Better Me with BodyByBree
Better Me with BodyByBree
One-Third of the Time You'll Feel Amazing, Here's What to Do with the Other Two-Thirds
Ready for a mindset shift that makes motivation optional and progress inevitable? We dive into the Rule of Thirds—one third amazing, one third meh, one third hard—and show how this simple lens turns frustration into fuel across fitness, nutrition, business, and motherhood. By expecting the natural cycle of highs, plateaus, and lows, you’ll stop mislabeling normal fluctuations as failure and start building consistency that lasts.
You’ll hear how clients ride the same waves—fast early wins, quiet middle weeks, then a sudden click after a long plateau—even when the scale doesn’t move. Through a clear mountain hike analogy and real coaching examples, we map out what each third looks like, why the “meh” phase is where most progress compounds, and how to survive the hard days without blowing up your routine.
You’ll leave with a three-step plan you can use today. First, name your third to cut the drama and pick the right approach. Second, adjust rather than abandon: push on great days, prioritize basics on meh days, and lower the bar on hard days without breaking the chain. Third, trust the cycle; no phase lasts forever. This is the blueprint for sustainable results, emotional maturity, and self-trust—so you can show up for your goals through every season of life.
If this message hits home, follow and share the episode with a friend who needs it. Subscribe and leave a quick review so more people can find tools that make consistency doable. Then tell us: which third are you in today?
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Are you looking for a space where you will learn to improve your mental strength, emotional health, and heal your insecurities from the inside out? Take the first step to living a more meaningful life with the Better Me with Body Fiber Podcast. I'm your host, Free. I'm a certified personal trainer, entrepreneur, and mother of three. I've helped empower thousands of women to take action through fitness, nutrition, meditation, personal development, and aligning thoughts with action. This podcast is for those who are ready to feel inspired and motivated to live a more purposeful life. Let's grow together. Hi friends, welcome to the Bettering Me with Body Bible podcast. Today we're talking about something that will completely change the way you see your fitness journey. It's a mindset shift that helps you stop quitting when things get hard because it teaches you to expect the ups and downs and use them as fuel instead of failure. It's called the rule of thirds. And here's what you're going to learn today: what the rule of thirds actually means and where it comes from, how this principle applies to your fitness, nutrition, and motivation, and why understanding this one concept can help you finally stay consistent long enough to reach your goals without burning out or giving up. So if you've ever felt like, why am I not motivated every day? Or why does this feel so hard sometimes? This episode is going to give you so much peace of mind because the truth is you are not failing. You're just in a different third. So let me tell you what I mean. A few years ago, I was training for a photo shoot after having one of my babies. And I remember this morning so vividly. I'd gotten maybe four hours of sleep. The baby was up half the night, and my alarm went off at 5:30 a.m. And I laid there thinking, why am I doing this? I am exhausted. I'm so tired. What am I thinking? But I dragged myself out of bed, threw my hair in a bun, and I went anyway. And guess what? That workout, it was terrible. I felt weak, I felt unmotivated and I was cranky. And the next day, something shifted. I crushed my workout. I felt super strong and confident and energized. And that swing from I can't do this to I've got this is technically the rule of thirds in action. So here's what it means. I'm gonna break this down for you. And I actually honestly feel like this really helped me with my business as well. You can apply the rule of thirds concept with anything in your life. Like I was feeling super burnt out in my business just because I've been doing it for so long that I was like, oh, this is feeling super repetitive, you know? So I'm gonna talk about this concept and how it helped me and not only my fitness, but also my business. And it can help you shift your mindset around motherhood as well. So here we go. When you're working towards a really big goal, whether it's getting stronger or losing weight or showing up as your best self or you're trying to be the best mom that you can be, you're going to have one third of the time where you feel amazing. Like you are on top of the world. You feel so good. Your results are paying off, your hard work's paying off, you're fitting into the genes. You're like, yes, this is so good. Or even it's like, let's say the first two weeks of your program, and you're like, wow, I can really tell a difference. It feels good to wake up early. It feels good to keep my word, right? Then one third of the time, you're gonna feel like, meh, I don't know if I'm making progress. Like I'm going through the motions, like I didn't lose any weight this week, or I didn't have any PRs, or it's been a couple of months since I've even seen a change in my body. Like I'm doing all the things I normally do, and not a lot is changing. I don't see a lot of tangible results, but I'm still going through the motions, right? Like you're still on the path of your goal. And then one third of the time, you'll feel horrible. Like you are gonna feel terrible. You're gonna want to quit, you're gonna be frustrated, you're gonna feel like nothing's working. Maybe even you slide back a little bit, you go on a vacation and gain a couple of pounds, or you're gonna you tell yourself, like, this