Being late isn’t an excuse. Here’s why showing up 15 minutes late is better than not showing up at all, and what this really teaches your brain.
Listen to the episode here…
The “I’m Running Late” Excuse Stops Today
I’m early to the gym today. Like, actually early. Twelve whole minutes early.
But that’s not always the case. Lately, I’ve been rolling in five, ten, sometimes fifteen minutes late to class. And I used to let that be a reason not to go at all.
You know the feeling. You’re running behind. The class has already started. Walking in late feels awkward. So you tell yourself, “Well, it’s already started. I’ll just go tomorrow.”
Tomorrow never comes.
Stop Training Your Brain to Accept Excuses
Here’s what I’ve learned. Every time you give your brain an excuse to skip something, you’re training it that excuses are acceptable.
When you’re five minutes late and you decide to skip the gym, you’re teaching yourself that things need to be perfect to show up. When your morning doesn’t go exactly as planned and you bail on your commitment, you’re reinforcing that it’s okay to quit when things get inconvenient.
And that’s a dangerous pattern.
The Commitment Breakdown
Being committed to something means showing up even when it’s not convenient. Even when it’s not perfect. Even when you’re running late.
Every time you chip away at your commitments, every time you break down those walls of dedication, you weaken the whole structure. At some point, it’s not a commitment anymore. It’s just something you say you’ll do “someday.”
Someday I’ll be on time. Someday I’ll start going to the gym again. Someday never comes if you keep accepting excuses.
A Little Workout Beats No Workout
Let’s be practical here. If you show up fifteen minutes late to a forty-five minute class, you still get thirty minutes of movement. That’s thirty minutes more than you’d get sitting at home.
And here’s the thing. If you only get twenty minutes of class time, you can stay after. Use the dumbbells. Hit the bike. Try the stair climber. There are options.
Getting a little bit of a workout is infinitely better than getting no workout at all.
What Walking In Late Actually Teaches You
When you walk into class late, you’re proving something important to yourself. You’re proving that your commitment matters more than your comfort. You’re showing yourself that you don’t need perfect circumstances to follow through.
You’re teaching your brain: I said I was going to do this, so I’m doing it. Even if it’s not ideal. Even if it’s awkward. Even if I missed the warmup.
That’s powerful.
Show Up for Yourself
If you’re running late this morning and you’re thinking about skipping the gym, don’t. Go anyway.
Just get those ten, fifteen, twenty, twenty-five minutes of workout in. Because you’re not just exercising your body. You’re exercising your commitment muscle.
You’re showing your brain: I still intend to do this. Yeah, I slipped up on timing. But I’m committed. I still want to work out. I still want to show up for myself every day.
Choosing Yourself
A couple days ago, I posted on Facebook that in 2025, I started choosing myself again. There’s this amazing book by James Altucher called Choose Yourself. I highly recommend it.
But the point is this: In 2025, I started choosing myself again. And in 2026, I’m doubling down on it.
I really hope you’ll do the same thing. Choose yourself. Show up for yourself. Commit to yourself.
If you want to get in shape, make it happen. Only you can.
The Bottom Line
Being late isn’t a valid excuse to skip your workout. It’s just an inconvenience. And inconveniences are tests of your commitment.
Will you let a few minutes derail your entire day? Or will you show up anyway and prove to yourself that you’re serious?
The choice is yours. But I know which one will get you closer to your goals.
Rhonda’s Interview Series:
Part 1 – https://rss.com/podcasts/more-movement-please/2330514/?via=moremovementplease
Part 2 – https://rss.com/podcasts/more-movement-please/2330530/?via=moremovementplease
Part 3 – https://rss.com/podcasts/more-movement-please/2330546/?via=moremovementplease
Find Rhonda on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fitnesswithRhondaGoode
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Full Transcript: Running Late? Go to the Gym Anyway
00:00:13
What’s up you guys? Famous Ashley Grant here
00:00:15
and welcome to More Movement Please. I don’t
00:00:18
know about you guys, but I’m still riding the
00:00:20
high from last week’s amazing interview series
00:00:23
that went live from Rhonda Good, my fabulous
00:00:26
instructor. If you haven’t heard the series,
00:00:29
I highly, highly, highly recommend you check
00:00:31
it out. I’ll leave some links in the show notes
00:00:33
to the three -part series. It was so good. It
00:00:37
was raw. It was real. It was vulnerable. And
00:00:40
it’s what everybody needs to hear if they’re
00:00:42
considering starting their workout journey. And
00:00:45
so I highly recommend that if you haven’t heard
00:00:47
that yet, you go check it out. But today what
00:00:50
I want to talk about is running late. And the
00:00:53
funny thing is, today I’m actually on time. Not
00:00:56
just on time, but I’m early. Today I woke up
00:00:59
early. I woke up… ready and raring to go. And
00:01:02
because of that, I’m getting to the gym a full
00:01:06
12 minutes early. There have been days though,
00:01:10
especially lately where I’ve been getting to
00:01:12
the gym five, 10 minutes late. And I used to
00:01:17
allow that to be an excuse to not go to the gym.
