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Get the Journal Prompts https://yourlevelfitness.com/email Join the Live Streams https://yourlevelfitness.com/stream Episode Description In episode 2274 of The Almost Daily Podcast, I want to talk about something that I think we all need to remind ourselves of occasionally. Don't give up on yourself, even when you're frustrated. I'm recording this at the end of a long day, and physically, I'm feeling it. Living with cerebral palsy means that even on relatively normal days, my body can be pretty worn down by the evening. Most nights, I'd describe that exhaustion as around a seven out of ten. Tonight, it's closer to an eight and a half or nine. And while this isn't anything I haven't experienced before, that doesn't mean it isn't frustrating. I had already completed my workout and mobility exercises earlier in the day, but I wanted to record one of the mobility videos I regularly share. Those videos help keep me accountable, but they're also an opportunity to show what living in my body actually looks like. I genuinely appreciate what my body allows me to do. But appreciating yourself doesn't mean you never get frustrated with what you're experiencing. Some days hurt. Some days are exhausting. And sometimes, even when you've done everything you intended to do, you reach a point where you're simply tired of dealing with it. I think it's important to give ourselves room to experience those feelings. I'm not going to pretend I'm having a great evening physically. I'm going to acknowledge how I feel, give myself the opportunity to sit with those emotions, and allow tonight to be what it is. And tomorrow? I'll get up and do what I do. I'll stretch in the morning, get to the gym, handle my work, and continue living my life to the best of my ability. Not because I need to prove something. Not because I'm ignoring how I feel tonight. But because one frustrating day doesn't change the relationship I've built with myself or the life I've chosen to live. I think there's something reassuring about knowing that you can experience a difficult day without questioning whether you're going to continue showing up for yourself. Some days will go wonderfully. Others will be difficult. And sometimes all we can do is acknowledge the frustration, take care of ourselves, and continue forward when we're ready. You don't have to feel motivated or positive every moment to remain committed to yourself. You can have a hard day without making it mean something negative about who you are or where you're going. Give yourself permission to feel what you're feeling without giving up on yourself in the process. Keep showing up, keep trusting yourself, and keep doing what you can with the day you have.

Get the Journal Prompts https://yourlevelfitness.com/email Join the Live Streams https://yourlevelfitness.com/stream Episode Description In episode 2273 of The Almost Daily Podcast, I'm reflecting on finding a rhythm in life, building consistency, looking back at the unexpected turns in my career, and learning to trust myself to figure things out along the way. Lately, I've been making adjustments to my schedule. Moving things around, removing what isn't working, and finding a flow that gives me structure without making every day so rigid that one unexpected change throws everything off. And I think there's something important in that. Structure should help you navigate life, not make you feel like you're constantly falling behind. One example is how I've approached my workouts. Between my morning stretching and regular workouts, I've set a minimum goal of 50 workouts per month. Most months, my established routine naturally gets me closer to 60. But that difference gives me flexibility. If I miss a session, oversleep, or need to adjust my schedule, I'm not suddenly worried about losing consistency. And even at the minimum, 50 workouts a month becomes 600 workouts over a year. That's the power of building something manageable and allowing the effort to accumulate. I've also been thinking about how much my life has changed since I first started podcasting. I remember challenging myself to record an episode every day for a month and falling short somewhere around day 27 or 28. At the time, I hadn't accomplished exactly what I set out to do. But I had developed the skill. Now, thousands of episodes later, I've interviewed countless people, appeared on other podcasts, and developed an entire ecosystem of conversations around fitness, mental health, cerebral palsy, and personal development. None of that was something I could have fully anticipated when I started. The same is true of my career in marketing. I originally wanted to move into an entry-level marketing position and learn my way through the company. That opportunity didn't happen the way I expected. Instead, I eventually worked with agencies, corporate marketing teams, freelance projects, public speaking, and lifecycle marketing. And along the way, I developed systems and skills that I now use throughout Your Level Fitness. There were also times when I questioned my direction entirely. I considered physical therapy. I explored becoming a registered dietitian. I pursued personal training and habit-based nutrition coaching. Looking back, those experiences weren't necessarily detours. They became part of what I do today. Sometimes you don't recognize how the pieces of your life fit together until you've had enough time to look back. That's why I keep coming back to the idea of trusting yourself to figure things out. You can create structure. You can set goals. You can establish deadlines when they're useful. But not everything meaningful in life needs a deadline. Sometimes you need to experiment. Sometimes you need to change direction. Sometimes something works, and sometimes you have to scrap it and try something else. And sometimes the experience you thought was a setback turns out to be something you build upon years later. I'm learning to appreciate that more as I continue adjusting my schedule, my work, and the things I want to create. You don't have to know exactly where everything is going to trust yourself to keep figuring it out. Find a rhythm that works for you. Give yourself room to adjust. And remember that consistency isn't about making every day look exactly the same. It's about continuing to build something that fits your life, even as that life changes.

