NO, GROWTH ISN’T JUST FOR THE KIDS’ SCHEDULE

Hi, it’s Maria — and lately I’ve been thinking about something...

When we’re kids, everyone around us is obsessed with making sure we grow. We

sign kids up for dance, soccer, football, karate, theatre, piano, swim lessons,

tutoring, you name it. Not because we expect perfection, but because we want

them to:

• learn

• move

• build confidence

• try hard things

• develop discipline

• and discover what they’re capable of

We clap when they wobble. We cheer when they mess up and try again. We say

things like, “It’s okay, that’s how you learn!” Somewhere between childhood and adulthood… that message disappears. We still believe growth is important... just apparently not for us.

Now we hear:

“I don’t want to embarrass myself.”

“I’d rather just stick to what I know.”

“What if I’m bad at it?”

“What if people notice I’m new?”

We encourage kids to practice and convince ourselves we should already be perfect. And somewhere along the way, we quietly stopped signing ourselves up for things. Not because we don’t need them anymore, but because we’ve been taught that pursuing things for ourselves is selfish, indulgent, or “extra.”

Here’s the truth:

It isn’t selfish to do something that grows you. It’s maintenance. Your mind

needs challenge. Your body needs movement. Your nervous system needs

outlets. Your confidence needs moments where you prove to yourself — I can do

hard things.

We understood this instinctively as kids. We lose it as adults because life gets

loud, responsibilities pile up, and somewhere the message becomes:

“Everyone else first. Me, if there’s time.” But growth isn’t just for eight year olds. You are

still allowed to explore, expand, and surprise yourself. And yes, sometimes that means being a beginner again. It means shaking. It means focusing. It means not

knowing exactly what you’re doing… yet.

But here’s the good news:

Being new isn’t a flaw. It’s a sign that you’re still brave enough to keep evolving.

Movement is just one expression of that bravery. When you show up, whether

it's on the X-Former or any space where you’re stretching yourself, you’re doing

the same thing we celebrate in kids:

You’re trying.

You’re practicing.

You’re giving yourself room to grow.

And that doesn’t take away from anyone else in your life, it adds to it.

Because confident, grounded, energized humans show up better everywhere else they go. So maybe this is your reminder: Sign yourself up again.

Not because you’re broken, but because you still deserve to grow. And if you need a safe, encouraging, highly supportive place to do that? You already know where to find us. 💛

From my core to yours,

Maria Stege

Founder & CEO, BARE Pilates Studio

…and that’s The Naked Truth.

Blog 17.pdf

Download PDF • 3.97MB