Rewriting the Script on Fitness, Friendship and Becoming with Brooke Robinson

What if everything you were taught about fitness was wrong?

Brooke Robinson, founder of Brooke Robinson Fit, grew up in a home where exercise was forced, controlling, and tied to being loved. It took years — and a lot of unlearning — to discover that moving your body is supposed to feel good.

In this conversation, Brooke opens up about her journey from a difficult childhood relationship with fitness to building a thriving online fitness community for women. We talk about letting go of the "no pain, no gain" mentality, why 20 minutes is enough, and how a hand injury and a forced pause changed everything she thought she knew about her own body.

We also get into the deeper stuff — learning to be your own best friend, asking yourself what you actually want, and why women were never meant to do life alone.

If you've ever felt like you're doing fitness wrong, or like you've lost touch with your own body, this one is for you.

You're not too old. It's never too late. And your body was made to move — on your own terms.

🎧 Find Brooke and her workouts at brookerobinsonfit.com

 

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What is A Lifetime to Learn?

Hosted by journalist, speaker and Certified Meditation teacher, Leslie Zanoff, A Lifetime to Learn is where authentic conversations shed light on how we can live with a deeper sense of purpose.

Together, let’s learn from entrepreneurs, health and wellness experts, thought leaders and luminaries. Don’t forget the change-makers and women who are rewriting the rules.

This podcast is a culmination of Leslie’s desire to equip listeners with practical tools and inspiring stories on how to show up as your best self. You’re not too old and it’s never too late. Life doesn’t come with an instruction manual – only lessons revealed through living. So let’s get going. We’ve got A Lifetime to Learn.

