What if your 10-year-old self and your 80-year-old self could give you advice about how to move your body today? In this final episode of the exercise experiment, we explore how honoring both your past and future self can transform your relationship with movement. It’s a perspective shift that’s not just inspiring, but also deeply grounding.

• What your 10-year-old self might want to tell you about exercise
• Why your 80-year-old self cares about what you’re doing now
• Letting go of guilt and embracing sustainable movement habits
• How to reframe fitness goals with long-term self-care in mind
• The importance of curiosity and compassion in your wellness journey

Click here to listen wherever you listen to podcasts: https://pod.link/1776913379 Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/motivated-with-meg/id1776913379 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4dqqjwsmm3WfeQh8uBUe3r Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL62IXb2PKADYc3g7Ehj5793bczeanFm-p

P.S. Love this episode? Let me know 🙏🏻💬 Please rate the podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Your feedback helps shape future episodes and is very much appreciated!

“Did you know your body physically responds to a mental image?”

Do you ever find yourself dreading a workout or walk before you’ve even started? That negative self-talk—that moment when you imagine the struggle before you even move—is a perfect example of your mind-body connection at work.

In this episode, I explore how your mindset can shape your physical experience, for better or worse. I’ll walk you through a quick visualization exercise that proves just how powerful your imagination is—and how you can use that power to create ease instead of tension. You’ll learn how shifting your inner dialogue before movement can help you feel more connected, empowered, and motivated.

This isn’t about forcing positivity or pushing through pain. It’s about using curiosity and intention to make your movement habits something that feels doable, emotionally and physically.

🎧 Tune in now and try this week’s experiment to soften your mindset and strengthen your connection to your body.

• How your imagination impacts your body through the mind-body connection
• What negative self-talk does to your breath, muscles, and motivation
• How to use mental imagery to feel more empowered during exercise
• How movement can feel better when it starts from connection, not correction
• This week’s 30-second experiment to reset your mindset before movement

Mind-Body Connection Is Built Into the Brain

Click here to listen wherever you listen to podcasts: https://pod.link/1776913379 Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/motivated-with-meg/id1776913379 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4dqqjwsmm3WfeQh8uBUe3r Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL62IXb2PKADYc3g7Ehj5793bczeanFm-p

P.S. Love this episode? Let me know 🙏🏻💬 Please rate the podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Your feedback helps shape future episodes and is very much appreciated!

“You don't need to use fear to stay motivated as you let go of the diet mentality around fitness or ease back in after an injury.”

“Movement is easy. Our bodies were made to move. We make it harder by overthinking it and giving ourselves deadlines.”

You took a break from working out…and now you’re feeling stuck.

Should you push through, start over, or wait until you “feel ready”? 🤔

In this episode, I talk about the mental spiral that can follow a setback, especially if you’re used to the hustle culture approach to fitness. I share my own journey of unlearning pressure-filled timelines and how to come back to movement with less fear and more self-trust. We’ll discuss how to transition from fear-based motivation to curiosity, and why rest isn’t a sign of failure, but rather a natural part of the cycle.

If you’ve ever felt guilty for slowing down or afraid of “losing progress,” this one’s for you.

• Introduction to setbacks and movement breaks
• The pressure to push through injuries and overtrain
• How hustle culture affects our approach to rest
• Letting go of deadlines and fear-based motivation
• Quick-fix goals vs. sustainable habits
• What happens after the “event” you trained for ends
• Why rest is part of the cycle
• Affirmations and mantras to reframe your mindset
• Your weekly experiment

Click here to listen wherever you listen to podcasts: https://pod.link/1776913379 Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/motivated-with-meg/id1776913379 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4dqqjwsmm3WfeQh8uBUe3r Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL62IXb2PKADYc3g7Ehj5793bczeanFm-p

P.S. Love this episode? Let me know 🙏🏻💬 Please rate the podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Your feedback helps shape future episodes and is very much appreciated!

Working out alone can feel like a chore. You know moving your body feels good, but sometimes it’s easier to skip it when no one’s holding you accountable. Accountability can be the byproduct of social connection.

In this episode, I’m sharing why adding a little social connection to your movement might be the secret sauce to making it stick. Whether it’s a workout buddy, a yoga class, a running club, or a hiking group, community can bring more motivation, joy, and consistency to how you move. I also share some ideas on how to find or build your own movement community—even if you’re not a “group fitness person.”

Tune in now and start turning movement into something you want to show up for, not just another box to check.

• My personal experience with group classes
• Why working out with others boosts consistency
• What clients really paid me for as a personal trainer
• Science behind social movement benefits
• My experience hosting yoga hikes
• Why feeling safe impacts your willingness to show up
• Ideas to find your own movement community
• Your experiment for the week

• Meetup.com – This is for finding local hiking or fitness groups.
• Yoga Hikes
• Local Fitness Groups – women-only gyms, yoga studios, walking clubs, etc

Click here to listen wherever you listen to podcasts: https://pod.link/1776913379 Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/motivated-with-meg/id1776913379 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4dqqjwsmm3WfeQh8uBUe3r Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL62IXb2PKADYc3g7Ehj5793bczeanFm-p

P.S. Love this episode? Let me know 🙏🏻💬 Please rate the podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Your feedback helps shape future episodes and is very much appreciated!

“You can want change. You can train and grow. But you don’t need to mentally bully yourself the entire way there.”

