May 26, 2025 • 18 mins
Nothing happens until something moves. This principle guides not just physical motion but meaningful evolutions in the lives of our clients. As movement professionals, we're not just teaching bodies to move differently—we're guiding people toward becoming their best selves.
The stark reality is that 90% of people who start exercise programs quit within two years. What separates the successful 10% from the rest? After three decades teaching movement and Pilates, I've discovered four essential keys that unlock sustainable change and help people stay committed to their movement journey.
First, connect with your "big why." Simon Sinek was right—people make decisions based on beliefs and values, not just logic. When we operate from authentic passion and purpose, we naturally attract clients who resonate with our vision. Second, help clients find their intrinsic motivation. We can't motivate anyone to change; that spark must come from within. Our job is to help them connect movement to their deeper values—whether that's playing with grandchildren, continuing a beloved career, or contributing to causes they care about.
Third, support consistency through commitment. Change doesn't happen from what we do occasionally but from what we do consistently. Help clients examine whether their movement practice aligns with who they are and how they want to live. Finally, deliver excellence. Bring all your expertise, empathy, and continuous learning to support their journey.
Ready to transform how you inspire clients? Let's move beyond just teaching perfect form to guiding meaningful change—one step, one breath, one joyful movement at a time. How will you help your clients find their "why" today?
Heart of Motion Podcast host Susannah Steers is a Pilates & Integrated Movement Specialist and owner of Moving Spirit Pilates in North Vancouver, BC. She is passionate about movement, about connections and about life.
Through movement teaching, speaking, and facilitating workshops, she supports people in creating movement practices that promote fitness from the inside out. She loves building community, and participating in multi-disciplinary collaborations.
Along with her friend and colleague Gillian McCormick, Susannah also co-hosts The Small Conversations for a Better World podcast – an interview based podcast dedicated to promoting the kind of conversations about health that can spark positive change in individuals, families, communities and across the globe.
Social Media Links:
Moving Spirit Pilates Instagram
Moving Spirit Pilates Facebook
Susannah Steers Instagram
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Susannah Steers (00:00):
Welcome to the Heart of Motion podcast.
I'm Susannah Steers and I'll beyour host as we explore the
heart, soul and science ofmovement as a pathway to more
active, vibrant and connectedliving.
Nothing happens until somethingmoves, so let's get started.
If you're a movement teacher,fitness trainer or anyone
(00:22):
supporting others in a journeyto change their bodies and their
lives, this episode is for you.
I'm Susanna Steers, and todaywe're diving deeper into the art
and the heart of inspiringchange.
A few weeks ago, in episodenine of this season, I talked to
you about change itself, howit's hard, how resistance is
(00:42):
real and how most people,despite their best intentions,
struggle to make new habitsstick.
Today I want to speak directlyto you, the professionals, the
guides, the change agents aboutwhat it really takes to help
people not just start butsustain meaningful change in
movement, in fitness and inhealth.
And I want to start with what,for me, is a most basic truth,
(01:05):
and that is that movement isrelational in nature.
Nothing happens until somethingmoves.
Forces are constantly workingwith and against each other, and
if we accept that when we workwith people in their bodies,
we're working with more thanjust musculoskeletal structures,
then we have to acknowledgethat we are working in complex
territory that extends wellbeyond just the body.
(01:29):
Today, I want to talk about oneof the most underrated soft
skills involved in teachingmovement, and that is the
ability to inspire change, andmaybe inspiring change is the
wrong way to say it.
The people who come to us arealready looking for support as
they make some kind of change.
That's why they walk in thedoors.
Perhaps, then, our job is moreabout finding a way to help
(01:51):
people stay true to their owngoals and maybe holding a bigger
version for them than theyimagine is possible for
themselves.
I believe in my heart of heartsthat people working in movement
and fitness are change agentsof the most fundamental kind.
When we do what we do reallywell, when we train people to
move their bodies well and helpthem get active and healthy, we
(02:14):
can become catalysts for somepretty big evolutions in
people's lives.
The evolutions are up to them.
