Episode Summary

On this episode of A Whole Lotta Shift, host Jen Ingram explores the important role that physical fitness plays in running a successful business. She emphasizes that 90% of running a business is a mental game, with strategies and marketing accounting for only 10%. Jen discusses the connection between physical fitness and mental strength, self-discipline, productivity, and self-confidence.

She shares a personal story about completing a race and highlights the importance of consistency, perseverance, and trusting the process in both fitness and business. Jen encourages listeners to incorporate regular exercise into their daily routines and find activities they enjoy, such as walking. She also emphasizes the benefits of building a community and surrounding oneself with like-minded individuals.

Tune in to this episode for valuable insights into the intersection of physical fitness and entrepreneurship.

About the Host:

Jen is a Dream Catalyst and Business Mentor saving hustling female solopreneurs from the chains of corporate America. Her passion lies in helping women through their self awakening so they can finally break free, turn their side hustle into the business of their dreams, and live a life full of time, location and financial freedom.

Jen is a California girl at heart, now living out her dream in the Midwest, traveling, coaching female solopreneurs and sharing her own story of triumph and empowerment across speaking platforms. When she's not traveling, she enjoys spending time with her college aged son and her rescued Pit Bull.

After 20 years of various project manager and corporate trainer roles while juggling a wide array of side gigs, she has mastered the ability to help women see what they cannot see, believe they are meant for more and take aligned action to make it happen. With an MBA in Change Management, and a Health and Life Coach Certification from the Health Coach Institute, Jen is an expert at creating both the business process changes and the personal habit changes needed to finally Break UP with corporate and go all-in on your side hustle or long standing passion project.

Connect with Jen on Facebook or Instagram!

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jenelleingram/

Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/wholelottashift/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/midwestvalleygirl/

Free Gift: https://mailchi.mp/4f4ae02ebe45/beat-the-odds

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[00:00:20] Jen Ingram: It's at the end of the day, like 90% a mental game. All the other stuff, the strategies, the marketing, all of that, that honestly only accounts for maybe 10%.

[00:01:00] Jen Ingram: You ready girl? Let's make shift happen.

[00:01:27] Jen Ingram: Today I'm gonna be talking about often what is known as the under-emphasized aspect of entrepreneurship. And some of you, when I say this, are gonna be like, oh God, she's not talking about that, is she? But yes, yes, I am. Today we're talking about the importance of physical fitness in your entrepreneurial journey.

[00:02:11] Jen Ingram: Look, your, your journey into having a business of your own, whether that is a business that you're running full-time, whether you still just got a side hustle, whatever that may look like for you. Business coaching. It's not all just about business models, marketing strategies. Oh, product development, all of those things.

[00:02:55] Jen Ingram: All right, so let's, let's get into it, right? Why, [00:03:00] why is physical fitness so vital as an entrepreneur? Well, the immediate connection isn't always so obvious, right? But there's a few aspects that I want you to consider when I get to talking about physical fitness. I'm talking about your mental strength.

[00:04:00] Jen Ingram: We know that exercise releases endorphins and serotonin and that helps improve your mood and helps you feel more relaxed. It helps you sleep better. It's gonna help with your productivity. So when I'm talking about your mental strength and the mindset that kind of goes into your physical fitness, that's what I'm talking about is that the fact that just getting, doing something that gets your blood flowing, gets your blood pumping it's releasing all of those chemicals that helps your mood and your strengthen your mental ability, your productivity so much more so, This is , one of the many reasons why I think it is so important, right?

[00:05:04] Jen Ingram: It's. At the end of the day, like 90% a mental game, all the other stuff, the strategies, the marketing, all of that, that honestly only accounts for maybe 10%, no joke. This is why your mental health and your mental strength is so important when it comes to your business because so much of your business really is about the mental game. It's not just about the strategies. So, Having a regular exercise routine that you incorporate into part of your non-negotiable daily habits is what's really going to help you improve your skills and just your overall resilience as a business owner, [00:06:00] right?

[00:06:30] Jen Ingram: Whatever this may look like for you, I, I created a revenue this month. Cool. Awesome. Now, You gotta go do that again. Like those things never really end. You never stop marketing yourself. You never stop trying attract clients. You never stop trying to get more business, right? That is just something that needs to occur on a continual, consistent basis.[00:07:00]

[00:07:26] Jen Ingram: To a fitness routine, you're training your brain to say, I need to stick to this schedule. I need to keep this promise to myself. I need to do things even when I don't feel like doing them. I need to do the things that I don't necessarily want to do, and I need to prioritize the long-term results that I'm going to get out of that over my short-term.