Get the Journal Prompts: https://yourlevelfitness.com/email Join the Live Streams: https://yourlevelfitness.com/stream Some days are going to look different than you planned. In this episode of the Almost Daily Podcast, I’m talking about one of those days for me and why I think learning to scale things back is an important part of building something sustainable. I usually aim for at least nine thousand steps during the week, and I have my routine set up so I can go to the gym daily if I want to. In reality, I usually end up there five or six days a week, and I am also perfectly okay with four. Today, I looked at what I had already done, what I felt like doing, what I wanted to accomplish over the next few days, and what my body seemed to need. So I scaled things back. That is not always easy for me. I am getting better at rest, but I still do not think I choose it as often as I should when it would actually be in my best interest. And that is the bigger point. You do not need to earn rest. You do not need to push yourself to the edge first. You do not need to prove that you worked hard enough before you are allowed to take your foot off the gas. Sometimes moving forward means doing less today so you can keep showing up tomorrow. I also talk about trying to stay present, hopeful, and optimistic without turning that into fake positivity. There is a difference between ignoring what is hard and sitting with what is hard while still figuring out how to move forward. And sometimes the thing that helps you move forward is rest. Not quitting. Not checking out. Just giving yourself permission to scale back when you need to.

Get the Journal Prompts: https://yourlevelfitness.com/email Join the Live Streams: https://yourlevelfitness.com/stream I am jumping back into the running community, even if most of my miles right now are going to be walked. And I am completely good with that. In this episode of the Almost Daily Podcast, I’m talking about getting back into races, reconnecting with a community I have always enjoyed, and letting go of the idea that you have to run every mile for it to count. For a long time, I got caught up in that mindset too. I had coached Couch to 5K and 10K groups, completed plenty of 5Ks, and even did the Flying Pig 10K in 2019. But somewhere along the way, I started thinking that if I was not running, then maybe I was not really doing it. I do not believe that anymore. If you are showing up, putting in the work, training in a way that makes sense for you, and getting yourself to the start line, I think there is a place for you in the running community. That is one of the things I have always liked most about it. The support. The people. The energy. The feeling you get when you hit that final stretch and people are there cheering you toward the finish. I also talk about how I am preparing for an upcoming 5K, the training I am doing now, and how movement for me includes more than just the miles. Mobility work, gym sessions, getting my steps in, and taking care of my body are all part of it. And yes, there is a little Your Level Fitness nostalgia mixed in too. I brought back the Run YLF design, added a local flavor to the race day shirt, and connected it back to the larger #YLFcommunity with the reminder that every body is a runner’s body. I like looking forward. I like being present. But I also think there is value in respecting where you came from and carrying some of those pieces with you. So if you have been thinking about doing a race but telling yourself you are not fast enough, not running enough, or somehow do not belong, I want you to reconsider that. Show up. Do it your way. There is room for you too.

Explore the Your Level Fitness Podcasts: https://yourlevelfitness.com/podcasts In episode 2,270 of The Almost Daily Podcast, I’m talking about something I keep relearning in different areas of life. When in doubt, simplify. I have spent a lot of time experimenting with podcasts, formats, ideas, and different ways to organize everything under Your Level Fitness. Some of those experiments worked really well. Others changed, evolved, or eventually disappeared. But that process helped me get much clearer about what the podcast network is actually supposed to do. I now have the podcasts organized into three main categories. The first group includes the frequently released shows that reinforce the bigger Your Level Fitness message. These are the podcasts where I talk regularly about building a forever active lifestyle, appreciating yourself from the inside/out, trusting yourself, and applying those ideas to health, fitness, personal development, and everyday life. The second group is made up of problem-solving podcasts. These take the YLF approach and apply it to a specific obstacle or question. Some of these may have ten episodes. Others may eventually have dozens. The goal is not to keep producing episodes forever just because the feed exists. The goal is to create a useful resource around a specific problem. The third group includes conversation and interview podcasts. These are the shows where I bring other people into the conversation, cohost with someone, or create space for people to share their experiences and perspectives. A number of the problem-solving podcasts are already being built now and will begin releasing publicly starting January 1, 2027. I also talk about why experimentation should not automatically be labeled as failure. A lot of what we call failing is simply the process of figuring things out. You try something, learn from it, adjust, and keep moving. That same approach applies far beyond podcasting. Make a decision about the direction you want to go. Stay connected to what you actually think and feel. Give yourself room to adjust. And most importantly, learn to trust yourself. You do not need to have every answer before you start. Sometimes you just need to keep experimenting until things become clear.

