.

What’s Discussed:

  • Why frustration with your body is not the best long-term motivation

  • How movement can become about what it adds to your life, not just what it changes on your body

  • How long to give a workout program before deciding it is not working

  • Why progress can show up in energy, strength, confidence, and consistency before the mirror catches up

  • How to tell the difference between a plateau and a sustainable place for your body

  • What to do when travel or work throws off your normal routine

  • Where healthy discipline ends and toxic discipline begins

Movement With Julie is built for the life you actually have. Inside the app, you get five brand-new workouts each week, full-length and 30-minute options, minimal equipment workouts, and the flexibility to train at home, in the gym, or while traveling. Head to movementwithjulie.com to get started.

And if the nutrition side feels just as confusing, Macro Counting Made Simple helps you learn how to fuel your body in a way that supports your training without restriction or overwhelm. Head to macrocountingmadesimple.com to get started.

If this episode had you rethinking what actually makes fitness sustainable, go listen to Episode 649: 5 Fitness Rules Then vs. Now: What We Got Wrong and What Actually Works. It is the perfect follow-up if old fitness rules are still making consistency feel harder than it needs to be. I will link it in the show notes for you.

If you want more from me, be sure to check out…

Transcript

(0:00) Hey there, beautiful human. You're listening to Embrace Your Real with me, Julie Ledbetter, (0:06) a podcast where I empower you to just be you. With each episode, I give you a dose of real talk (0:11) and actionable advice for building your confidence, honoring your body, and unconditionally loving your (0:17) authentic self.

Stay tuned if you're ready to Embrace Your Real. Let's get it, let's go. (0:27) Hello and welcome back to another episode on the Embrace Your Real podcast.

Today we're talking (0:32) about fitness, but honestly, probably not in the way that you'd expect. We're not getting into sets (0:37) and reps today. We're getting into the stuff that actually determines whether you stick with any of (0:42) this long-term.

And that stuff is motivation, plateaus, discipline. I know these things don't (0:47) sound as exciting as a brand new workout plan, but here's the truth. You can have the best (0:51) workout program on the planet and it will not matter if your motivation runs out the second (0:56) that you feel a little better.

You can be doing everything right and still convince yourself (1:00) that it's not working because you don't see a difference after a few weeks. You can be (1:03) consistent for months and then have one busy travel week that makes you feel like you're (1:08) completely starting over. The plan was never the problem, this is.

So today I'm going to be (1:13) answering the questions that you have about motivation that actually lasts, giving a new (1:18) workout program enough time, plateaus, and staying consistent through travel where discipline (1:24) crosses into the toxic realm. All right, let me first share the super sweet review. She gave (1:29) a five-star review and said, packed with great info.

Julie's podcasts are packed with uplifting, (1:34) knowledgeable, and helpful info to help me learn something new to live my best life. (1:39) Love these podcasts and love her positive approach. Hands down, my favorite podcast.

(1:44) Thank you, Julie. Thank you. Thank you so much for taking time out of your day to send in this (1:47) review.

I really appreciate it. I'm so grateful that you are learning something and that you are (1:52) finding these episodes helpful. That is ultimately the goal.

So thank you for taking time out of (1:57) your day to send these in. I'm just going to get straight into it today because we have (2:01) five questions from you guys regarding fitness. All right, question number one, she says, (2:07) is it bad that I only feel motivated to work out when I'm mad at my body? How do I find a better (2:12) reason? All right, this is super honest.

So thank you for sharing this because I think that (2:17) a lot of women struggle with this as well. No, it does not make you bad. A lot of people (2:21) initially become motivated to work out because they just feel frustrated with their bodies.

(2:25) Like maybe you look at, you're looking in the mirror one morning and you decide that something (2:30) has to change or your clothes just don't fit the way that you want. Or you see a picture of (2:34) yourself that you don't like. That frustration can push you to start moving, but it usually (2:38) does not create the kind of motivation that lasts.

And I think that that last part is really (2:42) important because when your only reason for working out is changing what your body looks (2:46) like, you have to remain dissatisfied with yourself to stay motivated. And the moment (2:50) that you feel better about your appearance, stop seeing physical progress or become tired (2:54) of criticizing yourself, that motivation begins to disappear. So I want you to start paying more (3:00) attention to how movement makes you feel.

Like how do you feel when you have been consistent (3:06) with your workouts? You probably feel more energized, stronger, confident. You're sleeping (3:10) better. You manage stress more easily.