isn't working, or maybe if we're relating this to motherhood, it's like this part sucks. Like I'm the worst mom ever, or I'm not actually enjoying my kids. Like this is hard and this sucks and it's not fun. That is normal. It is not a sign that you're failing, it's proof that you're growing, and that's the magic of it because you're not supposed to have it be butterflies and rainbows all the time. That's not what it's supposed to be. And if you have this expectation that it is, then when it's not, you either feel like something's wrong with you or you want to quit because it doesn't look how you think it should look, right? So I'm gonna give you this little analogy. I want you to think of it like hiking a mountain. At the base, you're super excited, excited, like you're full of energy and it's that like amazing third, right? Then halfway up, it gets deep. Like you're sweating, you start questioning yourself. That's kind of the meh phase, right? And then near the top, your pack starts feeling heavy, your legs are burning, you want to quit. That's the hard third. But once you reach the summit and you look back and you realize the struggle was what made the view worth it, it's all worth it, right? Like you're so glad that you made it through the hardest part of the third. So today I'm gonna show you how to apply this mindset to your fitness journey so that you can stop letting the hard days derail you and start letting them shape you and work for your good. Okay. So why does the rule of thirds even matter? Like most of us expect that when we start something, whether it's a fitness program, tracking macros, or you're building any new habit, that you'll feel motivated all the time. But that's just not how real progress works. When you are pushing your body and your mind to change, you're going to feel all kinds of things. Like you're going to feel excited and tired and proud and frustrated. And if you expect it to feel amazing every day, you'll quit the second that it doesn't. But if you expect the full range, like the good, the in-between, the hard, you'll stop taking those hard days personally. And you'll stop telling yourself, I lost motivation. I'm not disciplined. You know, instead of that mindset and that negative self-talk, you'll start saying, Oh, I'm just in the hard third right now. And that's okay. Like that's emotional maturity, that's consistency. And that's what separates people who get long-term results from those who stop and then they start over every few months, right? So I'm gonna give you a little example when I was competing in fitness in a fitness competition. Like the first month, I was so excited. I was like, this is amazing. I'm a fitness competitor. I'm doing this, I'm seeing results, my body's working for me. Well, then guess what happened? I was bored of tears because for four straight months, you do the same exact workout for four months every single day, you guys. The same exact workout. And you eat the same five foods every meal for four straight months. That got really boring. Like I wasn't gonna quit. I knew I was in it. Like, I was like, I just gotta do this, you know. I'm really not excited about it, but here we go again. Then comes like the they like the really big deficit right before the competition. And that's like the three to four weeks before the competition, and they cut out all of your carbs, you're like on caffeine pills, and you feel so crappy that you're like, what was I thinking? Why? Why did I ever think that this was a good idea? I'm so mad at myself for signing myself up for this because I'm not gonna quit. I know I'm not, but I want to. Every second of the day, I want to quit. This is the worst thing I've ever put myself through. And it got hard and it was bad, and I had zero energy, and I was frustrated and I was short with my kids, and I was like, holy crap! But I didn't quit. I I got through that part because mentally I knew that it was gonna be hard. And after looking back, I was like, I can do anything. I can literally, if I can do that, I can literally do anything I put my mind to. And guess what happened? My confidence skyrocketed because I did keep my word with myself. I did what I said I would do. I pushed through when it was really hard. And then guess what happened? I got the high, right? Like I was like, okay, I did. I feel amazing, and that's it. That's what it is going to be like. If you expect that, you can work through it. So let's talk about like breaking down the thirds just a little bit. I just want to kind of talk about each phase. So you have the amazing third. These are the days that you love. You're hitting your macros, your workouts feel powerful, your energy is high, everything clicks, right? Celebrate those days, but don't build your entire definition of success around them because they're the highlight reels. They're not the full movie, right? If you chase that feeling every day, you'll get really discouraged when it dips. So enjoy it, but also know that this is part of the process, right? And then when you get to the meth or the like whatever third, these are kind of like the middle days where nothing's wrong, but nothing's excited either. Like you're doing the work, you just don't feel it. These are the days where the results are quietly compounding behind the scenes. So I want to share with you a story. So one of my clients joined my eight-week program and she wanted to lose 20 pounds. Okay. And the first two weeks were her amazing third. Like she was on fire. The workouts were done perfectly, the macros were hit perfectly. And then week three hit and she texted me, Brie, I'm doing everything, but I just feel off. Like I'm I'm tired of tracking, my kids sick. Like, I'm I'm so mad at myself. I didn't hit my protein like I should have. And I told her, you're not off. This is actually where most of your progress happens. Like