Your Level Fitness Links Get the Journal Prompt Emails: https://yourlevelfitness.com/email Join the Live Streams: https://yourlevelfitness.com/stream Explore Your Level Fitness: https://yourlevelfitness.com/ Episode Description I used to roll my eyes a little at awareness days. A lot of the time, it can feel like people post statistics, share something for a day, and then everyone moves on. But I have started looking at awareness days differently. Sometimes an awareness day is the first reason someone gives themselves to talk publicly about something that matters to them. It can be the push to share an experience, tell a story, or bring attention to something they have lived with personally. In this episode, I talk about Cerebral Palsy Awareness Day, why I have changed the way I think about awareness days, and why I believe you do not have to wait for a designated day or month to talk about something that matters to you. I also reflect on my dad's experience with ALS and why I know ALS awareness is something I will continue talking about in the future. Your story does not have to be perfectly packaged. You also do not have to share anything you are uncomfortable sharing. But if there is something meaningful to you that you want people to understand, you are allowed to talk about it now. Social media gives us the ability to share experiences in ways that can help other people feel seen, understood, or less alone. It can also help us process and make sense of our own experiences. If something matters to you, you do not need to wait for an awareness day to start talking about it.

Get the Journal Prompts: https://yourlevelfitness.com/email Join The Live Streams: https://yourlevelfitness.com/stream Brand new to Your Level Fitness? https://yourlevelfitness.com/ It is important to have a plan. But that does not mean there is one set path for where you are going. In this episode of The Almost Daily Podcast, episode 2,268, I talk about why having direction matters while also accepting that life is rarely linear. This podcast itself is a perfect example. It started as a way for me to share thoughts around eating and exercise, mostly for clients. I said I would never do interviews. Then I started doing interviews. I spent months testing things before I ever really put the podcast out into the world. And now here we are, more than two thousand episodes later. That is how life tends to work. You make a plan. You move forward. You take a step back. You move sideways. You get stuck. Then you adjust. And eventually, you figure out what the next step looks like. I also talk about why fitness can be such a useful place to practice this. You learn how to trust yourself. You learn how to build consistency as a skill. You learn how to keep moving without seeing immediate results. And eventually, you start realizing that those same skills can carry into other areas of your life. You also do not have to do everything on your own. We all need help at different points. That does not take anything away from what you have accomplished. So make the plan. Do the research. Take the work seriously. But do not take yourself so seriously that you cannot laugh when things go sideways. And do not get so attached to the original path that you miss the one you are creating along the way. Look back five years. Is your life exactly what you thought it would be? Probably not. That does not mean you are lost. It means you are still figuring it out. And you will keep figuring it out.

I think I have finally built the free version of what I have been trying to create for years. Something simple. Something you can use on your own. And something that can help you work through the softer side of life without always feeling like there is another shoe about to drop. In this episode of The Almost Daily Podcast, I talk about how the Your Level Fitness podcast network and the journal prompts are starting to work together as a system. The goal has always been bigger than fitness. Yes, I want you to build your forever active lifestyle. But I also want you to feel more comfortable in your own skin, trust yourself more, calm the mental tug of war, and feel more at ease with who you are. That is where the podcasts come in. I now have a growing library of shows that cover different areas, including fitness, cerebral palsy, men’s mental and emotional health, mindset, and everyday life. Some have new episodes Monday through Friday. Some are weekly. Some are active with less predictable schedules. And some are archived. Not every podcast is going to be for every person. But I believe each one can be useful for somebody. Then there are the journal prompts. Those have evolved quite a bit over the last couple of years, and I think I have finally landed on a structure that is simple enough to use consistently while still helping you connect with yourself. When you combine the podcasts with the journal prompts, you can start working through these ideas on your own. You can listen to the reinforcement. You can write through what applies to you. You can slow things down. You can start building more trust in yourself. And you can figure out how all of this fits into your life at your level. None of this replaces having a productive relationship with a therapist when you need one. But I am excited about having something available that can support people in different areas of life without requiring another program, another promise, or another thing you have to buy just to get started. Check Out All of the YLF Podcasts: https://yourlevelfitness.com/podcasts