We just help them up-leveltheir skills and capacity to get
where they want to go.
But the kind of fundamentalchange I'm talking about doesn't
happen by accident and itdoesn't come easily, you know it
.
It's easy to make a decision,but even the best intentions in
(02:36):
the world don't hold up againstthe powers in and around us that
resist change.
The cold hard reality is that alot of people start off well
and then, for one or a thousandreasons, just can't seem to
follow through.
We've all experienced the weeksafter New Year's Classes are
stacked with people, departmentstores sell out of home workout
(02:56):
gear and the latest must-haveself-improvement videos fly off
the shelves.
I'm sure we've all known atleast one person who uses their
home gym as a stylish coathanger.
There are stats to show that asmany as 60% of people who start
an exercise program quit withinsix months, and within two
years that number jumps to 90.
(03:17):
90%.
But you and I know for a factthat change is possible.
There are people who do breakthrough old habits and patterns
to create change.
There are people who do findways to see beyond their now to
whatever their goal is.
Those people are the ones whocan delay the gratification of
(03:39):
eating that sugar-laden donut.
The ones who can continue toget up at the crack of dawn and
go for a run and donut.
The ones who can continue toget up at the crack of dawn and
go for a run.
Those are the ones who willfind a way to overcome the
obstacles that will inevitablyshow up to challenge their
progress.
So what's the difference?
How do some achieve spectacularsuccess when others
consistently fall short?
(04:00):
Is there anything that we cando as movement professionals to
help the people we work withfind the spark that gets them
moving towards meaningful changeand keep them going long enough
to achieve and sustain theirgoals?
After more than 30 years ofteaching movement, and at least
25 of those teaching Pilates andintegrated movement, I've come
(04:22):
to the conclusion that there arereally four keys to motivating
meaningful and sustainablechange in the people we work
with, and the first one is aboutthe big why.
What do you believe what liesat the heart of your work?
Why do you do what you do?
This is about passion.
It's about drive and aboutpurpose.
(04:42):
I truly believe that oursuccess in reaching our own
personal goals and in helpingour clients reach theirs is
largely dependent on our abilityto recognize, to value and
communicate why we do what we do, when we can look inside
ourselves and ask ourselvesthose questions and truly embody
the answers people hear andrespond to that passion.
(05:07):
Simon Sinek is a prolific writerand speaker on business
leadership.
I've read a bunch of his stuffand in many of his works he
states that people makedecisions based on their beliefs
and their values.
Makes sense, then, that inconnecting to our values and
beliefs around what we do, wecan motivate ourselves to live
(05:28):
our best version of ourselves.
And when our purpose feelsclose to our hearts, we can live
our values more easily.
We can more naturally attractothers who believe in similar
things.
It's all about connections toourselves, to our work and to
the people who want toexperience what we so
passionately offer up.
(05:50):
Okay, so let's say at this point, we've got people's attention.
Now what In this world?
Fitness, health and personalgrowth are multi-million dollar
industries and there is noshortage of expert advice.
Everyone has a popsicle stickto sell you.
The key is this or this, usethis technique, this protocol,
(06:10):
this system.
We live in a risk assessmentworld where we're all assailed
with the stats of our collectivefailures heart disease, stroke,
diabetes, everything on theincrease, obesity, rampant, blah
, blah, blah.
Maybe the stats work for some,but when was the last time that
a statistic about somethingreally gave you the conviction
(06:30):
to make a change?
I mean, I suppose if it'spersonal and you know someone
who's dying of cancer, you'remore likely to do what you can
to prevent it, but for mostthose stats just don't motivate.
The skills, the strategies andall the stats these are all
tools that may help along theway, but they're not what
inspires people to change theirbehavior in a sustained effort
(06:51):
to achieve a result differentfrom what they've done all along
.
So how do we motivate them tomake a change?
We don't, that's right, I saidit we don't.
We cannot motivate anyone tomake a change that they don't
believe they need or want tomake.
But what we can do is findthose meaningful things that do
(07:15):
motivate them to change.
And that brings me to my secondpoint.
