The #1 Excuse Keeping Women Over 40 Out of Shape

00:00I'm just gonna say, you don't have a time problem. You have a priority problem. And before the police come for me, I know you're busy. I know you may have kids. You have a career. You have work demands. You have a husband. You have a house. You're exhausted. And I think we have this fantasy that eventually we're going to enter this like magical season where everything is just calm. Guys, that's never gonna happen. We say we have no time, but somehow we just binged an entire series on Netflix. You watch three episodes on Netflix one night. And within the weekend, you're done the whole series.

00:37What's going on, everybody? Hey, you guys. Welcome back to another episode with your host, Nikkie Stott. And on these episodes, we talk about mindset, methodologies, and tactics that will help you lose body fat, build muscle, be strong, and feel insanely confident. Okay, so with today's episode, I'm probably gonna step on some toes with this one, but I think that some of you guys need to hear this. And I'm gonna preface this. As I lean in with you on this episode, that I'm saying all of this was so much love because it's the truth.

01:14And at the end of the day, sometimes you have to get out of your own way. Okay? So I'm just gonna say you don't have a time problem. You have a priority problem. And before the police come for me, I know you're busy. I know you may have kids. You have a career. You have work demands. You have a husband. You have a house. Maybe you're taking care of your parents. You're driving your kids to sports. Maybe you're running a business. You're exhausted. So I'm not sitting here pretending that everybody has unlimited free time.

01:48And I also don't really like, like, everybody who has the same 24 hours because, like, technically, sure, yeah, we do. But we absolutely do not have the same responsibilities inside those 24 hours. So that's not what I'm saying. What I am saying is that most of us have more control over our time than we are willing to admit. And so when you tell me for six months that you don't have the time to work out or you don't have the time to meal prep or you don't have the time to walk or you don't have the time to get your workout in, you don't have enough time to eat that protein.

02:25If you're telling me that for six months, at some point, we need to stop talking about time. And we need to start talking about your priorities because eventually your calendar is going to expose what actually matters to you. And so why I think that we say this, like, I don't have enough time. I think we say because it feels better than you saying I'm not a priority for me right now.

02:59Like, those two sentences hit very different. They feel very different, right? Like, I don't have time to work out. Okay. Now say, instead of that, working out isn't a priority for me right now. You feel that difference? One, you know, one is an excuse. It's blocking the truth. But it's also blocking you taking the responsibility and ownership for your life.

03:29Like, if you're saying I don't have time to meal prep. Okay, what you're really saying is prepping food that supports my goals just isn't a priority for me right now. Or I don't have time to walk and get my 8,000 steps in. What you're really saying is, like, getting in my movement just isn't a priority for me right now. And, like, I'm not saying all this to come down on you. I'm saying to expose the truth. Because, also, there may genuinely be a season where the things I'm talking about right now aren't your highest priority.

04:05And that's okay. Right? Maybe your family does need you. Or you're going through a really difficult time. Like, maybe you lost a job. Or you lost a family member. Like, or work is absolutely insane. It's chaotic. And all of your kids are playing sports. Like, maybe there is a season where maintaining is the win for you. But what I'm saying here is, own that. Because when you say, oh, I just don't have enough time. You are, not only is it an excuse, but you are also just making yourself feel so powerless in that moment.

04:36Like, instead what you can say is, I'm just not prioritizing this right now. And now you have a choice. And I'd rather you have ownership over the narrative that you are playing in your mind, rather than making excuses and covering up the truth of what is actually happening in your world. Does that make sense? Like, women just in general need to take more responsibility and more ownership. Because when you do that, you're bringing awareness and light to the actual situation.

05:07And you can't hide from that truth because it's already been exposed now. You, running with an excuse of, I just don't have enough time. I just don't have enough time to do this. Like, soon enough, you're going to believe that narrative and it's going to become so true to you. That in two years, you're going to look back and you're going to be like, well, I'm in the same exact position now. And guess what? You're going to have to start making time for the goals that you want to achieve, right? Like, this is what happens too.

05:38Like, what I think happens to a lot of women here is, you wake up. And you immediately start taking care of everybody else. Like, your kids need something. Emails start flying in. Work needs something. Someone calls you. Your friend is having a breakdown. There's dinner you got to make. There's another meeting. And so your workout, like, okay, well, I'll just do that later. Or the walk that you're supposed to do. Like, your goals keep losing what feels urgent. Like, that walk you're supposed to get to, maybe I'll just do it later. Right?