Living with mild cerebral palsy can sometimes feel like living between two different worlds. In the non-disabled world, people may immediately see me as disabled. They may notice the way I walk, make assumptions about what I can do, or even question whether I belong in certain spaces. Then there is another side of the experience. Within the disabled community, I have also had people minimize my disability or suggest that I am not disabled enough because some of the things I struggle with are not immediately obvious. That can leave you in a strange middle ground. In this episode of Living with Mild Cerebral Palsy, I talk openly about what that experience has felt like for me. I get into wanting to fit in sometimes, feeling guilty because other people have greater physical challenges, constantly feeling like I need to prove myself, and wondering whether the drive to keep accomplishing more can sometimes come from a lifelong fear of being behind. I also talk about something I think is especially important. Your experience does not have to be compared to somebody else's before it becomes valid. Someone else having a different experience with cerebral palsy does not erase yours. Your ability to adapt does not mean things have always been easy. And appreciating what your body allows you to do does not mean you are never allowed to feel frustrated, exhausted, or weighed down by it. Sometimes you can appreciate yourself and still wish you could blend in. Sometimes you can be optimistic and still acknowledge that this is hard. Sometimes simply giving yourself permission to recognize those thoughts is part of learning more about yourself. If any part of this episode connects with you, spend a few minutes writing about your own experience. You do not need a perfect journal practice. Write a few sentences, make a list in your phone, or simply put the thoughts somewhere outside of your head. You deserve to know how you feel about your own life. Get the journal prompts that will help you to continue to unpack your thoughts and feelings: https://yourlevelfitness.com/email

I think we are capable of changing far more than we sometimes give ourselves credit for. That does not mean you can simply think about something, believe hard enough, and magically make it happen. But I do think change starts with believing that another direction is possible and trusting yourself enough to begin figuring it out. A lot of our patterns go back a long way. We grow up around certain ways of thinking, reacting, working, resting, eating, communicating, and living. For a long time, those things can simply feel normal because they are what we know. Then at some point, we realize there may be another way. That is where curiosity becomes incredibly valuable. What if you are wrong about something? What if the way you have always handled a situation is not the only option? What if there is another way to move forward, another way to respond, or even another way to slow down? In this episode, I talk about why change can become both easier and harder as we get older. We have more life experience and more evidence that we can handle difficult things, but we can also become deeply attached to familiar patterns and beliefs. I also talk about false starts, stopping and starting, and why that does not automatically mean you are incapable of changing. Maybe you simply were not ready yet. When you are ready, I think the first step is making the decision and declaring it to yourself. Not because saying something out loud makes it happen, but because you are acknowledging that you believe enough in yourself to take the first step. You do not need all the answers. You do not need every skill. And you do not have to figure everything out alone. You can find support, resources, people who will encourage you, and people who will help you see the blind spots you cannot always see for yourself. You can change direction. You can change your patterns. And you can do it when you are actually ready to begin. New to Your Level Fitness? Start here: https://yourlevelfitness.com

I launched another podcast. This one is called Living With Mild Cerebral Palsy, and unlike some of the other shows I do, I am not committing to a rigid posting schedule. The goal is simply to have a dedicated place where I can share more of this part of my life. Some episodes will be solo conversations where I talk through my own experiences, thoughts, frustrations, and perspectives around living with cerebral palsy. Others will feature conversations with people who have cerebral palsy and want to share their own experiences. I also talk in this episode about how this new feed fits alongside The Cerebral Palsy Perspective Podcast, which I co-host with Chad Williams. I really like the way Chad and I approach those interviews and the way he helps people tell their stories. But coordinating three schedules can sometimes mean waiting weeks or even months to get somebody on. This new feed gives me another place to share conversations in the meantime, especially when someone’s story or perspective connects directly to cerebral palsy. There is already a trailer episode out, along with upcoming conversations with Zach and David, plus a solo episode where I get into my perspective on ableism within the cerebral palsy community. I have a lot of podcast feeds already, so I do not add another one lightly. But this is a part of my life I think is worth talking about more openly, and I wanted a space where I could do that without forcing it into a set schedule. Brand new to Your Level Fitness? https://yourlevelfitness.com