We got to help people find anintrinsic motivation for their
goals.
Our goals for our clients andtheir goals for themselves may
be quite different.
To make fundamental, lastingchange, the actions that people
take must have a connection totheir deeper core values, the
(07:37):
reason they choose to perseverein the face of fatigue and
soreness, the reason they don'tsimply turn back over in bed
when the alarm rings for themorning workout.
Those reasons have to resonatefrom the inside out.
Otherwise, whatever goalthey've set out for themselves
is a should, and shoulds aresomeone else's information,
someone else's plan.
The client might try it on fora while, but unless that is
(08:00):
coming from a deeper belief thatchange is necessary, it
probably won't stick.
We can cheer them on andcelebrate their successes,
support them through theirfailures, but we can't motivate
them to change.
That has to come from within,and that's where inspiration
comes in.
Reaching for a change requiresthat we do something different,
(08:23):
that we change our habits, thatwe consciously choose to act in
a new way, and there's work inthat.
So the question boils down towhether we want the change
enough to do the work, and to dothe work when nobody's watching
to do the things we know weneed to do, even when it's hard,
(08:43):
even when it feels that in themoment it's bigger than we are.
I had a real wake-up call aroundthis a number of years ago.
I really wanted to find outwhat value my clients were
getting from me from theirperspective.
So I put together a littlesurvey and asked them some
questions about what they likedand what they didn't like in our
(09:03):
work together.
I asked them what benefits theyfelt they were achieving as a
result of our work together.
The responses that I expectedwere mostly physical.
You know, things like a bettercore, better strength, better
mobility, less pain, more energy, that kind of thing.
Instead, what I got was I do alot of volunteer work for a
(09:25):
cause that's important to me,and now I have the strength and
the stamina to contribute morein the ways I like to, or I can
participate in life more fully,or I was contemplating an end to
my dance career, but I realizednow that I'm not even close to
finished.
So they did get the corestrength, mobility and pain
(09:45):
relief, but what it meant tothem was much bigger, and that's
what we need to support.
When we can be open to who ourclients are, what's important to
them in their lives, who theyconnect to, what they respond to
, where they're headed, theseare the things that will give us
the cues we need, asprofessionals, to be able to
(10:06):
find the right words, the rightactions, the right cues to
connect to their most deeplyheld values.
Once they make a decision tochange based on those values,
they're off to the races, andthen I think our job is just to
help them to stay positive andmoving in the direction they
most desire to go, and that'smore about helping them to stay
(10:26):
committed, however we can.
And that brings me to the thirdpoint.
I think that creating andsupporting commitment is a huge
part of our jobs.
Change isn't created by thethings we do.
Occasionally, change comes as aresult of the things we do
consistently.
That saying kicks my buttsometimes.
(10:49):
It's a little reality check.
It doesn't matter what myexcuses are, what elaborate
rationalizations I have for notdoing something.
What it comes down to, pure andsimple, is whether I did or
whether I didn't.
So let's talk about consistency, because I think consistency
can tell us a lot about our truemotivations.
Since I'm a word nerd, I'mgoing to take us on a little
(11:12):
etymological journey.
Webster's Dictionary was kindenough to offer three
definitions for consistency thatwork for our discussion.
I think the first one isconsistency as a firmness of
constitution or character Interms of physical activity.
Most people probably connect tothis one quite easily.
It's that quality ofstick-to-itiveness that gets the
(11:33):
job done.
This one quite easily.
It's that quality ofstick-to-itiveness that gets the
job done.
But, as we all know, it's easyto set a goal, easy to state a
plan, but much, much harder tofollow through.
The next definition ofconsistency is a degree of
firmness, density, viscosity orresistance to movement or
separation of constituentparticles.
To me, this definition speaksto the texture of someone's
(11:55):
commitment to a goal.
When you think about workingtowards your goal, how does your
body feel?
Is the goal a heavy thing, aweight on your shoulders, an
onerous task to be completeddespite whatever hardships may
be heaped upon you?
