Unbreakable Mind & Body
Welcome to The Unbreakable Mind & Body podcast with host, Tiana Gonzalez—a multi-passionate creative, storyteller, and entrepreneur with a fierce love for movement. This is our space for powerful stories and actionable strategies to help you build mental resilience and elevate your self-care practice. Together, we’ll unlock the tools you need to create an unbreakable mind and body.
Unbreakable Mind & Body
Why is Fitness Hard?
Why does fitness feel hard? The struggle isn't about willpower or genetics—it's about the mindsets and approaches that sabotage our efforts before we even begin.
After nearly three decades in the health and wellness space, I've identified seven critical mindset barriers that keep most people trapped in the frustrating cycle of fitness starts and stops.
Ready to break free from these self-defeating patterns/mindsets? Listen now to discover how to reverse engineer sustainable fitness success through patient, consistent application of fundamentals that work with your life rather than against it.
Something is better than nothing, and the path to lasting transformation starts with getting out of your own way.
Connect with Me
Instagram: www.instagram.com/tianasmindandmoves
Website: unbreakablemindandbody.com
Email: info@unbreakablemb.com
Download your Free 5-Min Pre-Workout Guide:
https://tiana-gonzalez.mykajabi.com/likeyoumeanit
Disclaimer: This show is for education and entertainment purposes only. This is not intended as a replacement for therapy. Please seek out the help of a professional to assist you with your specific situation.
Welcome to the Unbreakable Mind and Body podcast. I am your host, tiana Gonzalez, a multi-passionate, creative storyteller and entrepreneur with a fierce love for movement. This is our space for powerful stories and actionable strategies to help you build mental resilience and elevate your self-care practice. Together, we will unlock the tools that you need to create an unbreakable mind and body.
Speaker 2:Welcome back to the show. I am your host, tiana, and on this episode we're going to talk about why does fitness feel so hard, why is it so hard to reach that dream body, to hit that goal that you've always wanted to hit, or to make permanent and lasting changes changes. Now I'm going to run through about eight or nine things that I think are really the issues or the ideas surrounding the challenges that we face in our current society, in just the way that we are choosing and I intentionally use the word choosing in the way we are choosing to live our lives and operate in 2025. Now, maybe some of these are applicable to you and they'll hit home. Maybe some of these are not applicable to you, but I encourage you to sit with this conversation for a little bit because maybe, just maybe, something will resonate with you. And then what I'd like you to do is, you know, think about which ones really stick with you and sit with yourself. Sit with that thought and maybe grab a notepad and a pen and write out some ways in which you're going to make changes so that you can see some everlasting, sustainable change, find success, feel great in your body and do the things that you've always perhaps dreamed about doing or envisioned yourself doing, but haven't actually created or put into practice just yet.
Speaker 2:Now, the first thing that I have noticed in my nearly 30 years in the health and wellness space is there are many mindsets, but the two most prevalent are approaching exercise and nutrition as if it's a temporary thing that you're going to do for a brief period of time and then you're going to undo it or not period of time and then you're going to undo it or not do it any longer. And so you have these seasons where you're in contest or not in contest. And I come from a bodybuilding and athlete background, so it's easy for me to start with that conversation, talking about show prep and then the off season. But really you hear it all the time Diet starts Monday, diet starts tomorrow, I'm starting my diet when I get back from vacation, when really what we should be doing is thinking about making small, incremental, sustainable changes that are going to last, that are going to stick, that are not going to feel so fucking impossible that you can't continue to do it forever and for the rest of your life. Now that word forever is really powerful and potent because once you realize, oh, going to the gym is something that I'm going to do from now on. It's not something you're going to do for a short period of time and then move on with your life. It is going to put you in uncomfortable situations and it's going to to present you with opportunities to develop yourself and to change, and the real transformation is not in the end product, but it's in who you become through the process in order to make those changes happen. The reality is that everything in life is temporary, but can you make some changes that are going to be sustainable and stick with you long term so that you can find success in your health and wellness journey?