it's like flying a plane, right? You don't just stay in takeoff mode the whole time. You'd burn out the engine. So once you're in the air, you cruise. Like cruise mode might not be thrilling, but it's where you cover the most ground. And that's this where this quiet consistency builds real change. Okay. And a lot of people, even if like, let's say they've hit their goals and they go into maintenance mode, they're like, this is boring. Like, I'm not working on anything. I'm like, no, you actually are. Like you're teaching your body how to be in maintenance, which is really hard. And it's okay for you not to like be pushing, pushing, pushing all the time, right? Um, now the last one is the hard third. And this is the part that everyone wants to skip. You're tired, you're emotional, life gets in the way, the scale might not move, and you start wondering, what's the point? And this is where, like my client that I was talking about, she kind of hit a wall around week six because she her kids got super sick and she started missing workouts. And she said, I feel like I'm back at square one. Like, this is really frustrating. But I reminded her, you're not back at the start. You're just in the hardest part, right? Like, don't change. Like, maybe, yeah, you're on the uphill climb. The terrain changed, but your direction did not change, right? That's the beauty of the rule of thirds. It teaches you that the hard doesn't mean hopeless, it just means that you're on the right track. So just keep going. And once she pushed through that week, everything started clicking again. Like her body responded, her energy came back, her confidence skyrocketed because she didn't quit during the climb, right? The hardest part, she didn't quit. And it's funny because I always relate this story. If you've followed me for a while, even when I was competing, I was putting in the work and my body did not change. Like I saw big changes the first, like maybe two weeks, like all of my like water, you know, the puffiness, all that. Then seven weeks I did not lose one pound. Seven full weeks, you guys. Not one pound. And I was like, what is wrong? And all of a sudden, my body just like hit, and I took my body fat percentage and I had lost like five percent body fat, but the scale didn't change, right? So that's where you can get hung up. So let's talk about how we apply the rule of thirds, okay? And here's how you can use this mindset shift right now. So, step one, I want you to identify which third you're in. So each morning, ask yourself, how do I feel today? Like, am I amazing? Am I kind of meh? Or, you know, is it feeling hard today? Because naming it takes away the emotional weight. And just knowing what phase you're in helps you mentally to understand and adjust, right? So step number two is adjust, don't quit. So if you're in the amazing third, ride that wave, girlfriend. You ride that, right? If you're in the like meh, okay phase, I want you to just focus on consistency and know that consistency is the win. And if you're in the hard phase, I want you to lower the bar, but don't stop showing up. It's okay to show up and have a crappy workout. It's okay to show up and maybe not hit your macros perfectly, but you did hit your protein and you did hit your calories, right? Maybe you overindulged this weekend. That doesn't mean you don't just get right back on Monday or the next day or the next meal. Lower the bar, but don't stop showing up. Even a walk counts, right? Even one balanced meal counts. Like resting intentionally counts. Okay, it's just a mindset shift. And then step number three, I want you to trust the cycle. No third lasts forever. And like the amazing will fade, the meh part, the not exciting part will return, and the hard part will pass. It's all temporary. And when you stop fighting that rhythm, you'll find peace in the process. So next time you wake up and think, uh, I'm not motivated today. I want you to remember, you might just be in, you know, phase two or three of this cycle, right? You're not broken, you're building resilience because one third of the time you're gonna feel amazing, one third of the time you're gonna feel meh or blah, and one third of the time you'll feel awful. That's not failure, that's growth. You don't need to feel amazing to make progress. You just need to keep walking through all three phases because consistency beats perfection every time. So I want you to take a deep breath. Here we go. Give yourself some grace and remember that if today's hard, it's not the end. It's just one third of your journey. If this episode resonated with you, I want you to take a screenshot or tag Body by Bree Fitness. I'd love to know like which third you're in right now. So comment which third you're in right now. And if you're ready to learn how to stay consistent through every season of life, I want you to check out my programs at body by Brie.com. We'll do it together. Thank you so much for tuning in, and I'll see you next week on Better Me with Body by Bree. Thank you for joining us in today's episode. If you liked the content and want to hear more, remember to hit that subscribe button and write a review. As a small business owner, I appreciate it more than you know. If you are looking for a program to help with self-confidence, to lose weight, get in shape, and work on your mental, physical, and emotional health. Check out my training programs on www.bodyby.com. My team and I help to hold you accountable through the Body Bible app, where you log in to see all your workouts, custom meal plan made specifically for you and your needs, and communication through the messenger. You are never alone when you're on the Body by Bree training program. Click the link in the show notes to get more information on how to transform your life from the inside out.
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