Do you ever stop and think about how different life is compared with 20 or 30 years ago? In this episode, I reflect on how quickly technology has changed the way we work, communicate, socialize, and move through everyday life. I remember when AOL and instant messenger felt new. I remember Encarta on a CD-ROM. I remember when Facebook was still something most people in the room did not use, and when the first iPhone barely felt like a big deal. Now everything moves in real time. Work has changed too. Meetings are virtual. Communication is constant. Project management tools, social media, email, Slack, Teams, and everything else have made it possible to get more done from almost anywhere. That can be incredibly useful. It can also make it very easy to fall into the trap of thinking that every open space in your day needs to be filled with more productivity. I also talk about how much my own work life has changed, from driving around to advertising appointments to now being able to create, communicate, record, meet, and build from home. There is a lot of good that has come from all of this. We can stay connected with people we never would have known otherwise. We can work differently. We can access information almost instantly. But I also think many of us are still adjusting to just how quickly everything changed. Maybe that is worth thinking about once in a while. Not just how technology changed your life, but whether the way you think about work, productivity, communication, and time has caught up with the world you are actually living in now. Brand new to Your Level Fitness? https://yourlevelfitness.com

Knowing your worth sounds simple until you have to act like you believe it. In this episode, I talk about the difference between knowing who you are and actually communicating that value to the people around you. It is one thing to understand what you bring to a relationship, conversation, job, or situation. It is another thing to be clear about what you will tolerate, what you will commit to, and how you expect to be treated. That part can get uncomfortable. Different people may respond differently when you start enforcing those expectations. Some may adjust. Some may resist. Some relationships may change completely. But I think all of that gives you useful information about the dynamics you are in. I also want you to think about what you already bring to the world. It is easy to focus on what you could be doing better or what you still need to improve. But do you actually recognize the value you are already bringing into your relationships, your work, your conversations, and the lives of the people around you? You get to decide what your value means to you. And once you are clear on that, the next question is whether you are willing to live in a way that reflects it.

Where in your life do you have too much tunnel vision? Most of us have areas where we get locked into one path, one solution, one routine, or one way of doing things. We convince ourselves that this is the best option, sometimes simply because it is familiar. In this episode of The Almost Daily Podcast, I talk about how easy it is to get stuck in that kind of thinking, both personally and professionally. Sometimes the interesting part is that we do not even discover a better option because we were intentionally looking for one. Something changes. We try something different almost by accident. Then we realize the new way actually works better. That does not mean every routine needs to be replaced or every plan needs to be questioned constantly. But it is worth asking where you may be so focused on one direction that you are not even noticing the alternatives around you. What is one area of your life where a different approach might actually serve you better? Brand new to Your Level Fitness? https://yourlevelfitness.com

We only get one life. That sounds like a cliché, but I think there is an important distinction between using that idea to pressure yourself and using it to remember that your life is worth participating in. You cannot simply logic your way through anxiety, guilt, shame, uncertainty, or whatever else is making the next step difficult. Those feelings are real. Sometimes they are overwhelming. Sometimes they can make something that looks simple from the outside feel almost impossible. But you have also figured things out before. Maybe it was messy. Maybe you made the same decision over and over before finally recognizing what needed to change. Maybe you needed to hear the same idea fifteen different times before it finally landed differently. That is part of being human. In this episode of The Almost Daily Podcast, I talk about trusting yourself to navigate what is in front of you while still giving your emotions the attention they deserve. I also talk about the value of having a productive relationship with a therapist who can help you recognize blind spots, work through difficult emotions, and better understand what is happening underneath the surface. You do not need to have your entire life figured out today. You may only need to recognize the next step. Be patient with yourself. Learn what you can from what is happening. Stay connected to yourself. And remember that you have navigated every version of your life that has brought you here. New to Your Level Fitness? Start here: https://yourlevelfitness.com