You begin to trust yourself because you're following (3:14) through on something that you said you would. Now I want you to compare with how you feel after (3:19) several weeks without intentionally moving your body. Your energy likely feels low.

You feel (3:24) sluggish, irritable, and everyday tasks just feel harder because you're no longer keeping that (3:29) commitment to yourself. I want you to pay attention to that difference. The physical change (3:33) that you want is likely going to take time, but movement can improve the way that you (3:38) experience your body today.

And guess what? That gives you a reason to keep going even when you (3:42) cannot see an obvious difference in the mirror. And I want you to identify your deeper reason (3:47) why. If you say I want to work out because I want to lose weight, I want you to ask yourself (3:51) why do you want to lose that weight? Maybe your answer is because I want to feel more (3:55) confident.

Then ask yourself why confidence matters to you. Maybe you want to stop hiding (3:59) in pictures, participate more fully in your life, have more energy for your children, (4:03) protect your health so that you can keep doing things that you love as you get older. (4:07) Keep asking why until you reach something that feels emotionally meaningful.

Weight loss is going (4:14) to give you a target, but your deeper why is going to explain why that target matters. (4:20) You are likely going to discover that the feeling that you are chasing can begin before your body (4:25) changes. You can become more confident by keeping promises to yourself, gaining energy by moving (4:30) today and growing stronger one workout at a time.

I want you to let your motivation come (4:36) from what movement adds to your life. So before your next workout, I want you to ask (4:41) yourself, okay, how will this make me feel? And then remember that feeling the next time (4:46) that you don't want to begin again. Question number two, she asks, how long should I actually (4:51) stick with the program before deciding it's not working? Okay, this is a great one.

I (4:55) personally would generally recommend giving a new program anywhere from eight to 12 weeks. (5:00) Your body is going to need time to become familiar with movements, adapt to the workload, (5:04) and just overall begin responding to what you're asking it to do. The beginning of almost any (5:09) new routine can feel uncomfortable.

Your muscles are likely going to be super sore, (5:14) the exercise might feel awkward, and getting yourself even to begin might require a lot of (5:19) mental effort. That does not immediately mean that you chose the wrong program, (5:23) because moving your body consistently again is going to feel difficult at first regardless (5:28) of what program you chose. And this is why oftentimes you might notice physiological (5:32) and performance changes before you see a major physical transformation, right? You may feel (5:37) more energized, notice your mood improving, or feel just proud that overall that you followed (5:41) through.

Within the first several weeks, movements should start feeling more natural, and you might (5:47) realize that you can lift a little bit more weight or complete more reps. Visible changes (5:52) in your body composition tend to require more patience. Muscle growth can begin the early (5:58) stages of resistance training, but noticeable changes commonly at least take place within (6:04) 8 to 12 weeks, and honestly longer depending on where your starting point was, where your (6:10) nutrition is at, where your genetics are at, how consistent you're being.

And this is why I don't (6:14) want you to evaluate a program only by what you're seeing in the mirror after two weeks, (6:19) because at that point you're better off asking yourself, do I have more energy? Am I becoming (6:23) more stronger? Are the movements becoming easier? Do I feel more confident or capable? (6:28) Those are all signs that the program that you're following might be working (6:32) before a dramatic physical difference becomes visible. At the same time, 8 weeks is likely (6:38) enough time to start recognizing whether a routine fits your life. If you're 8 weeks in and you (6:43) absolutely hate every workout, you dread doing it and feel no better physically, no better mentally, (6:49) the program might not be suitable for you.

You should expect some discomfort, like I mentioned, (6:54) especially early on, but not feeling like you're forcing yourself through something (6:58) that you despise indefinitely. You also need to kind of consider whether the problem is the (7:04) program or the size of the commitment. I see people choosing programs that require 7 workouts (7:10) per week or an hour every single day when they just don't have that.

And that is such a dramatic (7:15) change in your routine if you are going from 0 to 100. Of course, it's going to become (7:21) overwhelming almost immediately, but if you're following a structured program for 8 weeks and (7:26) that just feels impossible, I want you to simplify the goal, right? Commit to 30 minutes (7:31) of movement, whether that is walking, Pilates, resistance training, build the habit first, (7:37) and once it's normal, you can add more structure. You can also choose a program (7:42) that actually fits your life.

And this is why in my workout program, which is my dumb only (7:47) workouts, I have 5 brand new workouts every single week that release on Saturdays at 8am (7:52) Mountain Standard Time. And for every workout, you have both a 60 minute or a 30 minute option (7:57) because I understand that we do not all have an hour available every day or even 5 days a week. (8:03) And so if 5 days a week even feels too much, go down to 3 days a week.