Speaker 2:Now, the second issue I'm seeing is that we have way too many options. Way too many options. Go on your phone, go on any social media platform, go on YouTube, google, tiktok, any of these platforms you will see thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of different points of view, schools of thought, thought leaders, ways of doing things, and the real issue here is not that there are so many options, but that we are struggling in sticking with one plan or approach long enough to see if it actually works. So, when I worked in online fitness, and that is a very saturated market. By the way, I would meet people constantly who were wrapping up a program and looking for the next one, or they were working with a coach, but the coach they're with was somebody that they hired while they were still with the previous coach and then the coach before that, and so on and so forth, while they were still with the previous coach, and then the coach before that, and so on and so forth. And so you have this never ending program jumping mentality, because some people are looking for the next best thing or looking for what's going to work for them right now in this season of their life, and you cannot force a square peg into a round hole, because what people like that, in from that mindset, are doing is they are looking for a shortcut or an answer to a problem that is unique to them.
Speaker 2:Now, number three, another issue I see, another concern I see, is that we're rushing the process. Yeah, of course. Okay, it took a lot for you to make this decision to hire a trainer, to join that opulent gym, to pay an exorbitant amount of money every month so that you can have access to a facility that's clean, pristine, beautiful, has all the best equipment is open 24 hours, or just about 24 hours, and now that you're there, well, you just want to see the changes start to happen right away, and it doesn't work that way. You don't get to dictate the timeline. In fact, if you have a timeline in mind, I suggest you double it, triple it or quadruple it, because the body is going to take its time to integrate the changes that you're incorporating into your day-to-day lifestyle.
Speaker 2:Now, the other thing that I'm seeing this would be the fourth item on my list is that we are going to extreme measures and similar to number one, when we talked about something being temporary or long lasting. If you do something extreme, you can expect that it is going to swing the pendulum in the opposite direction at some point in time. Perfect example is someone who goes on an extreme diet and then they have a family get together or a holiday birthday party and they enjoy themselves and they eat things that they haven't been eating for months. And what do you think might happen? Well, they may go into a frenzy and end up really overdoing it for days and days and days and days and days, and that is not what we want. So how do we bridge the gap? How do we find that happy medium so that you're not going to such extreme measures over and over and over again, damaging your metabolism, your health, your brain, your body and being either malnourished or going into shock from all of the sugar, the high fats, the fried foods, cholesterol and so on and so forth? None of those things are inherently bad or wrong to eat. I don't assign food the words good food or bad food. In fact, most of the things called healthy and or natural are a crock of shit. They're just marketed that way. They're not really healthy or natural by any means.
Speaker 2:Now the fifth thing on my list is that we have this all or nothing mentality. And oh my goodness when I tell you, or nothing mentality. And oh my goodness when I tell you, just like the extremes, the people who decide starting tomorrow, I'm going to get up and go to the gym at 5 am every single day, I'm going to lift weights and I'm going to do a lot of cardio exercise, fasted, and then from there I'm just going to hit my goal, and they probably have a ton of momentum. They're motivated in the beginning and then after a few weeks they fall off because that all or nothing mentality is going to just rock you. It drains your energy supplies, it kills your lifestyle, it can damage your relationships, both in your personal life and in your professional life, because now you've done something that's very extreme. You're introducing all these new things into your schedule and routine that were not there before, and the people around you are trying to adjust to it as well.
Speaker 2:Now, the sixth thing that I see that's an issue in accomplishing our fitness goals is that you don't enjoy what you're doing. Now, of course, there are going to be some things you like better than others, but I highly suggest you find the thing the outlet, the platform, the class, the teacher, the instructor, the class, the teacher, the instructor, the playlist, the gym, the environment that is going to make the process enjoyable. That is going to be fun for you, and I'm going to tell you right now there is something out there for everyone. Maybe you don't enjoy lifting weights, but you do enjoy a teacher that has a sick playlist or can create a community vibe in the class, or you like the facility, or you love how the towels smell or something like that, and I know that these things sound very subtle, but they can make a big impact on your experience. So you need to find things that are going to be enjoyable, or at least somewhat enjoyable, so that you will stick with it.
Speaker 2:Now, the seventh item on my list is that some people feel like this is a selfish activity, that going to the gym, being away from their family, being away from work, taking away from your responsibilities, is an act that is selfish. And I'm here to tell you it is the exact opposite. It is not selfish if you want to be healthy. In fact, it is a gift that you are giving to those closest to you, because when you choose to take care of yourself, you're making efforts to live a longer and more healthy life. So it's not a selfish act. And maybe it's uncomfortable for your loved ones in the beginning, like if you're a parent, or if your partner doesn't want to go to the gym when you want to, or if your partner doesn't want to eat the way you would like to because you're making some lifestyle changes. That's okay. You can find a compromise, you can find a happy medium and maybe you'll be a positive influence on those around you. And I will tell you if you are a parent and you are sharing your fitness life with your kids. You're fostering healthy habits, a good routine and a great self-image early on. So those are the things on my list.
