Finding Joy in Chaos

Ever feel like your life is spinning faster than a flywheel in a cycle class? That's exactly where I found myself this week, staring down an impossible schedule and wondering how I'd possibly make it through. Sometimes the universe throws us into the deep end – literally, in my case.

This episode centers around a powerful affirmation that's become my lifeline: "I choose joy, even in the busy." Between teaching extra classes and facing my first-ever cycle instruction (despite having zero experience!), I've been reminded of the beautiful chaos that comes with growth. I share my hilarious water aerobics story from years ago – standing poolside with a room full of expectant faces, making up moves on the spot while my hair wilted in the humidity. What began as terrifying became something I now love teaching.

There's something magical about showing up imperfectly rather than not showing up at all. When life gives you a schedule that feels impossible or throws you into something you're not ready for, remember that your presence matters more than your perfection. Taking deep breaths, moving one step at a time, and finding moments of joy even in overwhelm – that's where resilience grows. If your week looks like mine – jam-packed and a little intimidating – know that you're not alone, and you've absolutely got this.

Have you faced a similar situation where you had to dive into something new without preparation? Share your story in the comments – I'd love to hear how you navigated your own unexpected challenges!

Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome and Life Overwhelm
• 0:59 Today's Affirmation: Choosing Joy
• 1:16 Stepping Into New Challenges
• 3:14 Final Thoughts and Encouragement

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:01

Hello and welcome back to the Spandex and Wine podcast. I'm your host, robin Hackney, so thanks so much for being here. And you guys, I promise I will get back to the regular intro outro with my music and all of that. Oh my gosh, you know how sometimes your life, just your head, is just spinning, and right now I have one of those weeks where I'm like how in the world am I going to get through all of this? My calendar is full. I have one of those weeks where I'm like how in the world am I going to get through all of this? My calendar's full. I'm teaching some extra classes, have some extra hours and, honestly, it feels like it's going to take everything in me to make it through. So this is going to be nice, short and sweet.

Speaker 1: 0:39

Today. I want to start with our affirmation, something that I need to just tell myself over and over, so I hope that it really resonates with you too. So I will say it three times, giving you time in between to repeat it out loud, hopefully, and if it can't be out loud, then you could just say it to yourself. That's fine. So here we go. I choose joy, even in the busy. I choose joy even in the busy. I choose joy even in the busy. I choose joy even in the busy. Okay, all right, so, yeah, so this week I'm covering for another instructor who's out of town and so I have my normal schedule, but a few extra classes and hours added in, like I mentioned before.

Speaker 1: 1:33

And you guys, one is cycle. I've never taught a cycle class before, so this is going to be so much fun. It reminds me of I hope a lot of you have seen the movie Fun with Dick and Jane how she goes into the gym to make some extra money. And I don't even know what the class was it was Kaigong, I don't even know Anyway and she's like oh yeah, I can teach that, and then she just makes the best of it. But it's so funny and I just feel like that right now, in this moment. So hopefully you've seen that movie. It also reminded me of a story when I worked at Lifetime Fitness and I was new in the fitness industry, and one day one of the instructors came up to me and she's like I need you to cover my water aerobics class.

Speaker 1: 2:19

You guys, I had never taught water aerobics, I had no idea what I was doing and I remember standing there just trying to make up moves and trying not to look too ridiculous and realizing that they can't move as fast as I can, I'm out of the water, they're in the water and it's just oh my gosh, it was so funny, yeah, and it was so humid in there and my hair just went completely flat. But I showed up, I did my best and we laughed, we moved, we had a good time anyway, and now I absolutely love teaching water aerobics. So I'm sure the same will happen tomorrow with the cycle. I have my playlist. I have, I think, my moves. I don't have all the right cues, but it's going to be fine and I know the group's going to help me out too. So that's what I'm holding onto this week.

Speaker 1: 3:08

Sometimes life gives you a schedule that feels impossible or throws you into something new you're not quite ready for. But showing up matters and giving yourself permission to not be perfect, to laugh at yourself, to lean into the moment, that's where growth and resilience come from. So if your week looks like mine it's jam-packed, overwhelming and maybe a little bit intimidating. Remember today's affirmation I choose joy, even in the busy. So just take a deep breath, take one step at a time and know that you've got this and, yes, I might have to listen to this over and over just for myself. Okay, you guys have a wonderful day and until next time, allah. All right, there you go. Until next time.