[00:08:23] Jen Ingram: Although, don't get me wrong, it's a nice time. Being able to prioritize those long-term gains is really just teaching your brain what to do in your business. This literally translate directly over to your overall work ethic, makes you, it makes you a more disciplined business owner. Okay. What was one of the other things I mentioned?

[00:09:18] Jen Ingram: A whole host of things.

[00:09:49] Jen Ingram: And maybe not even entrepreneurs think about. So the more successful CEOs, COOs, CFOs, right, like those top execs [00:10:00] in any corporation, I can guarantee you the vast majority of them have incorporated some form of physical activity into their everyday routine. And part of that is not just for, again, the mental strength and gain that you're gonna get from that and the productivity that then goes with.

[00:10:47] Jen Ingram: It makes a big difference in the marketing that you're trying to do. It makes a difference in how you are showing up for yourself in your business. In all of your relationships, whether that be a personal relationship or a business [00:11:00] relationship, that self confidence can make a huge difference.

[00:11:36] Jen Ingram: Not to say that those things don't help because they do having a healthier version of yourself completely transforms the way that you project yourself to others, the way that you stand, the way that you carry yourself. So many different things. So it's not just about being healthy or being fit, or being strong or, and I.

[00:12:23] Jen Ingram: I wanna have the courage to do them, which means that I'm gonna need to train myself and train my brain to do things that I didn't think it could do. And all of that is going to translate. Back over to my business and everything that I'm doing in my business. I'll tell you what, I'll take you guys back.

[00:13:04] Jen Ingram: Obviously I was working from home. That didn't bother me. Because obviously I had done freelancing several times in the past, worked from home, numerous occasions in the past. But what I kind of took for granted was that when I had worked from home previously, there was all sorts of other activities that I was heavily engaged in outside of the house.

[00:13:47] Jen Ingram: And while yes, I was working Oh my gosh. I just need it out of my house. And so one of the things that I started doing is I would take fairly frequent breaks at work. You know, just a 15, [00:14:00] 20 minute break. And I would go out for a walk and I would walk, I would go out for a walk break probably three or four times a day.

[00:14:26] Jen Ingram: I know at my local Aldis, they they had a limit of only purchasing two items. Two, like two of each item. And so. And, and I'm saying too, for some reason, it's sticking out in my brain that some items you could only get one at a time. So it literally meant that every couple days I felt like I had to go to the grocery store, which just seemed asinine to me because I really thought the whole point was to limit exposure.

[00:15:19] Jen Ingram: That was one of the Fitness routines that they had that they really enjoyed. And I was like, you know, that would be really nice, you know, if man, if I were a runner, I wouldn't necessarily need to worry about a gym. I think I'm gonna try this. And so, you know, I started out really slow. So on these walks that I would take a few times a day, I just started to where I would see if I could get faster each time.

[00:16:04] Jen Ingram: There's apps that can help you with that. So, long story short, I started down this path and I'm like, okay, I think, I think I can do this, you know, and so some of my gym buddies were like, Hey, there's this Online 5k. It's like a wine run, which I'm, I'm like, Hey, I'm all about this. Right? But it was basically like you signed up online and then you would report back your time of running a 5k.

[00:16:57] Jen Ingram: I knew I was very familiar with the park that we were going [00:17:00] to go to. However, I. Let me rephrase that. I say I was familiar with it. I was very familiar with parts of it. I realized in this process there were parts of that park I had never, ever seen. I knew that they regularly had five Ks and I think even like half marathons that went through most of this park because there's several trails throughout the park.

[00:17:42] Jen Ingram: Long story short, that day was my birthday. And so here I am 2020 and I'm like, it's my birthday. I'm like, oh my gosh, I'm gonna run a 5K for my birthday. How freaking cool is this? So I'm super stoked. I'm all excited and I'm like, you know what? I am ready for this. I've been walking several times a day [00:18:00] and I've been trying to jog a good portion of the way, and even when I'm not jogging, like I'm walking really, really fast, my time has been getting better.