Is the light at the end of thetunnel worth whatever sacrifices
you'll have to go through toget there?
Or does the thought ofachieving your goal get you
(12:18):
excited, help you findmotivation and give you energy
to proceed?
How will life be better onceyou've reached your goal?
Is there a goal at all, or areyou stuck on that insidious
hamster wheel of I can never befit enough.
Tapping into where our clientsare in this process can offer
pretty important insights intotheir journey and how we can
(12:40):
help Think about it.
If you have to fight intenseinternal resistance all the time
, or if the body feels dense,heavy and hard when you set out
on the path to achieving yourgoal, ask yourself why you're
feeling this way.
Sometimes the resistance issimply a resistance to change,
and that often wears off after afew weeks.
But if the resistance persists,check in with yourself.
(13:04):
That old Nike slogan just do itonly gets you so far?
If you joined the local runningclub to improve your
cardiovascular fitness and sheda few pounds, did you do it
because health pundits saidthat's what you should do or
because you enjoy running andlike the support of a group?
If you're killing yourself atCrossFit, is there some part of
(13:26):
that workout that brings youenergy and vitality, or do you
simply feel depleted and beat upwhen you're done?
If someone told you to doPilates for your posture and you
can't stand the pace of it, whydo you stay?
Sometimes we forget to listen toour own bodies and we do what
people tell us is a good idea,what's popular, what's getting
(13:47):
other people good results, andI'm all for trying stuff out as
much as possible, actually.
But it's important to check inand feel whether the path you're
choosing is a good fit fortaking you where you want to go.
And that brings me to the thirddefinition consistency as
agreement or harmony of parts orfeatures to one another or to
(14:09):
the whole.
Now, maybe I'm getting a littlewoo here, but bear with me for
a sec.
Is the plan for physicalactivity in harmony with who you
are and how you like to liveyour life?
Does it support the activitiesyou want most to achieve Playing
with your kids, staying healthyand preventing injury, climbing
Mount Everest, running afortune 500 company building
(14:29):
schools in Africa Because ifyour movement doesn't line up
somehow with the rest of yourlife, you are likely to
experience, at the very least,difficulty being consistent with
it.
Your physical activity willcertainly change and evolve as
you go along, just as the restof your life does.
Does your program allow forthat, or is it an all or nothing
(14:50):
type situation?
Consistency is a fascinating andcomplex concept, and I love it
and I hate it too, probablybecause to really be consistent,
I have to be completely honestwith myself.
I have to call myself on mystories and make sure that my
goals are meaningful.
They're meaningful things thatI, deep down, really want to
achieve, and when I really wantsomething, then it's a lot
(15:14):
easier to move toward it.
I can have fun and groundmyself in a sense of purpose
that will help me through eventhe toughest days, and I can
find ways to do what I need todo, allowing for little shifts
and changes that may benecessary because life happens.
So, as we think about all ofthese soft skills, the
consistency, the finding our whyall of those pieces?
(15:38):
Then we come to the doing ofwhat we actually do, and this is
my fourth piece.
We need to deliver excellence.
Once you've engaged yourclient's hearts and they've made
a decision to change theirbehavior and stick to it, then
it's time to bring all the skillyou have to helping your
(15:59):
clients get there.
Know your stuff, see who yourclients are, not just what you
can do for them.
Be positive, keep learning,search and research, test, have
conversations with your clientsto find out what's working for
them and if you're working fromyour deepest, why.
This is the easy part.
(16:20):
This is the fun part.
You love what you do.
Your clients love what they'redoing, so you both get great
results.
Your clients are happy becausethey're getting the expert
support that they need to getthem where they really want to
go, and you get the satisfactionof working with people you
connect with and you're able toelicit better results too.
Live your why.
(16:42):
Help your clients findintrinsic motivation for their
goals.
Help them find commitment.
They need to get there.
Deliver excellence.
Every day we approach our workwith passion and purpose is
another day.
We can help make people's livesbetter when we can support our
clients with empathy and agenuine interest in what drives
(17:03):
them, we can find ways to helpthem move mountains, and the
cool thing about that is that indoing it, we're more likely to
find more satisfaction in thework we do and
get better results at the sametime.
