lifestyledesign

What does the phrase “keepin’ it real” mean to you? Do images of surfers riding through the sunset come to mind? (Or maybe that’s a different phrase…)

Why would we want to “keep it real” in the first place? Is it better than not “keepin’ it real”?

What are the health benefits of “keepin’ it real”?

Let’s keep it real and jump into these questions –

When I think of what keepin’ it real looks like, I first think of speaking honestly and of giving an accurate account. This might look like describing the tough times, along with the great times, when talking to a friend about a relationship.

Keepin’ it real might also look like recounting both the ups and the downs of a recent lifestyle change (nutrition, physical activity, sleep patterns, etc.).

So why keep it real? Why tell all sides of the story, as vulnerable as it may make us feel?

When we keep it real, we embrace humility and admit that as humans, we have flaws.

Yet, flaws keep us relatable. They inadvertently make us accessible to other people who are going through the same thing. What better feeling than to have someone in your corner (and hopefully your corner of the gym).

I am proposing that we keep it real at the gym, whatever that may look like for you right now – a yoga mat and section of garage space if you’re a UA’er, an open field, or your squad of running pals.

Keepin’ it real improves exercise adherence. If we are open with our workout neighbor about such things as getting back into the swing of workouts after a long vacation, or feeling as though we don’t have enough time after work, we open the door to acceptance.

People can come to the gym as they are. They don’t have to wait for x, y, and z to have or have not happened – they can just come.

They can come, because they know that people there are keepin’ it real, so they can keep it real too.

Ready to keep it real with us? Send us a message at urbanathletephiladelphia@gmail.com !

I started drinking coffee during my senior year of college. You might be thinking – “Well, that makes sense. She’s staying up late applying to grad schools, on top of studying for her classes. No wonder she started to drink coffee – most people do.”

I started to drink coffee, because my social circles at the time revolved around coffee shops. Coffee became something social to me, as it is for a lot of people.

I don’t know if having my friends there made the coffee taste better, but I was hooked – hook, line, and coffee bean.

It is also important for me to note that these coffee shops were exactly that – coffee shops – not your typical chains. These were the places where even locals said, “You go where?”.

But these were places (I should clarify and say place and not places. I only went to one place. Every day.) where I felt good going and felt even better bringing my friends, new and old.

When the pandemic became a reality, this is something I stumbled over.

I am blessed that the coffee shop, that I frequent in our area, has a drive-thru. This checks one of the two boxes when you say “coffee talk.”

I had the coffee, but I didn’t have the talk. I mean, I talked to the Barista, but you understand…

Coffee is great, but can you go along with me here and say that people are better?

My friends and I solved this dilemma by coordinating when we were going through the drive-thru (say that 10x fast), so that we could meet-up at a walking trail about five minutes down the road.

Coffee – check. Friends – check. Exercise – a beautiful bonus.

Urban Athlete solves this dilemma by holding Coffee Talk after our 9AM virtual workout every Saturday. 

This is a place where people can come as they are – sweaty (if they just worked out) or freshly showered (if…you know… they happened to sleep in).

I mean it is a Saturday!

Cheers to you and coffee. Cheers to you drinking your coffee.

We’re always happy to hear from you. Please send us an email at urbanathletephiladelphia@gmail.com to get more information or to stay in touch.