The Reframe: Chin Up

If you're like me, there are a ton of fitness-y terms out there that trigger cringing, fear or feelings of inadequacy. One of those for me is "chin ups."My upper body strength has never been great, but I conditioned myself to get stronger (like we do here). I got myself to the point where I could do full push ups and lat pulldowns with the rest of them. Even so, chin ups and pull ups have always been a huge struggle for me. So what do I do? Way too much, that's what. Per the üge ("usual" in Amy slang), I went balls-to-the-wall in an attempt to get better only to overtrain, get wayyyyy too sore, and give up altogether because I hated the process.My mission here on Strong Inside Out is to help you build individual health - mind, body and spirit - without scales or judgment. To do that, we've got to start reframing the sh*t out of old, negative patterns. That's how I came up with this idea...

Introducing "The Reframe"

This series will be devoted to reframing old, cringe-worthy performance health terms into ones that serve us in the Health Movement. Because why should we have to die a little inside every time we hear them? Let's use them to feel and grow even more powerful!Our first reframe is the "Chin Up." This is a loaded term because of the difficulty of the exercise. Maybe you've had trouble doing these in your workouts and so you've felt like you're not strong enough, like me.Let's flip this term around into a definition that makes us feel good about who we are in the moment, and inspires us to strengthen the bonds between mind, body and spirit in a balanced way.

Chin Up

In The Health Movement, a "Chin Up" isn't something you do, it's something you give. A "chin up" is when you lift the chin of another by acknowledging their accomplishments, frustrations, and courage. You let them know they can hold their head high, they can do this, and you’re right there with them.And listen up: your goal is not only to give them, but to receive them! You hear me, over-givers?! There are so many ways that we are supported in this life, but we've gotta let it in and acknowledge it when it's given.To help illustrate exactly what a "chin up" is, here's an example from my own life (and Instagram account):

A post shared by Amy Clover (@stronginsideout) on Jul 1, 2017 at 6:48pm PDT

When my Grandpa passed away a couple months after my Grandma, I called a couple of my besties who live up in LA - a 2-3 hour drive from where I live now. Hearing my grief, Kay (that's her with me above) immediately said, "When are you free? I'm coming down." The next weekend, she was here.It's still hard for me to receive support and Love because for so long I tried to do it all on my own, rejecting the idea that I need other people. With lots of personal growth and recovery, I've realized that "needing" other people is part of the human condition - we are all stronger together. Through full transparency in my efforts to be more real with what's present for me, and receptive to the Love that's offered me, my best friends have helped me get stronger even through my "weakest" points.Kay gave me a HUGE "chin up" when she drove all the way here to help me stand back up. And this isn't the first time - she's a pro at "chin ups." She always encourages me to be fully myself no matter what I'm experiencing, and is able to be present for me through it. When I'm a sobbing, broken mess, she's there just to listen and hold space. When I'm happy, she's there to share in it with me and geek out right alongside me. Just talking to her over the phone is a "chin up" for me.

Now you...

Now that you've got an idea of what a "chin up" is here in the Health Movement, I want to hear you scream it from the rooftops.Shout out a "chin up" to someone today OR thank someone for a "chin up" you recently got from them!

Click here to THANK SOMEONE FOR A #CHINUP on Twitter!

Click here to SEND A #CHINUP on Twitter!

OR head over to my Instagram to comment below this week's Chin Up-themed post with a shout out to your "chin up!" (make sure to tag them)

Why share?

The act of sharing what you're grateful for is a powerful manifestation tool to bring more of it into your life. I'm a firm believer in this from experience; the more I said my gratitudes out loud (or wrote them), the more I had to express gratitude for! It's seriously life-changing.The same thing applies to supporting others. As I've talked about before, being of service is a proven way to improve your mood and alleviate symptoms of depression. Plus, it just makes the world better. And that's all we're really here for, isn't it?So if you're on the fence about whether to share or not, just go for it. If you regret it later, take it down! Just hate using social media? Tell them yourself in real life.Just get it out into the world. No more hiding. No more fear of saying the wrong thing. Just Love out loud.On that note, let me just say how grateful I am for you. Yes, you. YOU READING THIS RIGHT NOW. It's because of you that I'm here running my mouth into the interwebs. You are my purpose. That's the ultimate chin up if you ask me. *big hug*Until next time, Strongie, keep looking toward the Light side.Keep your chin up, babe,Amy