So as you go back to yourclasses, to your studios, to
your clients, back to yourclasses, to your studios, to
(17:24):
your clients, take a moment toreflect.
What is yourwhy and how can you help your
clients find theirs?
How can you support them, notjust in doing more, but in
seeing and hearing who they areand understanding more fully
what they need.
This is what it means to trulyshow up for your client.
Let's keep moving, keep learningand keep inspiring change, one
step, one breath, one joyfulmovement at a time.
(17:47):
If you've got an inspiringstory of navigating change with
your clients, I'd love to hearfrom you.
Send me an email at sue atmovingspiritca, or get in touch
with me through social media atthe Moving Spirit.
Take care and I'll see you nexttime.
I hope you enjoyed today'sepisode.
(18:07):
Subscribe and, if you love whatyou heard, leave a five-star
review and tell people what youenjoyed most.
Join me here again in a coupleof weeks.
For now, let's get moving.
Welcome to the Heart of Motion podcast.
I'm Susannah Steers and I'll beyour host as we explore the
heart, soul and science ofmovement as a pathway to more
active, vibrant and connectedliving.
Nothing happens until somethingmoves, so let's get started.
If you're a movement teacher,fitness trainer or anyone
(00:22):
supporting others in a journeyto change their bodies and their
lives, this episode is for you.
I'm Susanna Steers, and todaywe're diving deeper into the art
and the heart of inspiringchange.
A few weeks ago, in episodenine of this season, I talked to
you about change itself, howit's hard, how resistance is
(00:42):
real and how most people,despite their best intentions,
struggle to make new habitsstick.
Today I want to speak directlyto you, the professionals, the
guides, the change agents aboutwhat it really takes to help
people not just start butsustain meaningful change in
movement, in fitness and inhealth.
And I want to start with what,for me, is a most basic truth,
(01:05):
and that is that movement isrelational in nature.
Nothing happens until somethingmoves.
Forces are constantly workingwith and against each other, and
if we accept that when we workwith people in their bodies,
we're working with more thanjust musculoskeletal structures,
then we have to acknowledgethat we are working in complex
territory that extends wellbeyond just the body.
(01:29):
Today, I want to talk about oneof the most underrated soft
skills involved in teachingmovement, and that is the
ability to inspire change, andmaybe inspiring change is the
wrong way to say it.
The people who come to us arealready looking for support as
they make some kind of change.
That's why they walk in thedoors.
Perhaps, then, our job is moreabout finding a way to help
(01:51):
people stay true to their owngoals and maybe holding a bigger
version for them than theyimagine is possible for
themselves.
I believe in my heart of heartsthat people working in movement
and fitness are change agentsof the most fundamental kind.
When we do what we do reallywell, when we train people to
move their bodies well and helpthem get active and healthy, we
(02:14):
can become catalysts for somepretty big evolutions in
people's lives.
The evolutions are up to them.
We just help them up-leveltheir skills and capacity to get
where they want to go.
But the kind of fundamentalchange I'm talking about doesn't
happen by accident and itdoesn't come easily, you know it
.
It's easy to make a decision,but even the best intentions in
(02:36):
the world don't hold up againstthe powers in and around us that
resist change.
The cold hard reality is that alot of people start off well
and then, for one or a thousandreasons, just can't seem to
follow through.
We've all experienced the weeksafter New Year's Classes are
stacked with people, departmentstores sell out of home workout
(02:56):
gear and the latest must-haveself-improvement videos fly off
the shelves.
I'm sure we've all known atleast one person who uses their
home gym as a stylish coathanger.
There are stats to show that asmany as 60% of people who start
an exercise program quit withinsix months, and within two
years that number jumps to 90.
(03:17):
90%.
But you and I know for a factthat change is possible.
There are people who do breakthrough old habits and patterns
to create change.
There are people who do findways to see beyond their now to
whatever their goal is.
Those people are the ones whocan delay the gratification of
(03:39):
eating that sugar-laden donut.
