Progress: One Step at a Time

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During the Spring, Summer, and Fall in Maine, I exercise outside. I walk in my neighborhood, on the beach, and on trails.

When winter comes, my husband and I go inside and become members at our local gym. With the pandemic, we didn’t feel comfortable going inside, so I ordered a Peloton. Cycling wasn’t my thing, I never took a spin class, but I decided to try it. I knew lots of people who had one and LOVED it. 

My Peloton arrived and sat in my welcoming basement for months. My Peloton friends would ask, “Have you tried your Peloton?” and I would say, “No, I’m still walking outside.” Which was true but not the whole truth. I was intimidated, felt insecure, and procrastinated. I doubted my decision and ability.

Winter came, and the number of walks I took decreased significantly due to icy, cold weather. I put on weight, was stuck inside, and a tad depressed. I decided to take on my insecurity and committed to getting on my Peloton the week of January 20th. 

My first commitment - figure out how to ride it.

On the 20th, at 7:00 a.m., in my pajamas, I made the trip down into the basement. I turned on the Peloton, completed my profile, and made the adjustments to the bike to fit my body. I opened the box with my shoes to only discover I had to put them together. I almost gave up - 30 minutes later, and I still hadn’t made it on the bike. I powered through, put on my shoes, and clipped into the bike. I decided to ride for five minutes. 

Well, I rode for 15 minutes and signed up for a challenge. I clipped out of the bike, my legs shaking, and made the walk up the stairs. I did it!

The next morning, I put on workout clothes and walked down to the basement. I clipped in and rode for 20 minutes. I did it again!  Yet this morning I wasn’t able to clip out and left my shoes attached to the pedals. I got up the third morning, rode for 20 minutes, and was able to clip out of my right pedal but not my left.  

Feeling frustrated about my inability to clip in and out, I shared this with a friend who had a Peloton. She said, “Oh, I just leave them on the pedals.” Well, that insight made my life a bit easier. Each time I rode the Peloton, I established a tiny goal for myself for that ride. Baby steps equal big changes.

Around the same time, I started a coaching engagement with 18 leaders. 

At our kick-off session, I shared my Peloton story and the significance of taking action. I said when we step (literally) into our insecurity, discomfort, and fear, we take it on by identifying small, incremental actions. The beauty in movement is that it raises our self-awareness so we understand what the experience means to us. It feels empowering to raise our self-awareness, reflect upon the experience, and take away meaningful insight. 

With that insight, we decide our next move - with each move, insecurity decreases and confidence increases. Every time I got on my Peloton, I pushed myself more. I forced myself so I could answer two questions - “can I do it”, and “do I like it”?

“Can I do it represents what I believe about myself. When I coach clients, I want to understand what the goal is, why it is important, and what my client believes about their ability. Our beliefs shape our emotions and behaviors. I had to show myself that I was capable of riding my Peloton. I was sitting in a self-limiting belief that I wasn’t capable, feeling insecure and scared, and avoiding the Peloton. I desired an empowering belief. I had to get on my bike to squash that self-limiting belief. I want my clients to believe they are capable of achieving their development goals and feel the significance of an empowering belief.

I rode that Peloton until I showed myself I was capable.

Once I knew I was capable, I answered the second question: “Do I like it?”  The answer was no, and I sold my Peloton. A Peloton is way too expensive to sit in my basement. Because I showed myself that I was capable, I walked away from my Peloton with no guilt, shame, or feelings of failure. I get to choose what type of exercise serves me. We get to choose what experiences serve us. Once we break through self-limiting beliefs, we step into our happiness and make meaningful choices that serve us and others. 

Baby steps equal big changes. Take a step. Move, reflect, act on those insights.