06:08Everything that is not important now gets pushed off to the side. Your meal prep, okay, well, maybe I'll just do that on Sunday. Then, like, the later ends up coming, but you're exhausted, so you don't do it. And so then the next day, the same thing keeps happening. Or the next week, the same thing keeps happening. Or the next six months have gone by. And you keep saying, well, dang, I don't know where that time just went. I know where it goes. It goes to whatever screams the loudest. Just, like, your responsibilities, your priorities, work, people, friends, kids, dinner.

06:40You are, they are, they are the most important thing in, as you're saying, I don't have enough time. Because you're placing them of importance over your own health. Because this is the thing. Your health usually doesn't scream. Your health is not usually, like, well, not yet, actually. And that's the problem. Like, your workout isn't sending you an urgent email being like, okay, well, hey, girl, are we following up on this? Like, your future health isn't calling you being like, hey, can we get, like, that 30 minutes on your calendar today?

07:16You know what I mean? Like, it just keeps getting, you keep pushing it. And you keep pushing it off because everything else feels so urgent. But urgent and important are not the same thing. Let that, let it just sit. Like, urgent, if it's not on fire, it's not urgent. That's how I would say it. And if you only take care of your health when something else, when nothing else needs you, you're never going to take care of your own, you're never going to take care of your house.

07:49Because something will always need you. You get what I'm saying? Something will always need you. Your kids will always need you until they're 20 years old. Maybe some of you guys, if they're still living at your house at 30, you know, work will always need you. Something will always need you. And so, I would say you got to stop waiting for life to calm down. I think this is a big one. Like, people say, I'll get serious when work slows down. Now that summer's done, too, the kids are going back to school.

08:19So, I'll start after the kids go back to school. Or I'll start after vacation. Or I'll start, you know, the next one is the holidays, guys. In between and when kids start is like, okay, well, now the holidays are out in the corner. So, I'll just, we're getting into that sweet spot where people are like, I'm just going to wait until January. Those projects for work, like, the holidays end. And then something else is going to start. That's just life. And I think we have this fantasy that eventually we're going to enter this, like, magical season where everything is just calm.

08:53Guys, that's never going to happen. Like, where work is easy and nobody needs us. And we're sleeping, you know, eight hours and the kids are doing their own thing. Or like, you know, your schedule is wide open. And, you know, you're going to wake up and you're excited to train every morning. But I wouldn't build my health around waiting for that season. You need to learn how to take care of yourself inside your actual life. Not this imaginary when things are better, when things are calmed down, when kids go back to school, when work is less demanding. Learn how to take care of yourself inside of your busy life.

09:29Because the goal isn't to become really good at your health and fitness when life is, when everything is perfect. The goal is to create the habits that survive when life is lifing. You get what I'm saying? You tracking with me here? Because you're going to find time for what matters. And this is where I'm going to just, like, lean in and push you guys a little bit. Because we say we have no time.

10:00But somehow, we just binged an entire series on Netflix. You watch three episodes on Netflix one night. And within the weekend, you're done the whole series. But yet, somehow we say we have no time. Or you spent 47 minutes scrolling on Instagram. I challenge you guys to check your screen time. And see where your time is really going to. Or you checked your phone 96 times a day. You got time to go to Target.

10:31I'm guilty of this. And walk around for an hour. Time to answer the emails. I probably could have waited until tomorrow, right? But somehow, there wasn't 30 minutes or 45 minutes for you. And, like, you can do all those things. I'm human. I scroll. I just binged a whole Netflix series over the weekend. So I'm saying these things. Like, I'm human. I'm there. I've been with you. I see. This is also the just normalcy of human behavior nowadays. But let's stop pretending that there was zero time available.

11:03That's where I'm trying to get at with this here. Because there is time. That's, again, the truth. There's time. It's just like you're choosing to use it somewhere else. And once you can admit that, you can change it. Once you bring that to the awareness, you're aware of it. Once the truth is always going to set you free, guys. You can change it, right? Quick break. If you're finding this episode helpful so far, it would mean a lot if you could hit pause for just a second, leave a quick rating or a review, or share it with someone who could benefit from it.

11:40Your support helps more women discover these tools to build muscle, lose fat, and feel confident. Thank you so much for being a part of this journey with me. And the screen time, let me lean into that a second because that's a challenge. After this episode, just open up your phone and look at your screen time. Like, actually look at it. Because I think some of you are going to, you're going to feel what I'm saying here. You might tell me that you don't have 30 minutes to train. And then your phone says that you spent two hours and 14 minutes on social media yesterday.

12:10Okay. Now listen, I'm not saying, you know, take all those two hours away. But can we find the 45 minutes? Or can we find the hour? Can we find the hour to focus on you? Yeah, probably. Can we take a 20-minute walk while listening to a podcast instead of sitting on the couch and scrolling? Yeah, probably. Could you order groceries instead of spending an hour wandering through the grocery store? Yeah, technology is pretty crazy nowadays. Our apps and the things and resources that we have at fingertips are pretty amazing.