Lower body, upper body, (8:08) full body. You don't need to do even all 5 days a week. But if you want to learn more, (8:12) I'll link that in the show notes below.

But ultimately, I want you to choose a program that (8:15) challenges you without asking you to build your life, your entire life around it. And then I (8:21) want you to give yourself at least 8 to 12 weeks to build that habit, evaluate how you feel, (8:26) and see what the program can actually do. Alright, question number 3, she says, (8:30) what's the difference between a plateau and my body just settling somewhere it's supposed to be? (8:35) This is great.

This is honestly a great observation because I think that people get (8:39) this confused a lot. And this can be incredibly difficult to differentiate because so many people (8:44) assume that at any point where their progress slows, that just means that they've reached a (8:48) plateau. A plateau generally means that a result that you were previously seeing has stopped (8:53) despite continuing to follow your plan consistently.

So maybe your strength is no longer (8:59) increasing or your measurements or your body composition have really remained unchanged for (9:04) weeks. Before calling it a plateau, I want you to give it enough time. A few days without change (9:09) does not mean that you've plateaued since your weight and appearance can really fluctuate (9:13) because of your cycle, your hydration, your sleep, your stress.

You need to also look (9:17) honestly at whether your habits have remained consistent or not. Are you following your workouts (9:22) and challenging yourself during them? Are you nourishing your body with what it needs? Has your (9:27) daily movement changed overall? Sometimes progress has stalled because one part of the plan needs (9:32) to be adjusted. I actually have another episode that I will link in the show notes below, (9:37) but it will walk you through exactly what to look for if you believe that you hit a plateau.

(9:42) Sometimes your body has settled into a healthy and sustainable range based on your genetics, (9:48) lifestyle, or your nutrition, or your movement, your hormones, your current season of life. (9:52) That possibility can become difficult to accept, especially when you're comparing yourself to (9:57) someone who just naturally has a body type completely different from yours. Just remember (10:02) that our bodies come in so many different shapes and sizes.

Some people just naturally (10:07) carry less body fat. Some people have visible muscle more easily. Some can maintain visible (10:13) ab muscle or definition without really organizing their entire lives around it while someone else (10:19) might need to be extremely restrictive in order to maintain the same look.

We cannot choose (10:24) someone else's body as our goal and assume that failing to look like them means that we've (10:29) plateaued. Just remember that their genetics, their muscle distribution, their lifestyle, (10:34) their history, they're all different from yours. You could follow the exact same workout (10:37) and nutrition plan and still have different results.

Here's how I want you to evaluate it. (10:42) Am I nourishing my body with what it needs? Am I honoring my body with consistent movement? (10:47) Do I feel strong? Do I feel energized? Can I maintain these habits without constantly (10:52) restricting myself? If those things are true, your body may be showing you what it looks like (10:58) when it's consistently nourished and cared for. You might also be able to push past that point, (11:04) but you have to ask yourself, what would it require? Would it require cutting your food (11:09) lower? Would it require exercising significantly more or obsessing over every meal or sacrificing (11:14) your energy or your social life or your mental health? That cost matters as well.

(11:18) And so if you've addressed all of that, progressive overload, protein, sleep, recovery, (11:22) and honesty about your habits and your body still remains in the same place, (11:26) I want you to consider that this may be a sustainable and healthy range for you. (11:31) Your healthiest body may still have curves. It may still have softness.

It might not have (11:36) or be as sharply defined as you wish that it was. You are allowed to stop treating those features (11:42) as proof that your body is unfinished. All right, question number four, she says, (11:47) what do you do when travel or work totally wrecks your schedule for weeks at a time? (11:51) All right, this is a great question because there are a lot of working professionals (11:54) in my community that do travel for work or they travel often, but I do not want you to (12:01) allow a busy schedule to completely break the habit.

I want you to keep the habit and (12:05) reduce the amount of times that it requires. So if you normally work out three days a week, (12:09) I want you to continue moving three days a week while you're traveling or working (12:13) through a demanding season. Maybe your usual workout is 45 or 60 minutes, (12:17) but your travel workout is only 15 or 20 minutes.

That still preserves the habit. (12:22) You could spend 15 minutes on pushups or air squats or lunges or a few exercises with (12:27) resistance bands. It doesn't have to be elaborate.

