Ah, the good old days of black and white newsprint, black and white TV, and black and white…thinking. You’re not still doing it, are you?
The “tiny” in tiny fitness is all about making tiny changes, because those are human-sized changes. We are not good at doing big things all at once, but we are great at increasingly small things (hello, short form video content). We are terrible at changing habits, but we are ok at making tweaks to what we are already doing.
Thankfully, everyone I train is human, so we are all in this tiny boat!
So, no, one “cheat meal” (we all know that is a forbidden term with me unless you stole the food or tricked someone into giving it to you!!) is not going to ruin your progress.
Missing one workout or even a week or two of workouts isn’t going to undo all your hard work.
There are anti-inflammatory foods and plenty of superfood fruits and veggies, but there are no “no” foods. Just moderation.
This is about health and improvement, not success or failure.
This is about making the most of the time you have, not throwing away your whole “old life” (unless you want to, in which case, I’ll get the bags).
This is about creating emotional safety for yourself and trusting that you really can reach your goals, in and out of the gym.
This is about being the best you in the way that you choose, not living up to anyone else’s standard…unless it’s that poster of movement standards in the studio, and that’s my job to get you there in a way that works for your unique physiology.
Long before I became a trainer, I used to be on team black and white. If I didn’t see the progress I thought I should see in the arbitrary timeframe I had invented, I changed lanes. Not hitting my goal mile run time? I didn’t perform targeted practice to improve my weaknesses, I just got frustrated with myself, quit briefly, tried the same old training program from a running magazine that wasn’t working, then said f*ck running for 6 months, repeat. Not seeing results on the scale from nutrition after eating better for 2 whole days? Changed all the food entirely instead of learning about macros. I could go on, but I see you nodding along.
Tiny changes stop the yo-yo cycle. Tiny changes take you from a dabbler to a pro. Tiny changes remove those opportunities to beat yourself up for being a regular ol’ person…and sometimes put the blame right back in those magazines/posts/tiktoks where it belongs.
Tiny changes are loving. Tiny changes are effective. Tiny changes are your quit-proof insurance – since we are never “ALL IN” on one set-in-stone plan, you are free to live your life and take my help to adjust our strategies to keep you on track toward your goals. And if you do take some time off, the results you sweated for will still be with you, because we built them “the right way” – they won’t yo-yo back away into the void.
So, are you still on team all or nothing? Or are you courageous enough to be honest about your day to day progress and appreciate each tiny win on your way to your big goal? I’ll be here cheering for you…
…and I’ll be here sweating with you! (PS – one of my fave things about Zumba is that it is just an hour of being off of team black and white, because there is no right way to take my class beyond showing up and doing your best for that hour!)
- Sunday 9am Zumba (free, meets at Levy Park – 3801 Eastside)
- Monday 6:30pm Zumba (free, meets at Levy Park – 3801 Eastside)
- Wednesday 7pm Zumba at Jerabeck Athletic Center (free / $5 suggested donation; no class Aug 23)
- Saturday 9:30am Zumba at Montrose Collective (free, 888 Westheimer, street/garage parking, stay for brunch if you want; no class Aug 26) – we have moved upstairs to where it is covered!
(And here is some more research-based food for thought about how you think about success – keep reading if you’d like!)
