Why You Need a Monthly Check-In With Yourself

 

Most women only pause to reflect when things start to fall apart — when motivation dips, workouts stall, or nutrition feels off track. But waiting until you’re burned out to reassess is like waiting for the ceiling to cave in before fixing a leak.

In this episode, I’m sharing a simple but powerful tool that can completely shift your fitness, mindset, and progress: the monthly check-in. When you build in regular reflection, you create space to course-correct early, celebrate wins before you forget them, and stay honest about what’s actually working.

Here’s what we’re diving into:

  • Why monthly check-ins are one of the most powerful accountability tools you can use

  • The psychology behind reflection and how it strengthens self-discipline

  • Four honest questions to ask yourself every month to uncover what’s working and what’s not

  • How to use your answers to create clarity and momentum instead of all-or-nothing thinking

  • The link between self-awareness and lasting consistency in fitness and nutrition

If you’ve been spinning your wheels or feeling disconnected from your goals, this episode will help you reconnect, refocus, and move forward with confidence — one month at a time.

🎧 Want more? Check out Why Consistency Measures Progress Better Than the Scale

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

Transcript

00:00

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 really 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 back to another bonus episode on the Embrace your Real podcast.

00:38

Today I want to give you a simple but powerful tool that can completely change the way that you approach your fitness and your life, and that is the monthly check-in. Most women either avoid reflection altogether and only check in when things are feeling like they're completely falling apart, but waiting until you've already hit that frustration point or totally burned out is like waiting to fix a leaky roof until the whole ceiling caves in. When you build in monthly check-ins, you give yourself a chance to course correct before you completely spiral. You can celebrate wins before you forget them, and you can stay honest with yourself about what is working and what is not. So in today's bonus episode, I'm going to be breaking down why monthly check-ins are such a powerful accountability tool, the psychology behind reflection and self-honesty, the exact questions to ask yourself every month, and how to use your answers to keep moving forward without falling into this all or nothing trap. Before we dive in, I want to share this review. She gave a five-star review and said favorite podcast ever.

01:44

The Holy Spirit speaks directly to my heart through Julie. Whether I receive understanding the moment I hear the episode or days later, I always get something. Thank you, julie, for the practical advice and helping learning how to become self-disciplined. You have challenged my discipline, both spiritually and physically. Thank you again. So grateful for your podcast. Thank you so much. I really appreciate this. I am so grateful. That is always my hope and prayer is that the Holy Spirit speaks through me. Like every time before I get up here to the microphone, I just ask God and say God, this is not my platform, this is your platform, and so I pray that people don't hear me. They just hear you, and so thank you so much for bringing that up. It just is such a reassurance and just so grateful for you. So thank you again. If you could scooch over to Apple Podcasts and leave a rating interview, that would mean the world to me and our team Just kind of know how this podcast is helping you in general. All right, let's just dive right into the bonus episode.

02:42

So why monthly check-ins matter? I wanna talk about something called self-monitoring. So this is your ability to observe and evaluate your own behaviors in real time, and research shows that it's one of the biggest predictors of whether someone actually follows through on their goals. Why is that? Because awareness creates accountability. So here's what happens if you don't check in.

03:02

Your brain tends to operate on autopilot. So we are wired for habits, which means that if you don't stop to reflect, you'll repeat the same patterns, whether they're working for you or not. And that's why a few missed workouts or skipped protein goals can really snowball into weeks or even months of stalled progress, because your brain is just following that old loop. But when you pause once a month and you check in, you actually interrupt that loop. You force your brain to shift into what we call metacognition thinking about your own thinking and that one shift actually takes you out of autopilot and into intentional action. So the earlier that you catch yourself drifting, the easier it is to make a course correction before the frustration sets in. I want you to think of. Like strength training for your mind, so every monthly check-in strengthens your self-awareness muscle and, just like progressive overload builds stronger glutes or biceps, regular reflection actually builds stronger discipline and follow through.