Your goal is simply to keep showing up (12:31) and you can usually find 20 minutes if you decide beforehand that it's a priority. (12:36) And remember that movement will oftentimes give you more energy for your trip or your (12:40) workday anyways. You might begin the workout thinking, oh, this is just taking time away from (12:45) everything else, but you will probably finish feeling more focused, alert, and just overall (12:50) confident because you accomplished it.

This is also something I love about Movement With Julie. (12:55) Many of the exercises that I have, I do have resistance bands options and I also have a flex (13:02) workout section where it's bodyweight only or it's resistance band only. So literally you can (13:08) do some sort of workout almost anywhere, whether it's at a hotel, Airbnb, or wherever you're (13:13) staying.

But if you are staying in a hotel with a gym, that is a great option. It doesn't (13:18) need to be advanced equipment. You guys know if you follow my workouts, all you need is a few (13:23) pair of dumbbells and a small space or even just do some sort of bodyweight workout in your room (13:28) or go for a walk outside.

My biggest piece of advice is to set yourself up for success (13:32) before the trip begins. So choose your workout days, decide what you're going to do, (13:36) pack your bands or your workout clothes, and then just follow the plan without renegotiating (13:40) every morning. When you wake up and start asking yourself whether or not you have enough time, (13:44) whether or not you feel like doing it, whether or not you should wait until tomorrow, (13:47) you're going to create room to talk yourself out of it.

So make the decision before you leave. You (13:52) do not need to maintain the most intense routine while traveling. You just need to protect your (13:57) connection to movement and return to your regular routine when you get home.

So it doesn't feel like (14:02) starting over. I do have another episode that I will link in the show notes about staying (14:06) active while traveling. So be sure to check that out in the show notes below.

All right. (14:10) Question number five. She said, what's something you used to believe about discipline that you (14:14) now think was actually kind of toxic? I'm starting to think there's a fine line, (14:19) but I don't know where that line actually is.

All right. Personally, I used to believe that (14:24) discipline meant always doing more. It meant never missing a workout, pushing through exhaustion, (14:29) following the plan exactly, proving that I was strong enough to ignore whatever my (14:33) body was telling me.

I thought resting, thought I was being lazy, like modifying a workout to me (14:37) felt like I was taking the easy way out. Or if I plan to work out for an hour and (14:42) only doing 30 minutes just did not feel good enough for me. That version of discipline (14:46) may look impressive from the outside, but it can become so toxic very quickly.

There is a (14:53) difference between challenging yourself through temporary discomfort and repeatedly abandoning (14:58) what your body needs to prove that you're disciplined. You hear me? Healthy discipline (15:02) helps you follow through when you're unmotivated. You might feel tired after a normal day and (15:07) still choose to complete the workout that you planned.

You might want to remain on the (15:11) couch, but you recognize that moving your body will help you feel better. And that's a healthy (15:15) discipline. But in my opinion, toxic discipline begins when every signal from your body becomes (15:22) something that you believe you need to overcome.

So you're in pain, but you work out anyway. You're (15:26) sick, but you refuse to rest. You are completely depleted, yet you push through another intense (15:31) workout because taking a day off makes you feel guilty.

You begin believing that the harder (15:36) something is on your body, the more effective or admirable you become. We've all been there, (15:41) right? No days off. I remember that meme from Pinterest.

It was all over. It's like, (15:47) no days off. The line is crossed when discipline starts costing your health, your peace, your (15:52) relationships, or your ability to enjoy your life.

Ask yourself what your discipline is creating. (15:57) Is it helping you feel stronger and more capable? Or is it helping you to give your (16:02) life more structure? Or maybe it's making you more anxious or exhausted or rigid or just (16:07) afraid to adjust your plan. Healthy discipline contains flexibility, in my opinion.

You can (16:12) go on vacation and shorten your workouts. You can attend a birthday party without believing (16:16) that you failed. You can take a rest day if your body needs one.

You can modify an exercise (16:20) that caused pain instead of forcing your way through it. You can miss a workout and return (16:24) to your routine the next day without punishing yourself. That flexibility does not make you less (16:28) disciplined.

It allows you to remain consistent over a much longer period of time. I also used (16:34) to think that discipline meant doing exactly what I had planned regardless of what was happening (16:38) in my life. But now being a mom and realizing that I don't really control my own life, (16:44) I understand that discipline can involve making the best decision for the day that I'm actually (16:49) having.

