I puked at boxing last week.
And I actually smiled. Brushed it off, drank some water, and kept going. Because it meant that I was finally able to push my body hard enough... to throw up.
To rewind a little bit: the week before, I jumped rope for the first time since my surgeries — something that would've set me back a year ago. Last week, two days in a row, zero incidents. Then mid-power hooks, my body just had that gurgle gurgle that I initially tried to brush off... good thing I made a beeline to the bathroom, or else my morning protein shake would've been on the floor mixed with all our sweat.
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A couple months ago I was still stuck in daily pain. And I was so focused on that pain that I couldn't see the progress happening underneath it. The breath work. The consistency. The decision to keep putting myself first, in ways that felt too small to matter.
They mattered. They compounded. My body finally just reminded me (what do the kids say these days? Handed me the receipt?)
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The thing is though... we do this everywhere, not just with our bodies.
At work, we get so locked onto the problem — the missed deadline, the underperforming project, the employees that are pissing us off and not doing something the way we want them to — that we stop noticing the team member who's quietly gotten better every month. Or the version of ourselves as a leader who used to react and now pauses first.
The problem is loud. The progress is quiet. Loud wins, unless you go looking for quiet.
And in relationships? This is the one that gets us. We get so deep in our own hurt — the annoyance, the loneliness, the ways someone's actions have let us down — that we stop seeing the actual person. We only see what they're doing to us. And look, that hurt is real. It's valid. But it's also possible they're just as lonely, and some of that loneliness might be sitting across the table from how you've been showing up too.
Nobody's the villain in these stories. We're all just so buried in our own pain that we lose the ability to see anyone else's — or our own progress standing right next to it.
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But it's time to start celebrating the wins.
I spent almost a decade on the fire department, and I'll be honest — it was a culture built on what went wrong. What you missed, what you fucked up, what needed fixing. The atta-boys were rare. And you'd think in a high-stakes job like that, criticism would sharpen people. It doesn't. It grinds them down. It makes you stop trying, because nothing you do ever seems to register.
Turns out the research backs this up. According to a 2025 report, 90% of employees say they're more likely to put in extra effort when their work actually gets noticed. And it's not even about the big milestones — another finding shows a quarter of employees want recognition for their daily efforts, not just the huge wins. (I'll get you the references if you're like my crazy 11th grade English teacher, Mrs. Logan who ruined the phrase "Carpe Diem" for me... it has just been too long to remember what APA formatting is 🙃)
The small, consistent "I see you" is what keeps people going.
That's true of the people around you. It's true of you, too. Celebrating the wins along the way — yours or someone else's — is what gives us the fuel and the purpose to keep going.
If pain or stuckness is the thing you can't seem to out-think, this is where Brainspotting comes in.
Brainspotting is something I love utilizing to help those I work with, and if this is something you want to work on — removing pain that's stuck, or finally seeing the progress that's been buried under it — I'd love to do a session with you.
While I recommend walking along side with you 1:1 to work on what has been keeping you stuck through a customized plan of action and multiple sessions, those I've worked with have seen some pretty wild results after just one session: taking action on things they'd been procrastinating on for months, areas where they no longer feel blocked or held back, real shifts in their own belief systems — even changes in posture and mood. The body holds this stuff. It lets go when you meet it the right way.
👉 Book a Brainspotting session here — let's see what's ready to move.
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This Week's Practice: Pain vs. Progress
Sit down and grab something to write on. Pick one thing that's been a real frustration in your life lately.
1. Make two columns. In the first, write down everything about it that's been a pain in your ass — all of it, no filter.
2. Fill in the second column. Write down the progress you've been overlooking, and the things you've actually been grateful for.
3. Sit with it. The second column might feel hard at first. Let it come to you. Some of what surfaces might surprise you.
4. Ask the real question. What progress are you not seeing right now — in your body, your work, your relationships — because you're so focused on the pain?
And lastly... find something that pumps you the fuck up. If you find yourself so focused on the problems and pain in your life, put on some motivation music, or take up a class that gets your body moving (even go along with a YouTube video! Find a hiphop dance video, a weird drum dance video thing where you pound stuff, boxing, listen to one of those motivational videos that tells you how powerful you are and get yourself up... shoot me a message if you need more ideas!). Find something that pumps you up, and start doing it. It may surprise you how much better you feel!
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🎧 This Week on the Hustle Rebels Podcast
You eat too fast. You scroll too fast. You rest too fast — if you rest at all. In a solo episode, I broke down why so many high achievers can't slow down even when nothing's stopping them — from treating a six-ounce steak like a thirty-second deadline, to the three words from my coach ("take your time") that cracked my programming wide open. If you look successful on paper but feel bone-tired and guilty for sitting still, that one's your permission slip.
This week, that preview becomes the real thing: I sit down with attorney-turned-life-coach Lizzy Pennock for the full conversation.
Watch on YouTube:
Listen Here: You Don't Have to Earn Rest: A Burnout Recovery Wake-Up Call for High Achievers
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We deserve to celebrate the wins along the way... even if they're small. Stop focusing on the pain so much, and start focusing on the achievements, and you may see a lot more progress without even trying. You fucking got this.
- Renae
Wayward Wellness Coaching
Hustle Rebels Podcast