04:04

So when you sit down for your monthly check-in, I want you to remember that it's not about shaming yourself for what didn't work. It's really about building the skill of noticing or recalibrating and moving forward with more clarity than you had before. That really is the secret sauce of lasting consistency. If nutrition is one of the places that you just keep feeling stuck, this is where my Macro Academy and Simple Online Academy can really give you the clarity that you need. Instead of writing, eat better or try harder in your notes, you're actually going to know how much protein, how many carbs, how many fats your body needs and how to hit them in a way that fits your life. So when your check-ins are rooted in real numbers and doable habits, it stops being vague and starts becoming actionable the questions that you need to ask in terms of your monthly check-in. So every month, I want you to carve out like 20 to 30 minutes, not for scrolling, not for cleaning out your inbox, but for sitting down with your notebook or even just the notes app on your phone and asking yourself brutally honest questions.

05:07

Four of them. Number one what is working? I want you to pause and actually celebrate yourself, like, maybe you have been showing up to your lifts, maybe you have been crushing your step goal, maybe you've even simply gotten better at saying no to things that drain your energy. I want you to write that down. Why? Because your brain is wired to repeat what you reward, so when you acknowledge your wins, you're literally reinforcing those neural pathways. Number two I want you to write down what is not working, and this is where most people tap out, because honesty stinks Like, but I'm here to remind you that growth only happens when you shine a light on the shadows. Maybe your workouts feel super scattered. Maybe weekends are derailing your nutrition. Maybe you're just your five minutes on. Tiktok is eating into your sleep. I want you to be very clear and very specific, because vagueness is what is going to keep you stuck. Number three why isn't it working?

05:59

Now, this is the part that no one really talks about. It's not enough just to say meal prep isn't working. You've got to dig deeper. Is it truly time, or is it that you don't have a system. Is it clarity, or are you still winging it without structure? Often, the why has less to do with willpower and more to do with systems, your environment, your plan, your habits they either work for you or they work against you.

06:21

And, last but not least, number four what needs to change to make it work? This is where reflection really turns into momentum. If your workouts feel super random, maybe it's time to follow a progressive plan or just a plan in general, instead of winging it. Random effort is going to yield random results, and that's just how your body works. But progress comes from gradually challenging your muscles with structure, lifting a little heavier, adding a rep, improving your form. Without that progression, you're just repeating the same thing over and over again and your body has no reason to adapt. Most of us avoid this process because it feels uncomfortable to face yourself on paper. But that discomfort that is where the growth is.

07:03

And if your workouts are the part that just keep spinning your wheels, like you are, like I do not know what to do with my workouts. I do some random workouts on YouTube, I do some random workouts from Instagram and I just don't have a plan. That is why I created my Moon with Julie app. It is dumbbell only workouts. Literally all you need is a few pair of dumbbells and a small space and that. I created this to help take that part of the equation off of your plate, so that you don't have to worry about it. You get a weekly plan so that you're not stuck guessing or piecing things together. Instead of random effort, you've got a roadmap that actually moves you forward. So if you want to learn more and join, you can go to salesalemovewithjuliecom and get 50% off your entire first month as a brand new subscriber. If you want to learn more, I will go ahead and link that in the show notes below or, just again, simply go to salesalemovewithjuliecom.

07:55

The psychology behind the monthly check-in is important, and here's why this matters so much. When you do regular check-ins, you're basically training your brain to step out of autopilot. So most of us go through the motions without even realizing it, like we wake up, we scroll, we skip breakfast, we promise ourselves we'll do better tomorrow. Does that sound familiar? Like that's your brain's default mode, running on the same old patterns on repeat. But when you pause to reflect, you move from reacting on autopilot to making conscious choices, and that shift can really change everything.

08:31

Check-ins also reduce something called cognitive dissonance. So this is just a fancy way of saying the stress that you feel when your actions don't match up with your goals. Like saying you want to build strength but you keep skipping all of your lifts that week Left unchecked. That disconnect leads to guilt, shame or just straight up avoidance. But when you check in with yourself, you catch it early. You can actually close the gap with small, specific changes. And here's another layer Every time you reflect and adjust, you're building self-efficacy, your belief in your ability to succeed.