Have you ever caught yourself comparing your body to someone else’s—at the gym, on Instagram, or even from memories and pictures?

It’s hard to enjoy movement when it’s rooted in shame. In today’s episode, I’m opening up about the connection between body image and joyful movement—because let’s be real, when we hate our bodies, it’s a lot harder to move them with love.

This is your reminder that you don’t have to look like anyone else to be successful in life. 🙂

• How negative body image makes joyful movement harder
• The difference between healthy inspiration and toxic comparison
• How diet culture and social media distort body perception
• My personal story about working out from a place of body shame
• Learning to spot when comparison leads to self-bullying
• Why you don’t need to change your body to be worthy of love
• A 3-part weekly experiment to help improve your body image and reclaim movement joy

• PlanNet Plant ID app

Click here to listen wherever you listen to podcasts: https://pod.link/1776913379 Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/motivated-with-meg/id1776913379 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4dqqjwsmm3WfeQh8uBUe3r Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL62IXb2PKADYc3g7Ehj5793bczeanFm-p

P.S. Love this episode? Let me know 🙏🏻💬 Please rate the podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Your feedback helps shape future episodes and is very much appreciated!

“Mindful movement turns exercise into a conversation, not a demand.”

Have you ever finished a workout and realized you barely paid attention to what your body was doing?? Like your mind was racing through a to-do list while your body went through the motions? In this episode of The Exercise Experiment, we’re slowing things down and tuning in.

Mindful movement isn’t just about being present. It’s about listening to your body and respecting what you hear. Whether it’s pushing a little harder when you have energy or permitting yourself to rest when you need it, mindful movement is a game-changer for building a sustainable and joyful relationship with exercise.

If you're tired of pushing through pain, feeling disconnected, or just treating workouts like another box to check, this episode is your invitation to move differently.

• Mindless workouts vs. mindful connection
• What is mindful movement really about?
• When pushing through pain backfires
• How I learned mindful movement through hiking
• Respecting your body’s signals
• Knowing when to push vs. when to rest
• Why mindful movement is smart training
• Your weekly experiment

Click here to listen wherever you listen to podcasts: https://pod.link/1776913379 Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/motivated-with-meg/id1776913379 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4dqqjwsmm3WfeQh8uBUe3r Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL62IXb2PKADYc3g7Ehj5793bczeanFm-p

P.S. Love this episode? Let me know 🙏🏻💬 Please rate the podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Your feedback helps shape future episodes and is very much appreciated!

“When numbers start to dictate your mood or worth, it might be time to reevaluate your tracking habits.”

Do you really need to track everything? In this episode of The Exercise Experiment, I speak about the world of fitness trackers, apps, and metrics, and explore the impact they can have on our mindset. I’ve been that person who logged every calorie, every step, every workout. But at some point, I had to ask: Is this helping me or just adding pressure?

If you’ve ever felt like the numbers are running the show and dictating your happiness, this one’s for you. Let’s talk about tracking with intention, not obsession. I’ll share the few things I still track (like sleep, hydration, and my menstrual cycle), and how to know when it’s time to take a step back and reassess if tracking is helping or hindering for you.

Topics Covered:

• Welcome back to The Exercise Experiment
• Tracking: supportive or stressful?
• My early obsession with tracking everything
• Why intention matters more than data
• When tracking is helpful
• When tracking becomes toxic
• What I choose to track now (and why)
• Your weekly experiment

• 5-Minute Ab Workout: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3VrsyciCWk
• Dr. Stacy Sims (on weightlifting around your menstrual cycle)

Click here to listen wherever you listen to podcasts: https://pod.link/1776913379 Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/motivated-with-meg/id1776913379 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4dqqjwsmm3WfeQh8uBUe3r Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL62IXb2PKADYc3g7Ehj5793bczeanFm-p

P.S. Love this episode? Let me know 🙏🏻💬 Please rate the podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Your feedback helps shape future episodes and is very much appreciated!

“If I don't have a full hour, what's the point of doing my workout?” Oh, the lies I chose to believe. 😅

Old me used to think that exercising wasn't worth it if I couldn’t commit to 60 minutes. In this episode, we will challenge that belief.

We’ll explore how breaking free from the all-or-nothing mindset can lead to a more flexible, enjoyable approach to exercise. Whether you're squeezing in a quick stretch, a brisk walk, or a brief bike ride after a long day, every minute counts toward nurturing your body and mind.

Key Points:

• Challenge the 60-minute workout myth and embrace shorter, more attainable bouts of movement.
• Understand that consistent, smaller movements can shift your mood and energy without overwhelming your day.
• Explore the benefits of integrating quick movement breaks into a busy routine, especially when work and other obligations stack up.
• Discover how being flexible with your movement routine can create more freedom for movement and downtime.

Resources:

5 Minute Body Weight Exercise Video on YouTube

Connect with Meaghan:

Follow me on YouTube! https://www.youtube.com/@motivatedwithmeg

Click here to listen wherever you listen to podcasts: https://pod.link/1776913379 Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/motivated-with-meg/id1776913379 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4dqqjwsmm3WfeQh8uBUe3r Listen on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL62IXb2PKADYc3g7Ehj5793bczeanFm-p P.S. Love this episode? Let me know 🙏🏻💬 Please rate the podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Your feedback helps shape future episodes and is very much appreciated!