[00:18:30] Jen Ingram: These were, you know, people that went to my gym. These were the people who watched my, my Journey when I first started. Trying to take care of myself and and started down a complete health journey, if you will. And I lost a bunch of weight. And anyways, so many of them had watched this transformation and had truly been a part of it.

[00:19:12] Jen Ingram: And so this 5K was not a big deal for them. Okay. And, but again, I'm feeling super confident. I'm like, man, you know, I've been walking by myself several times a day. I feel like I know my time really well and I think I can do this. And so here it is, it's the day of the race. So we get to take an off down this trail.

[00:19:52] Jen Ingram: I was like, oh my gosh. These girls are really running and I'm already [00:20:00] out of breath and this is gonna be a lot tougher than I thought. Oh my God. So I'm thinking to myself, okay, you know what? Don't worry about running as fast as they are. Just keep a steady pace and just keep jogging. Just keep going.

[00:20:33] Jen Ingram: But then about the time I'd catch up with them, now they're ready to kind of take back off again. And so it was like this whole like, Chasing sort of thing with me. I was like, oh my gosh. So I kind of got to the point where I was like, okay, I need to walk for a little bit and then I'll pick back up jogging.

[00:21:19] Jen Ingram: And so I really try to pick up my pace and I do get to where, okay, now I can spot them. Now I can see them ahead of me. So, Okay, well I'll just keep going. I try to pick up the pace, but of course it was, it was kind of the same story, right? The more I would pick up the pace and get closer, then that's about the time they would take off again.

[00:22:03] Jen Ingram: Nothing. I don't know where they are. So I get, I start to get a little frustrated and I'm like, okay, well I can't see them so clearly I'm behind. So I'm just gonna, I'm just gonna walk for a little bit, catch my breath till I feel a little bit better, and then I'll try to run some more. So I'm walking, I'm walking, and then, you know, I pick up a bit of a jog and I keep going.

[00:23:00] Jen Ingram: Okay. It was significantly more hot than it typically is in April in this area. So anyways, I'm going, okay. There's a really important part that I want you all to, to follow with me here. I get to where I'm mostly walking, and at this point they are. I, I haven't seen any of the pack for quite a while and there's nobody else really on this trail.

[00:23:45] Jen Ingram: Maybe running's not for me. Like, I know I said I wanted to run, I know I wanted to learn it. I know that I tried really hard. I downloaded the app, I did the run walk thing. I have these, these shoes that I got that, you know, somebody from the gym [00:24:00] gave me. And and I've been doing all these things and I'm, I'm walking several times a day.

[00:24:34] Jen Ingram: I went into this with so much confidence like. There's no way I could not do a 5k. Right. I was so confident in the beginning and here I am and I haven't seen the pack in what seems like forever and my feet, my, in particular, my right foot and my right leg and my hip, which I struggle with to this day, is really in a [00:25:00] decent amount of pain.

[00:25:23] Jen Ingram: What am I even going for? Right? So I'm walking along and then I get to where I can see that the trail kind of does a bit of a u. Now this is way off in the distance. When I say it, it makes like a U shape. This is pretty far off into the distance, but I can see that where it. Kind of makes the U shape takes me back to the parking lot where we parked our cars and I'm like, is that the, I'm like, no.

[00:26:13] Jen Ingram: And again, even though I can, I can see it in a distance. It seems so far away, and I'm like, oh my gosh. So. Here I am. I'm pouting. I'm walking really slow. I'm super sweaty. I can feel that I'm sunburnt and I'm like, oh my God, I'm just not a runner. Woe is me. And I look down and I don't remember if I had I, I regularly, I wear a fitness device.

[00:27:13] Jen Ingram: I can run for two minutes. Totally. I could run for two minutes. That's all that's left. So I see this, I get my phone back in my pocket and I start booking it, and I start running it again. I'm like, holy crap. Wait a minute. I'm almost done. Maybe this ended faster than I thought right now. Mind you, 10 seconds ago, I swore this was the longest race of my life.

[00:27:58] Jen Ingram: So now I'm like, I have to [00:28:00] keep running. Like there is a part of me that is still is out of breath. I'm really tired at this point, but I'm like, no, just keep running. And I'm trying to just jog and I can see and I keep going. And as I get closer and, and closer, I can see that at the end of this, Path at the end of this running path, they had even made like a makeshift finish line for me and they had brought out like some finish line tape and tied it between some trees and made like a little area that I got to like run through.

