Reps that Really Matter

I walk a lot. Walking is a cheat code for me. It helps clear the noise.

Lately, I’ve been leaving the podcasts behind. No audiobook. Just me and my thoughts. And maybe it’s because I'll be 40 in less than two months, but those thoughts have been hitting a little deeper lately.

On one of those recent walks, I had an epiphany I’d like to share:

I believe so much of life is reps.

But in order to maximize the reps, our posture has to be right.

Let me explain.

Anyone who’s spent time under a barbell knows that form matters.

If your posture is off, even slightly, you might still move the weight, but you’re setting yourself up for injury down the road. Same rep. Very different outcome.

I believe that “life reps” work the same way.

You can show up. Clock in. Go through the motions. Grind. Hustle. Do all the reps.

But if your heart posture is off, if you're doing the reps with bitterness, ego, distraction, or entitlement, it’s not building the strength you think it is.

It might even be hurting you.

I’ve had seasons where I was putting in all the reps:

→ Late nights at the office.

→ Early mornings with the kids.

→ Hustling hard to get the next deal.

→ Trying to prove I was enough by staying busy enough.

But deep down, I knew something was off. My posture was crooked. I was showing up externally, but not always with the right internal alignment.

Those reps built burnout. Resentment. Fatigue dressed up like ambition.

But I've seen it play out very differently in other seasons, too.

Hard seasons in which the weight felt heavier than usual.

When the weight feels heavy, it's easier to let your posture slip.

But in those seasons good posture is even more important.

When Bre and I were in our 20s, we lived in a 700-square-foot house with two kids. In those early days we barely had enough in our bank account to finish a Walmart run. I vividly remember walking through Walmart, Bre with a calculator in hand, and having to put things back on the shelf because we couldn't afford them. It wasn't glamorous. It wasn't fun.

But our heart posture was always rooted in hope. In trust.

We didn’t do it perfectly. Far from it.

But we both knew deep down that the season we were in wasn’t forever. We weren’t just surviving it, we were learning from it. Choosing not to be defined by the lack, but shaped by the lessons.

I'm gonna say that part one more time: Choosing not to be defined by the lack, but shaped by the lessons.

And man, I wouldn’t trade those reps for anything.

Here's what I've discovered to be true:

Reps build results.

But posture builds character.

You can log the hours and still miss the transformation if you’re not paying attention. If you’re not asking the right questions. If you’re not showing up with humility, clarity, and a willingness to grow.

And maybe that’s the quiet invitation of seasons that stretch us:

Not just to survive them.

Not just to hustle through them.

But to hold the posture that actually changes us.

So if you're in a season of repetition (whether it’s parenting toddlers, rebuilding a marriage, growing a business, or just showing up to your job each day) don't underestimate the power of posture.

You might not see results yet.

But the roots are growing deeper.

The form is getting sharper.

The strength is being built.

And one day, you’ll look back at this season and realize it wasn’t wasted time. It was foundational. It was necessary.

So check your posture.

Then keep doing the reps.

That’s all for today.

Godspeed.

--

PS — This is one of my favorite photos of me and my kids. A quick life update: Jude is taller than me now and better than me at just about everything. Lila is the basketball player I once dreamed of becoming. Gwyn’s creativity leaves me in awe. And Ruby… well, Ruby still doesn’t like me very much (but she’s smiling here, so I’m counting that as a win).

Life isn’t perfect—but it’s full. And it’s good. I’m grateful for all of it.

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