Like sometimes the discipline decision is completing the full workout. Other times it's (16:54) doing a 20 or 30 minute version. Sometimes it's walking, sometimes it's stretching, sometimes (16:59) it's just resting so my body can recover.

The decision should still be intentional. There's (17:05) a difference between genuinely needing recovery and then repeatedly using every inconvenience (17:09) as a reason to avoid movement. And that's really where self-awareness comes in, in my opinion.

(17:14) Ask yourself, am I avoiding this because it feels uncomfortable or does my body truly (17:19) need something different today? And I want you to be honest with that answer. (17:22) If you simply feel unmotivated, begin moving. Give yourself 10 minutes.

You'll oftentimes realize (17:27) that you are capable of continuing. But if you're experiencing pain or you're sick or you're just (17:33) extremely exhausted, those are maybe clear signs that you need recovery and I want you to honor (17:37) that information and that feedback that your body is giving you. Discipline should help you take (17:42) care of yourself consistently.

It should never require you to punish yourself consistently. (17:47) I now personally believe that one of the most disciplined things that you can do is (17:51) choose your routine that you can sustain and then remain committed to it and adjust it without (17:55) abandoning it when life changes. All right, let's wrap this up.

I talked about so many things. Those (18:01) are so many good questions, you guys. All right, number one, motivation built on frustration with (18:06) your body does not last because it requires you to stay dissatisfied with yourself to keep going.

(18:12) I want you to find your deeper reason why and let how movement makes you feel today become your (18:17) reason to keep showing up. Number two, give yourself at least eight to 12 weeks before deciding (18:22) if that program is working. You'll usually notice your energy, your mood, your performance change (18:27) long before a dramatic physical difference becomes visible in the mirror.

So just stay patient and (18:33) stay consistent. Number three, a true plateau means a result has genuinely stopped despite (18:39) real consistency. Sometimes your body has just simply settled into a healthy sustainable range (18:44) and that's not something that needs fixing, but be honest with yourself before you tell yourself (18:48) that you've hit a plateau.

Number four, don't let a busy travel schedule break the habit completely. (18:54) Keep the habit and shrink the time so that getting back to your normal routine (18:58) doesn't feel like starting over again. And last but not least, number five, healthy discipline (19:03) helps you follow through.

That toxic discipline is going to ignore your body and what it's (19:08) telling you. The line is really crossed the moment that discipline starts costing your health (19:12) or your peace or your ability to enjoy your life. If today's episode made you realize that you do (19:18) want a program where it kind of meets you where you're at, my Moo at Julie dumb only workouts are (19:23) going to give you structured workouts every single week.

We have a 30 minute or a six minute option (19:28) for every single workout. So you never really have to choose between showing up for yourself (19:32) and showing up for the rest of your life. Whether you're brand new or you're getting back into a (19:36) routine, you will always have a plan and genuinely all you need is a few pair of dumbbells (19:41) in a small space.

You can go to sale, S-A-L-E dot Moo at Julie.com. And if you need the nutrition (19:48) side of things and you want it to feel just as simple as the movement side of things, (19:53) my macro kind of made simple is going to teach you how to fuel your body in a way that supports (19:57) your training instead of working against it. So your effort and your workouts actually shows up (20:02) how you feel and how you progress together. Those things movement with Julie and macro (20:07) kind of made simple are going to help you build a body that you're proud of from a place of (20:12) consistency and self-respect instead of punishment.

Thank you so much for spending time with me today. (20:18) If this episode helped you, would you just send it to a friend who might need to hear that healthy (20:22) discipline looks like showing up, not punishing yourself to the ground. And just remember, (20:27) please, please, please, you do not need to earn rest.

You do not need to prove your (20:31) worth or exhaustion. You just need to keep showing up in whatever today actually allows. (20:35) I love you so dang much.

I mean it and I'll talk to you next one. (20:46) All right, sister, that's all I got for you today, but I have two things that I need you to do. (20:52) First thing, if you're not already following me on the gram, be sure to do so Julie A. Ledbetter.

(20:57) Yes, it's with an A in the middle for that daily post-workout real talk, (21:01) healthy tips and tricks, and honest accountability to keep your mind and heart in check. (21:05) The second thing, be sure to subscribe to Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode. (21:11) Thank you so much for joining me.

It means the absolute world. And I'm going to leave you (21:16) with one last thought. The most beautiful women that I have met in my life are the ones who are (21:21) completely confident and secure in being authentically themselves.

Remember that beauty (21:28) goes so much deeper than the surface. So go out there and embrace your real because you're worth it.

 
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