[00:29:03] Jen Ingram: There's a video of me and, and every year I share it on my Facebook when my when my birthday rolls around because it's so cute. And they're there and they, they've got the finish line tape and, and they're, we got mimosas and all the things they're, and ready for me and I'm like, oh my God, I did it like.

[00:29:54] Jen Ingram: Now I want you to stop and think about this. I want you to stop and think about those times in your [00:30:00] business because we don't get to see the finish line. We don't get to look at a widget on our wrist or on our phone and, and some app and see where the finish line is. There's nothing telling us where the finish line is.

[00:30:43] Jen Ingram: We don't always get to see that finish line in business. That's part of the lesson that I want you guys to learn. This is what I want you to learn and understand why something like physical fitness into your daily routines as a business owner is so important [00:31:00] because it it I makes you have to really teach your brain hey, There isn't always a finish line or I don't know where the finish line is going to be.

[00:31:43] Jen Ingram: Jump across. Is there waiting for me with celebration? I just have to trust and keep going because it's there. That's what I want you to understand. This is one of the things that [00:32:00] incorporating a regular fitness routine into your daily habits as a business owner is going to help you understand and help you create.

[00:32:32] Jen Ingram: Maybe I'm not very good at social media. Maybe I'm not very good at networking. Maybe I'm not very good at marketing. Maybe I'm not very good at sales. All those thoughts. I need you to understand that those are just thoughts that you get to change and create a new pathway in your brain that says, Hey, there [00:33:00] is a milestone mark that I can run across here.

[00:33:37] Jen Ingram: And yes, it's also about your health because obviously being the healthiest version of yourself is going to help you have the energy and the mindset to show up on a consistent, regular basis and do all of these things. Yes, that freaking matters, but it's so much more than that. It's so much more than [00:34:00] that.

[00:34:33] Jen Ingram: This doesn't mean that you have to pick something that you don't like. Maybe you don't like running. I don't like running. I learned that about myself, but that's okay, right? Like you get to go out and find the things that you enjoy doing and figure out how to incorporate that into your regular routine.

[00:35:07] Jen Ingram: I did not. And so you, you're not gonna know until you just get out there and if something looks interesting to you or if something looks fun, you've gotta just get out there and give it a shot. And know that the first time that you try it, you might not be the best. I actually am gonna go ahead and say, the first time that you try it, you're probably going to suck.

[00:35:57] Jen Ingram: Physical and mental health. [00:36:00] Walking does so much for you. Walking gets you outside of your regular environment. It gets you to go out and look at things. You have the opportunity to look at things differently. You can take walks in neighborhoods maybe you've never explored before. It gives you a new new perceptions.

[00:36:40] Jen Ingram: Find something. Okay? It doesn't have to be extravagant. And again, this does not mean that you need to spend two hours in the gym.

[00:37:20] Jen Ingram: Guaranteed. Guaranteed. So this is why I truly believe that A physical fitness routine is so imperative in your business. I will say one other thing, I apologize. Let me back up. The other thing that I do wanna say, even if you don't think that joining a gym is your jam, I strongly encourage you to do something where you can create a community, which is why I, I also made the suggestion about fighting a walking group because there's truly something to be said.

[00:38:20] Jen Ingram: The fact that they made it so freaking special for me meant so much. Like that's something I'll just remember forever, like honestly just here on this podcast. As I was telling that story, like I about started to get emotional just thinking about that because. They didn't have to do all of that. I mean, it was covid, everything shut down.

[00:39:16] Jen Ingram: Maybe not exactly right. Maybe they're not running a podcast for multiple passionate female entrepreneurs. Okay. But but they have similar goals in life and we're really, we're all just really after the same thing. Trying to become the best versions of ourselves and live the best life that we possibly can, and to be surrounded by others who have that same goal is huge.

[00:40:11] Jen Ingram: All right. I think that does it for today. I really hope that you guys enjoyed this episode. I really hope that you think about what your milestone mark or your, your 5K finish line might look like, right? Because that's, that's just the 5K finish line. Like, there's so many more to come. Like I said, that's not even really a finish line.

[00:41:05] Jen Ingram: There are tons of live videos, and again, it's another opportunity for community. So thank you all for joining me today, and until next time, keep making shift happen.

[00:41:36] Jen Ingram: And don't forget, you can catch all the outtakes bonuses. Special live stream interviews and much more over at a whole lot of shift Facebook group. Until next time, keep making shift happe