09:05

You're proving to yourself I can figure this out, I can adapt. And that belief is what carries you through on the days. Motivation just is not there. And finally, check-ins lower the emotional weight. Instead of labeling yourself as a failure, you start to see things as feedback, like, wow, that strategy that I was using did not work, so let's tweak it. That shift protects your confidence and keeps you from slipping into this all or nothing thinking. You stop treating your journey like a pass or fail test and you start seeing it as a series of experiments. Right, and that reframe it doesn't just help you this month, it's going to build the mental muscles to keep you consistent for life?

09:44

Now, how do you use the answers? So, once you have answered those four questions that I just talked about, I don't want you to come up with this giant to-do list that overwhelms you. I want you to pick one small action step to focus on for the next month. Just one, because when you try to change everything at once, you usually end up changing nothing, like if your workouts have felt random. Don't pile on more cardio or chase every trend that you see online. Choose one structured dumbbell plan and stick with it for four, six, eight weeks. That single choice is not only going to build progress, but it's going to build confidence that you can actually follow through on. Again my moment with Julie dumbbell only workouts that can help you with that.

10:25

If protein is where you're struggling, don't try to overhaul your entire day. Start with breakfast. Hitting your protein in the morning has a crazy ripple effect. It actually makes it easier to keep hitting for the rest of the day, and one win sets the tone for the next. If you felt unsure on how much protein that you actually need or just how to balance the rest of your macros like what you need for where you're at and where your body is and also what your goals are. That's where my Macro Academy and Simple Online Academy can really help. It gives you the clarity on your numbers and shows you how to build meals that work for your goals, so that those small daily wins stack up into big, lasting results.

11:03

Now, if sleep is your weak spot, don't stress about getting the perfect eight hours right away. Start by setting a wind down alarm every night, like that. One step is going to tell your brain hey, we are creating a new rhythm here, and that rhythm is what is going to build real rest in the long term. Here's the deal Consistency comes from clarity and clarity comes from reflection. So when you know that one lever that you're pulling, you are going to stop spinning your wheels and start building momentum. Okay, there you have it Everything that you need to know about implementing a monthly check-in with yourself.

11:39

Let me quickly recap what we talked about in today's episode. So why monthly check-ins matter? Self-monitoring is one of the strongest predictors of success. Without it, small slips turn into big setbacks. With it, you break the loop, you build awareness and you make intentional choices, the questions that you need to ask. Ask yourself what is working, what is not working. Why isn't it working and what needs to change? Those four questions are going to take you from vague reflection into real, actionable clarity, the psychology behind it.

12:10

Check-ins pull you out of autopilot. They reduce guilt and they build self-efficacy, the belief that you can figure this out. Instead of this pass or fail thinking. You instead see this as a journey, as a series of experiments that strengthen your confidence. And, last but not least, how to use the answers. Don't try to change everything. I want you to pick one small action for the next month, one structured program, one protein target, one bedtime routine, because those small wins compound, and clarity fuels consistency. Let me say that again, clarity fuels consistency. It doesn't have to be complicated, you just have to be honest, and when you're honest with yourself regularly, you stop waiting for motivation and you start creating real momentum.

12:59

If you love this episode, I know you will also love this episode why consistency measures progress better than the scale. I will go ahead and link it in the show notes below. And if you are ready to take your check-ins a step further, remember my Moot with Julie D workouts gives you those structured workouts that keep you on track month after month. And my Macro Academy, simple Online Academy, is going to give you clarity with your nutrition so that you're never left guessing. That is all, though, that I have for today's episode. I hope it was helpful. I can't wait to hear what comes from your monthly check-ins. I love you so dang much. I mean it, and I'll talk to you in the next one.

13:47

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 are 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.

 
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