12:40Can we prep two proteins on a Sunday instead of binging an episode or two of Netflix? Like, that can wait until nighttime. Right? So it's not about doing more. A lot of the time, it's about looking at what you're already doing and asking yourself, does this actually deserve the amount of time that I'm giving it? Ladies.

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13:44Look, don't wait anymore. Take charge of your health and join our community of strong, empowered women. Visit WarriorBabe.com forward slash apply today to start your transformation. That's WarriorBabe.com forward slash apply. All right. Let's get back to the show. Because this is where you're going to look at your priorities aren't what you say you are. And that might sting a little bit. Like your priorities are what your behavior repeatedly determines.

14:16So you can tell me my health is really important to me. Okay, cool. But show me. Guys, if you ever are in my circle of my friends, we meet in person, we're talking about this. It doesn't matter about words that you say. It matters about your actions and behaviors because those things are going to demonstrate what actually matters to you the most. And also how you follow through on things, right? Like you can tell me that.

14:46You can tell me that your health is really important to me, right? You can say that. Okay, but awesome. Show me that. Like I'm not asking for seven workouts a week, but let me see your calendar. Let me see. Show me your bedtime routine. Show me the ways that you're, you know, you're making sure that you're getting that workout done. Show me the decisions that you make every day that your day gets busy. Show me what your nutrition looks like on a weekly basis. Because we love the idea of having priorities like family is my priority. Health is my priority.

15:17My marriage is my priority. My faith is my priority. My career is my priority. Okay, cool. Awesome. But if everything is a priority, then nothing is a priority. And at the same point, your choices have to reflect the things that you say matter to you. You get what I'm saying? Like what is of a priority to you shows in your actions and behaviors afterwards. So if your health is truly a priority, I want to see what that actually looks like on a daily basis. Because you're making everybody else. Those things are the priorities. You have time cut out. You like there's this woman that inspires me every single day.

15:49She has four kids. She is building a business. She has like I ask her when we can hang out. She gives me time blocks in the week. Like she's the one setting the responsibilities she has on a daily basis and these time blocks and these boundaries because she has a million other things going on. Right? And like also too, this is another trap. Like women think if they can't do the entire thing with that perfection mentality, there's no point in doing anything. If you don't have an hour to work out, cool, awesome.

16:22Okay, try 30 minutes. If you can't get the 10,000 steps in, do seven. If you can't meal prep for an entire week, just cook protein for the next three days. If you can't train five days, don't. Like you don't have to overburden yourself with the responsibilities of what comes with your health by trying to stack all of these things into your schedule. If you can't get to all of them, you're never going to do one of them. You don't have to be perfect. There's so much space between those things.

16:52Like for you, the all or nothing mentality destroys your consistency. There's not this perfect plan or nothing. There is this in between. And that's where a lot of successful women learn how to operate is inside that space. You don't have to be perfect, but you have to keep the promises that you made to yourself by setting this goal of prioritizing your health. And whenever that looks like for the week, if your coach has programmed five workouts, but you can only get four done, then get four done. If you only did 10K steps five days out of the seven days of the week, that's okay.

17:24You still did a majority of the time. You got what I'm saying? Like this is something I think of every woman needs. You have your ideal, right? You have this image or this goal that you're trying to obtain, but then you also have your minimum. So your ideal week might be four strength training sessions. It might be that you have your steps tracked every day. 10K. You have your meals prep. You have a protein every meal. You have eight hours of sleep. Great. But then when your kids get sick or work explodes or travel happens, then what's the minimum standard?

18:00This is a middle between that I want you guys to look at. Maybe it's the three strength training sessions. Maybe it's the seven K steps, like I said. Maybe it's protein three times a day rather than you getting in all of your protein in every single meal. And doing your best with everything else. That is still consistency. I think that's why I need everybody to understand when I say that. Because consistency doesn't mean doing the exact same amount every single day of your life. Consistency means that you keep finding a way to stay connected to the behaviors that matter.

18:35Even when the amount has to change. And I think that's where a lot of women get stuck. Because the second they can't execute the ideal plan, then you abandon the plan entirely. I'd rather see you give 75% for a difficult week than 0% because you couldn't give me 100%. Again, are you tracking with me here? So, however you operate. You operate with a calendar. You operate with your phone.

19:07You operate with an agenda book. If something matters to you, schedule it. Your dentist appointment goes on your calendar. Your work meetings go on your calendar. The soccer practices and soccer games go on your calendar. Your hair appointment goes on your calendar. Why isn't your workout on your calendar? Why isn't... Why is your workout this like floating thing that just keeps happening to squeeze in whenever like whenever you've got that time left over? So, like to say that, put it somewhere.