The ones who can continue toget up at the crack of dawn and
go for a run and donut.
The ones who can continue toget up at the crack of dawn and
go for a run.
Those are the ones who willfind a way to overcome the
obstacles that will inevitablyshow up to challenge their
progress.
So what's the difference?
How do some achieve spectacularsuccess when others
consistently fall short?
(04:00):
Is there anything that we cando as movement professionals to
help the people we work withfind the spark that gets them
moving towards meaningful changeand keep them going long enough
to achieve and sustain theirgoals?
After more than 30 years ofteaching movement, and at least
25 of those teaching Pilates andintegrated movement, I've come
(04:22):
to the conclusion that there arereally four keys to motivating
meaningful and sustainablechange in the people we work
with, and the first one is aboutthe big why.
What do you believe what liesat the heart of your work?
Why do you do what you do?
This is about passion.
It's about drive and aboutpurpose.
(04:42):
I truly believe that oursuccess in reaching our own
personal goals and in helpingour clients reach theirs is
largely dependent on our abilityto recognize, to value and
communicate why we do what we do, when we can look inside
ourselves and ask ourselvesthose questions and truly embody
the answers people hear andrespond to that passion.
(05:07):
Simon Sinek is a prolific writerand speaker on business
leadership.
I've read a bunch of his stuffand in many of his works he
states that people makedecisions based on their beliefs
and their values.
Makes sense, then, that inconnecting to our values and
beliefs around what we do, wecan motivate ourselves to live
(05:28):
our best version of ourselves.
And when our purpose feelsclose to our hearts, we can live
our values more easily.
We can more naturally attractothers who believe in similar
things.
It's all about connections toourselves, to our work and to
the people who want toexperience what we so
passionately offer up.
(05:50):
Okay, so let's say at this point, we've got people's attention.
Now what In this world?
Fitness, health and personalgrowth are multi-million dollar
industries and there is noshortage of expert advice.
Everyone has a popsicle stickto sell you.
The key is this or this, usethis technique, this protocol,
(06:10):
this system.
We live in a risk assessmentworld where we're all assailed
with the stats of our collectivefailures heart disease, stroke,
diabetes, everything on theincrease, obesity, rampant, blah
, blah, blah.
Maybe the stats work for some,but when was the last time that
a statistic about somethingreally gave you the conviction
(06:30):
to make a change?
I mean, I suppose if it'spersonal and you know someone
who's dying of cancer, you'remore likely to do what you can
to prevent it, but for mostthose stats just don't motivate.
The skills, the strategies andall the stats these are all
tools that may help along theway, but they're not what
inspires people to change theirbehavior in a sustained effort
(06:51):
to achieve a result differentfrom what they've done all along
.
So how do we motivate them tomake a change?
We don't, that's right, I saidit we don't.
We cannot motivate anyone tomake a change that they don't
believe they need or want tomake.
But what we can do is findthose meaningful things that do
(07:15):
motivate them to change.
And that brings me to my secondpoint.
We got to help people find anintrinsic motivation for their
goals.
Our goals for our clients andtheir goals for themselves may
be quite different.
To make fundamental, lastingchange, the actions that people
take must have a connection totheir deeper core values, the
(07:37):
reason they choose to perseverein the face of fatigue and
soreness, the reason they don'tsimply turn back over in bed
when the alarm rings for themorning workout.
Those reasons have to resonatefrom the inside out.
Otherwise, whatever goalthey've set out for themselves
is a should, and shoulds aresomeone else's information,
someone else's plan.
The client might try it on fora while, but unless that is
(08:00):
coming from a deeper belief thatchange is necessary, it
probably won't stick.
We can cheer them on andcelebrate their successes,
support them through theirfailures, but we can't motivate
them to change.
That has to come from within,and that's where inspiration
comes in.
Reaching for a change requiresthat we do something different,
(08:23):
that we change our habits, thatwe consciously choose to act in
a new way, and there's work inthat.
