Things You Ask Thursday! #8

This week I have a lot of wedding shenanigans going on because my best friend is getting married. I was going to post this yesterday, but life happened! Soooo, let’s dive right in! Things You Ask Thursday – on a Friday!

1.) How do you get so much done during the twins naptime? How do you stay focused and on task? I find myself wanting to sleep and do nothing but relax.

It always depends on the day because, let’s be real, some days their naps can be a total flop! They either do not nap as long as they should or something else goes array. However, today is a great one to use as an example because it was one of those days were their long nap was a total success and I was determined to get a lot done in that two and a half time span!

The babies went down right at 12:00 so once they were asleep I quickly showered. Afterward, the rest of their nap time looked like this.

12:15-12:30 = Cleaned out a corner of my house that had been bugging me for a week!

12:30-12:45= worked in my laundry room…which is a total disaster might I add! Does anyone do a million loads a day? My babies are really good at blowing out their outfits! I consider it a valuable skill- HA!

12:45-1:15= Responded to emails regarding collaborations and blog work

1:15-1:30= Meal prepped dinner for tonight. I’m keeping it super duper simple (as always, you know me). I cut up some Brussel sprouts and flavored them along with some chicken breasts. Placed them in the fridge so they could be thrown in the oven later in the day! Here are the recipes I used for the baked chicken and Brussel sprouts!

1:30-1:45= Did my postpartum ab routine. To see which exercises I do, click right here!

1:45-2:00= Answered more emails and followed up with potential collaborations

2:00-2:10= Prepped food for the babies!

2:10-2:30= Sat down and mindlessly scrolled my phone because I do not do that when they are awake. I never want to be glued to my phone in front of them.

A big tip that keeps me productive and on track!

I set a timer on my phone and dedicate a certain amount of time to each task that needs to be accomplished. That’s why I am able to even type out above what I did during the babies nap time. If I do not set my timer to stay on task with one thing at a time, my mind goes crazy! I’ll start working on five different things at once and end up not completing ANYTHING! There will just be a bunch of things half did, which also drives me crazy.

Please keep in mind, I totally have off days. Days where I am completely dragging from either lack of sleep the night before and just plain tired. On these days, I try and nap for forty minutes or so and then make sure I accomplish one big thing. 

You know how I say that I am a nicer & happier person when I get exercise in each day? I am also more enjoyable when I am productive and get little things accomplished that have been on my mind. That alone motivates me during their naptime. On the days that I do not accomplish what I set out to do during their nap, I end up doing late at night. That’s the time of day I would rather relax and hang out with Matthew which also motivates me to get it all done during their long nap!

2.) Have you ever overdone or been addicted to exercise? I am struggling with an addiction to exercise and want to know how to be more balanced.

I am not a doctor, obviously, but I can tell you a little of my own personal story when it comes to this. In high school, I used exercise as a crutch and I can 100% admit that I overdid exercise at that time in my life. To be honest, I wasn’t the best student and personally felt like the only thing I was good at was fitness. It has always been one of my natural strengths and so I poured everything into it. I would like to say that I was a poor student because I simply did not try. There was next to no effort put into my studies. This insecurity of mine made me try to overcompensate with fitness. It was something I loved and was good at, so why not just be the best with that? By default, that made me overdo exercise. I can tell you confidentially that I became more balanced when I became a personal trainer and started Lively Girl Fitness. I learned that I was not only good at helping myself obtain a fit physique but I really knew how to help others as well! I became so busy with training my clients and running an online business that frankly there was not the time to overdo it! Currently, I do not struggle with this either because I have two little humans that I pour so much love into. Not to mention I want to set a very healthy example to them. I am not concerned about myself in the way I use to be. Honestly, I was too self-absorbed so learning to help others, rather than just myself, is when the excessive exercising stopped.

I’ve witnessed this a lot in the fitness industry and have met people with similar stories to my own. Many times, we can overdo exercise because of either 1.) We feel that is all we excel at aka our only talent or 2.) We are taught that the more exercise you do, the better you look and that could not be further from the truth! I promote a lot on my page now how many days I maybe do 30 minutes of a workout. I use to spend HOURS at the gym. Now, I can’t even imagine doing that because time wise that would never work!

Moral of the story: I became more balanced when I stopped using exercise as a crutch and realized I had more talent than just being fit and focusing on myself. Without a doubt, pouring my knowledge and training techniques into my clients is what led me to a healthier happier path.

Hopefully, that makes sense to you! Please keep in mind, if you feel like you are completely overdoing it and do not know how to stop, seek out help! There is nothing wrong with asking for advice and sometimes you need that support!

3.) I’ve been following your page for two years now. I want to start a fitness Instagram and blog but everyone tells me not to because it seems like EVERYONE is doing it! What’s your opinion on that?

When I first started mine, I was told the exact same thing… and that was three years ago! Countless times the phrase “The fitness industry is so saturated” or “everyone is a blogger”…” everyone is a trainer” blah blah blahhh. I did not have much support when it came to this page. Those that knew me viewed it as a nice hobby of mine and didn’t really understand there was a monetary value that could come from it! I even got made fun of… A LOT! Three years ago, I saw the big picture and I’m so darn glad I followed my gut instinct. I played it off cool like it was a hobby because I was sick of trying to make others see the potential that I saw. Instead, I got to work and showed them. Personally, if you want to start your own online business or motivational page I will always say to go for it. You never know until you try. If you want to succeed, work your butt off, get scrappy and just make it happen. Something else to keep in mind is that sometimes others can’t think outside of the box. I don’t mean this negatively! It is just that some people genuinely do not understand how one can make an income from their laptop or phone. Either they are uneducated or closed minded. If you are able to have a clear vision of what you want to become and it is not inside a dang box, that is gold and run with it! Seriously, follow your gut over outsiders opinions.  I promise you, it will pay off.

That’s all for this week’s questions! Thanks for stopping by the blog today and as always…Stay Lively!