19:38Put it on Monday. Put it 7 a.m. Put it on like that you're working out. And it doesn't have to be the same time every single day either. Mine doesn't look like that. Mine's like 10 a.m. And then it's like 3 p.m. And then it's like 7 a.m. And then it's like noon. It randomly changes throughout the week. And so, as long as it's there, 4 days of the week, then you have 3 other days to move it around if you can't make the one day that you have programmed on a Thursday. Let's say you train Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday.

20:10But something happens on Tuesday. So, you push your workout to Wednesday. Or vice versa. Something happens on Friday. You push your workout to Saturday. You have 3 other days of the week to move it around. And things... Like that's what... Things happened. But you can move it. And the thing I want you to think about is how often do you cancel on yourself compared to how often do you cancel on everybody else? You would never repeatedly no-show a meeting with your boss, right? You would... You wouldn't repeatedly skip your kids' practices because you didn't feel like driving there.

20:44You wouldn't leave your kids at school, right? When at the end of the school day, we're going to go pick them up. But when it's something that you promised yourself, like it's just like, okay, well, I'll push it. It's gone. That's why I just want you to look at that. Like sit with that. Bring that to light. Just like ruminate on it. Think about it. And then all of this deserves attention, right? And like there's the hard... Like I come back to the hard seasons. Because I don't want you leaving this episode thinking Nikki thinks I'm making excuses because I'm overwhelmed.

21:17Sometimes life legitimately does kick your butt. And there will be seasons where fitness does take a back seat. There's going to be, like I said, grief, illness, new babies, difficult seasons, family emergencies, career changes. There are circumstances where survival generally is the priority. I get that. And in those seasons, I want you to give yourself grace. But a hard week or a hard three weeks is different from a five-year pattern. And that's where you have to be honest with yourself. That's where you have to bring truth to light.

21:49Is this genuinely a season? Or have I been telling myself it's a season for three years? That's the difference. As I said earlier, if you keep telling these things to yourself over and over and over again, you're going to keep believing it. And three years from now, two years from now, you're going to be in the same exact position that you were then. So this is what I want to leave you guys with. What do you actually want? Now what do you think you should want? What matters enough to you that you're willing to make room for it?

22:22Because when you look at it like this, every single goal that you have has a cost. You want to build muscle? You're going to have to train. You want to change your body composition? You're going to have to pay attention to your nutrition. You want to feel better? Then you're going to have to go to bed instead of watching another episode. If you want those 8,000 steps, then you're going to have to walk when you don't feel like walking. The reality is, is like your goal is going to require something from you.

22:54So instead of asking yourself, do I have the time? Ask yourself, is this important enough for me to make time? And that's a completely different question, right? So all in all, say, yes, I understand. You're busy. I'm busy. We're all carrying things other people don't see or become privy to. And I'm never going to tell you that everybody's circumstances are the same. They're not. But I am going to challenge you when you continuously say, I don't have time.

23:27Because, yeah, sometimes that is true. And sometimes it's just really a comfortable excuse. So look at your calendar. Look at your screen time. Look at what you're saying yes to. Look at what you're unwilling to say no to, right? Look at what gets to your best energy every single day. And then ask yourself, does the way I'm spending my time actually match the body that I want? Because you don't need another hour magically added to your day. You might just need to get more protective over the hours that you already have.

24:02So stop waiting for life to calm down. Stop waiting until everything is handled. Stop waiting until that project is done and the kids are back in school, right? Like that is a lot, real thing for a lot of women now. And I'm telling you, there's a sweet spot. The kids are back in school. You have some time to yourself. The holidays are going to come. Build the habits right now. Get it under control right now. You have control over your time. You just have to bring this truth and light to it. Make the walk fit.

24:33Make the workout fit. Make the food fit, right? That's probably not the actual problem. Maybe it's time to look at the priority and be honest with yourself. If that is something that you've been saying over and over and over again. All right, guys. I hope this episode helped you. I truly hope that it brought to like you could take just at the end of the day, just take responsibility and ownership for your life where it is right now. And so many incredible things will unfold from that. Okay. Love you guys. I'll see you in the next episode. Peace out.

25:03Hey, really quick before you go. I have one small favor to ask. If this episode brought you value or sparked something in you, take just a moment to hit that review button. Your rating and review make all of the difference. Helping more women discover the tools they need to transform the fitness and their confidence. It takes less than a minute, but it can change the path of someone else's journey. Thank you so much for leaving that review. I appreciate you so much. Thank you.

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