So the question boils down towhether we want the change
enough to do the work, and to dothe work when nobody's watching
to do the things we know weneed to do, even when it's hard,
(08:43):
even when it feels that in themoment it's bigger than we are.
I had a real wake-up call aroundthis a number of years ago.
I really wanted to find outwhat value my clients were
getting from me from theirperspective.
So I put together a littlesurvey and asked them some
questions about what they likedand what they didn't like in our
(09:03):
work together.
I asked them what benefits theyfelt they were achieving as a
result of our work together.
The responses that I expectedwere mostly physical.
You know, things like a bettercore, better strength, better
mobility, less pain, more energy, that kind of thing.
Instead, what I got was I do alot of volunteer work for a
(09:25):
cause that's important to me,and now I have the strength and
the stamina to contribute morein the ways I like to, or I can
participate in life more fully,or I was contemplating an end to
my dance career, but I realizednow that I'm not even close to
finished.
So they did get the corestrength, mobility and pain
(09:45):
relief, but what it meant tothem was much bigger, and that's
what we need to support.
When we can be open to who ourclients are, what's important to
them in their lives, who theyconnect to, what they respond to
, where they're headed, theseare the things that will give us
the cues we need, asprofessionals, to be able to
(10:06):
find the right words, the rightactions, the right cues to
connect to their most deeplyheld values.
Once they make a decision tochange based on those values,
they're off to the races, andthen I think our job is just to
help them to stay positive andmoving in the direction they
most desire to go, and that'smore about helping them to stay
(10:26):
committed, however we can.
And that brings me to the thirdpoint.
I think that creating andsupporting commitment is a huge
part of our jobs.
Change isn't created by thethings we do.
Occasionally, change comes as aresult of the things we do
consistently.
That saying kicks my buttsometimes.
(10:49):
It's a little reality check.
It doesn't matter what myexcuses are, what elaborate
rationalizations I have for notdoing something.
What it comes down to, pure andsimple, is whether I did or
whether I didn't.
So let's talk about consistency, because I think consistency
can tell us a lot about our truemotivations.
Since I'm a word nerd, I'mgoing to take us on a little
(11:12):
etymological journey.
Webster's Dictionary was kindenough to offer three
definitions for consistency thatwork for our discussion.
I think the first one isconsistency as a firmness of
constitution or character Interms of physical activity.
Most people probably connect tothis one quite easily.
It's that quality ofstick-to-itiveness that gets the
(11:33):
job done.
This one quite easily.
It's that quality ofstick-to-itiveness that gets the
job done.
But, as we all know, it's easyto set a goal, easy to state a
plan, but much, much harder tofollow through.
The next definition ofconsistency is a degree of
firmness, density, viscosity orresistance to movement or
separation of constituentparticles.
To me, this definition speaksto the texture of someone's
(11:55):
commitment to a goal.
When you think about workingtowards your goal, how does your
body feel?
Is the goal a heavy thing, aweight on your shoulders, an
onerous task to be completeddespite whatever hardships may
be heaped upon you?
Is the light at the end of thetunnel worth whatever sacrifices
you'll have to go through toget there?
Or does the thought ofachieving your goal get you
(12:18):
excited, help you findmotivation and give you energy
to proceed?
How will life be better onceyou've reached your goal?
Is there a goal at all, or areyou stuck on that insidious
hamster wheel of I can never befit enough.
Tapping into where our clientsare in this process can offer
pretty important insights intotheir journey and how we can
(12:40):
help Think about it.
If you have to fight intenseinternal resistance all the time
, or if the body feels dense,heavy and hard when you set out
on the path to achieving yourgoal, ask yourself why you're
feeling this way.
Sometimes the resistance issimply a resistance to change,
and that often wears off after afew weeks.
But if the resistance persists,check in with yourself.
(13:04):
That old Nike slogan just do itonly gets you so far?
If you joined the local runningclub to improve your
cardiovascular fitness and sheda few pounds, did you do it
because health pundits saidthat's what you should do or
because you enjoy running andlike the support of a group?