Speaker 2:I actually said eight or nine in the beginning of this episode, but it really was only seven and it's kind of funny because seven is my favorite number, but I'm hoping that maybe this helped you in some sort of way. You know, I see people in the gym really struggling and I want you to know it's not that hard. But you got to be real with yourself. You've got to ask yourself some of these questions. You've got to sit down and ask have I been putting in a hundred percent effort? Can I give this a little bit more? Or maybe I need to reframe how I'm viewing this challenge, because I'm setting myself up in a way that I'm not going to find success. So we always want to reverse engineer it. If you've listened to the show in the past, then you know that I always talk about this reverse engineering process and this is how I like to run things through.
Speaker 2:So let's say you have a big goal. You want to lose 50 pounds. Just an example you want to lose 50 pounds Before you give yourself a timeframe. Let's reverse engineer it, looking at the next three months. From the next three months, the next 90 days, how many times per week can you make it to the gym? Not ideal, but reality, right? How many times a week can you make it to the gym? From there, you take the number of days that you can make it to the gym and really get real with yourself. How long can each session be? So if it's an hour, that's okay. If it's an hour and 10 minutes, fine. If it's 45 minutes, that's also fine. Something is better than nothing. I'll say that again Something is better than nothing.
Speaker 2:First, you want to get into the habit of going to the gym on a regular basis. Once you know the next 90 days, how many times per week you can go to the gym, how much time you can allocate per session, then you go one week at a time. Look at the next week, do it on the weekend, so either Saturday or Sunday. You're looking at the following week, monday through Sunday, picking out the days, picking out the times of day. Make an appointment in your calendar with a reminder, I'm not fucking kidding. Make your workouts appointments in your calendar. If you have a dentist appointment, you won't miss it. If you have a doctor's appointment, you won't miss it. If you have to take your kid to an activity, you won't miss that. So why is the gym not as important to you? That's what I thought.
Speaker 2:Once you get into those first 90 days and you've created the habit of going consistently and maybe some weeks you have more time than others, or maybe some weeks you have less, but overall you want to try to hit or maybe some weeks you have less, but overall you want to try to hit that average number week after week after week. Then you can assess what are you doing in those workouts and is it the right volume, is it the right intensity? Is it the right type of training that aligns with your goal? Now here's where you may need some help. This is where you would either look up what you're doing using the resources we have available to us, aka your phone, your computer okay, you can look on the internet. You can discuss with a qualified professional in person or on the phone. You can retain the services of a fitness professional, or you can work with them one-on-one, or maybe you can work with them in a small group. But either way, remember the goal was 50 pounds of weight loss. So that might take longer than you think.
Speaker 2:And this is where we go back to that list of things that I mentioned, where you're rushing and you know what. You don't get to dictate the timeline, okay. So in the beginning of the process, it's about creating the routine and it's about creating the habit of getting to the gym and of putting in the work. After you've done that for a substantial amount of time, then you can start to dissect things such as exercise selection, load or weight that you're going to use, number of sets, number of reps use, number of sets, number of reps, and this gets more specific and it's going to also be based on the things that we just discussed.
Speaker 2:Those questions are going to be answered based on well, how are you splitting up your body?
Speaker 2:What is it you're looking to accomplish?
Speaker 2:How many times a week are you coming?
Speaker 2:How much experience do you have? Can you do it on your own? Do you want or do you like to have autonomy, pop your headphones in and do your thing, or would you rather follow along in a class or with a workout that's already put together for you? Do you understand? There's no right or wrong way to do it, but there is a way to wrap your head around it so that you can find success. So, yeah, fitness can be hard, it can be really hard, but it doesn't have to be.
Speaker 2:If you can get out of your own way, if you can stop consuming so much fitness shit that you see online, so many things that sound dogmatic and true or that are confirmation bias based on a belief that you have that you hope will be true, and really take it for the science and the facts and apply it over a long period of time, where you are being patient, where you are doing the same boring routine consistently, where you do not put yourself in extreme situations or have the all or nothing mentality, where you find things that you enjoy a lot, or maybe somewhat enjoy, and where you realize that filling your cup is not being selfish, it's actually giving back to those you love the most, then you will find success. As always, I truly appreciate your time and attention. Thank you for being here, thank you for tuning into the show, thank you for listening to me. Yap, I will see you on the next one.