00:01:22
And I know that’s one of those things where when
00:01:25
you feel like you’re running late and you feel
00:01:26
like you’re going to walk into a class that’s
00:01:28
optional. you don’t want to walk in. You just
00:01:32
feel like, okay, well, this was just a sign or
00:01:34
a reason that I shouldn’t be going into the gym
00:01:38
because you don’t want to be that person that
00:01:40
walks in late. If you listened to any of my previous
00:01:43
episodes, you already know what I’m going to
00:01:45
say. You should go anyway. If you are serious
00:01:49
about working out, go anyway. Because every time
00:01:54
you give your brain excuses to do something different,
00:01:59
you’re training your brain that it’s okay. So
00:02:04
those days that I’m running late, if I allow
00:02:07
myself to just stay home or talk myself out of
00:02:10
going to the gym, that means every time something’s
00:02:12
not going exactly perfectly to plan, I’m training
00:02:17
my mindset that it’s okay. I’m allowed to skip
00:02:22
the gym. And the thing about being committed
00:02:26
to something is whenever you Pick away at those
00:02:30
commitments when you break down those walls of
00:02:34
being committed to something. At some point,
00:02:37
it’s no longer a commitment. It’s just something
00:02:40
that you say will be your someday. Someday I’ll
00:02:43
be on time. Someday I’ll start going to the gym
00:02:46
again. And I don’t want that for you. I want
00:02:49
you to show up anyway, even if you’re 15, 20
00:02:53
minutes late. Getting a little bit of a workout
00:02:56
is better than getting no workout at all. And
00:02:58
here’s the thing. If you are running a little
00:03:00
bit late and you get into gym class and you only
00:03:04
get about 20 minutes of workout, well, you could
00:03:07
stay a little bit longer and maybe work on some
00:03:10
dumbbells, maybe use the bike machine, maybe
00:03:13
use the stair climber or some other thing. So
00:03:16
basically, the main point of this is I just want
00:03:20
to encourage you that if you’re running late
00:03:21
this morning and you’re like, man, I’m going
00:03:24
to be a couple minutes late to the gym, maybe
00:03:26
I should just forget about it. And go do something
00:03:28
else. Instead, go to the gym anyway. Just get
00:03:33
those 10, 15, 20, 25 minutes of workout in. Because
00:03:39
at least then you’re showing your brain and teaching
00:03:42
your brain. I still intend to do this. Yeah,
00:03:46
today I slipped up a little bit. But I am committed.
00:03:49
I still want to work out. I still want to show
00:03:52
up for myself every day. Because… When you
00:03:56
are making commitments to yourself and you’re
00:03:58
putting yourself first, that’s when the magic
00:04:01
happens, y ‘all. A couple days ago, I posted
00:04:04
on Facebook that in 2025, I started choosing
00:04:08
myself again. There’s this amazing book by James
00:04:10
Altucher. It’s called Choose Yourself. I highly
00:04:12
recommend it. I’ll leave a link in the show notes.
00:04:14
It’s really good. But in 2025, I started choosing
00:04:19
myself again. And in 2026, I’m doubling down
00:04:21
on this. And friends, I really hope that you’ll
00:04:24
do the same thing. Choose yourself. Show up for
00:04:27
yourself. Commit to yourself. If you want to
00:04:31
get in shape, make it happen. Only you can. Onwards
00:04:35
and upwards, my friends. Have you worked out
00:04:37
today?