If you're killing yourself atCrossFit, is there some part of
(13:26):
that workout that brings youenergy and vitality, or do you
simply feel depleted and beat upwhen you're done?
If someone told you to doPilates for your posture and you
can't stand the pace of it, whydo you stay?
Sometimes we forget to listen toour own bodies and we do what
people tell us is a good idea,what's popular, what's getting
(13:47):
other people good results, andI'm all for trying stuff out as
much as possible, actually.
But it's important to check inand feel whether the path you're
choosing is a good fit fortaking you where you want to go.
And that brings me to the thirddefinition consistency as
agreement or harmony of parts orfeatures to one another or to
(14:09):
the whole.
Now, maybe I'm getting a littlewoo here, but bear with me for
a sec.
Is the plan for physicalactivity in harmony with who you
are and how you like to liveyour life?
Does it support the activitiesyou want most to achieve Playing
with your kids, staying healthyand preventing injury, climbing
Mount Everest, running afortune 500 company building
(14:29):
schools in Africa Because ifyour movement doesn't line up
somehow with the rest of yourlife, you are likely to
experience, at the very least,difficulty being consistent with
it.
Your physical activity willcertainly change and evolve as
you go along, just as the restof your life does.
Does your program allow forthat, or is it an all or nothing
(14:50):
type situation?
Consistency is a fascinating andcomplex concept, and I love it
and I hate it too, probablybecause to really be consistent,
I have to be completely honestwith myself.
I have to call myself on mystories and make sure that my
goals are meaningful.
They're meaningful things thatI, deep down, really want to
achieve, and when I really wantsomething, then it's a lot
(15:14):
easier to move toward it.
I can have fun and groundmyself in a sense of purpose
that will help me through eventhe toughest days, and I can
find ways to do what I need todo, allowing for little shifts
and changes that may benecessary because life happens.
So, as we think about all ofthese soft skills, the
consistency, the finding our whyall of those pieces?
(15:38):
Then we come to the doing ofwhat we actually do, and this is
my fourth piece.
We need to deliver excellence.
Once you've engaged yourclient's hearts and they've made
a decision to change theirbehavior and stick to it, then
it's time to bring all the skillyou have to helping your
(15:59):
clients get there.
Know your stuff, see who yourclients are, not just what you
can do for them.
Be positive, keep learning,search and research, test, have
conversations with your clientsto find out what's working for
them and if you're working fromyour deepest, why.
This is the easy part.
(16:20):
This is the fun part.
You love what you do.
Your clients love what they'redoing, so you both get great
results.
Your clients are happy becausethey're getting the expert
support that they need to getthem where they really want to
go, and you get the satisfactionof working with people you
connect with and you're able toelicit better results too.
Live your why.
(16:42):
Help your clients findintrinsic motivation for their
goals.
Help them find commitment.
They need to get there.
Deliver excellence.
Every day we approach our workwith passion and purpose is
another day.
We can help make people's livesbetter when we can support our
clients with empathy and agenuine interest in what drives
(17:03):
them, we can find ways to helpthem move mountains, and the
cool thing about that is that indoing it, we're more likely to
find more satisfaction in thework we do and
get better results at the sametime.
So as you go back to yourclasses, to your studios, to
your clients, back to yourclasses, to your studios, to
(17:24):
your clients, take a moment toreflect.
What is yourwhy and how can you help your
clients find theirs?
How can you support them, notjust in doing more, but in
seeing and hearing who they areand understanding more fully
what they need.
This is what it means to trulyshow up for your client.
Let's keep moving, keep learningand keep inspiring change, one
step, one breath, one joyfulmovement at a time.
(17:47):
If you've got an inspiringstory of navigating change with
your clients, I'd love to hearfrom you.
Send me an email at sue atmovingspiritca, or get in touch
with me through social media atthe Moving Spirit.
Take care and I'll see you nexttime.
I hope you enjoyed today'sepisode.
(18:07):
Subscribe and, if you love whatyou heard, leave a five-star
review and tell people what youenjoyed most.
Join me here again in a coupleof weeks.
For now, let's get moving.
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