[INTRO — PODCAST THEME]
LESLIE:
Oh, Brooke, I'm so happy you're here. It makes my heart so happy. Thank you for joining me today.
BROOKE:
Who would have thought we would have done this finally?
LESLIE:
Finally! Because you know my heart's desire to have hosted a podcast for so long.
BROOKE:
I've been sitting here thinking — at a girl. You're here. It makes me so proud of you for being brave.
LESLIE:
That's right, we're doing it. I am excited for you to be here because I want to tell people about your business, Brooke Robinson Fit, and all that you're doing — helping women build a stronger body with convenient at-home workouts without feeling alone. Which made me think about when I first met you. I was working out in the gym by myself and you said, 'You can come over with us.'
BROOKE:
Come join us. Don't work out alone.
LESLIE:
Don't work out alone. It's not going to be as effective. And having that connection —
BROOKE:
Right. And that's just been something I feel like you've done from the beginning. We just weren't created to do life alone. Women need women. It took me a long time to realize that — to find your right support group, the ones that will hold you accountable. Even the ones that'll tell you what you need to hear, not what you want to hear. I've always loved having a team. Doing life with others is better. And fitness is more fun with friends. That's the bottom line.
LESLIE:
It is more fun with friends. But I want you to tell me — what drew you to fitness, not just as movement, but when you decided, 'Okay, I'm going to take this passion and bring it into a business'?
BROOKE:
I'll keep it as short and sweet as I can. I was modeled fitness as a little girl from my dad — he was a fitness guru. Looking back now, it wasn't healthy. It was pretty much a do-or-die situation. My sister and I didn't realize it as children, but we were very much forced into a fitness regime as little girls — realizing that we had to look a certain way and perform a certain way to be loved. We were biking up mountains, hauling firewood, climbing ropes. It wasn't just 'let's go outside for a little family fun.' It was very intense. So growing up, fitness wasn't fun. Moving our bodies was more of a mind game, a controlling environment. I was a gymnast, and that was also difficult — a forceful fitness dad combined with gymnastics coaches in the 80s. It was a very forced environment, compounded. Fitness was a have-to, not a get-to. I struggled as a teenager, got very thin, really trying to control my life through exercise and food. I didn't really come out of any of that until I met my husband. I felt like my life has been a series of awakenings — seeing things more clearly, in a healthier way. And I think that's one of the reasons I wanted to start coaching fitness. Because I didn't have that as a little girl. I wanted fitness to be fun. I wanted to show that our bodies were made to move — not forced, but finding joy in it because of all the benefits it brings.
LESLIE:
Did you ever stop doing fitness and movement for a while because of that upbringing? Or did you continue moving — and what brought it into a business?
BROOKE:
Such a great question. I got married, started having kids, and some friends suggested group fitness classes. I'd only ever run or done my own thing — I was never taught to work out in a group. I started taking classes while I was still a photographer, about 10 years in, and I walked into a group fitness class and thought, 'Oh my gosh.' The music, the energy, the people all there for the same reason — if you get the right instructor, time just flies. I honestly asked myself, 'Is this what I was made to do?' I slowly started getting certified, picked up a few classes, and then through another event in my life — helping a family member get through cancer and spending a lot of time in hospitals — I saw so many people who didn't have access to a gym. I realized there were so many more people beyond my little town who would love an opportunity to be strong. That's when my husband and I thought, maybe we should turn this into a business. And I realized that in photography I had a lot of energy, but I was sitting and editing my life away. I thought, I think there may be a bigger purpose for my life. Because I loved to encourage people — whether it was brides at their weddings or people in a fitness class. I could hold a squat and still tell them they're amazing, that their bodies love this, that they're worthy just the way they are. So that's when I started creating little pods of women throughout my community — clubhouses, garages, a physical therapy space. I did that for two years, then started filming workouts and putting them online. That was around 2017 or 2018.
LESLIE:
A decade plus. And you've made fitness and photography and encouraging women all fit together so seamlessly.
BROOKE:
It's been really beautiful. To be able to see that the family I was born into and the fitness I was brought up in was not an accident — that I can rewrite the script. Become an overcomer through all of it.
LESLIE:
And that's what I've been learning for myself too — the mindset shift, watching our thoughts, managing them. It's possible. You work with women in all seasons of life. Do you think there are one or two things that make the biggest difference for your clients? Where you see them make that shift in how they relate to or move their bodies?
BROOKE:
My passion used to be reaching younger women — setting a good foundation in their 20s so those habits carry naturally into marriage, babies, and beyond. But a lot of women don't start fitness until their 30s or 40s, especially in the South. After organized sports end, many women don't know how to work out on their own. And now I'm pushing toward 50 and it's like — we need our bones. If we only knew that what you do in your 20s, 30s, and 40s can help you thrive through your 50s, 60s, 70s, and 80s. It's not too late. I still tell my mom that at 75, her doctors are telling her she can still get started. So yes, it's important. I always used to say — just get those shoes on. Get five to ten minutes in. There'll be times I don't want to work out at all and five or ten minutes in I'm so thankful. You get those happy endorphins moving and your lungs pumping — it really is amazing.
LESLIE:
And I feel like we used to have that all-or-nothing mentality — if I can't do a 45-minute hard workout, I do nothing. How have you worked through that thinking?
BROOKE:
When I first started my online video membership, most of my workouts were 45 minutes to an hour. That's all I knew. But I had this intuition that I needed to keep asking women what they want. And they told me — 20 to 30 minutes would be great. And I thought, is that even going to do anything? But that is most women. Our mindsets can be so cemented on certain things, and even in fitness. My favorite workouts now are 20 to 30 minutes. And honestly? My favorite workouts on earth are mobility and stretching. Who said you have to be on your deathbed at the end of every workout? Just give yourself grace, give your body 15 to 20 minutes three times a week, add in some walking —
LESLIE:
I'm in my walking era right now.
BROOKE:
It's the best. Weights and walking. And more stretching in the mid-40s. We are so busy right now — with the pace the world tells us we have to live at — that we forget to take care of ourselves. And we get to a point in life where it's like, 'I need medicine for that.' But sometimes the answer is to slow down. Take a good hard look at your lifestyle — movement, sleep, relationships.
LESLIE:
And there's that belief, growing up — if it's not hard, it's not worth doing. No pain, no gain. It's taken generations to unravel that thinking.
BROOKE:
Completely. Untangle, unravel — yes. Just give ourselves grace that we're always learning.
LESLIE:
Speaking of going it alone — running this new business and being an entrepreneur by yourself can feel lonely. I had a business partner with 3W Magazine and now it's just me. Is there something that entrepreneurship has taught you about yourself, or advice for women just getting started?
BROOKE:
Asking questions is great. Asking for help is great. Paying someone a little bit of money who has the knowledge or the time to help you organize — that matters. I always want to encourage women not to give up on the dream that brings you hope and joy. It's really fun to have something exciting to look forward to. I do a lot of my internal business alone, but I often don't feel alone because I'll ask a woman from the community to be a special guest in a video. I want my viewers to see real women. And in hindsight, putting a little money toward hiring help at the beginning will help catapult you to the next level. It's an investment in yourself.
LESLIE:
Our friend Kristen Markel always said that — is it a cost, or is it an investment in yourself? Yes. And Brooke, you do that so well — you're really good at saying, 'Hey, come work with me. Let's connect.' I think this life is about knowing what you're gifted in and knowing what you need help with.
BROOKE:
Absolutely. I know I'm gifted in creating — I'll find the location, find the music, make up the workout. But I would do anything to have someone edit my videos, handle the analytics, help with emails. Find your strengths and gather the team that will support the overall mission.
LESLIE:
I'm always preaching that our minds and bodies are connected. But a lot of us — especially women — tend to live in our heads and think our bodies just carry us from task to task. Is there one small action someone who feels disconnected from their body can take to begin moving again?
BROOKE:
It has taken me until about this time in my life to realize the importance of slowing down enough to let your mind and body connect. I had an injury with my hand and had to have surgery. I was forced into pausing, sitting on my porch for hours. And it was in the pausing that I realized what my body needed. That led me to create 10-minute mindset and movement videos — they're all on YouTube. There are four so far: Calm in the Chaos, Resetting Your Nervous System, Future Goodness, and one more. I filmed them on my porch with the slowest movements, slow stretching, with a somatic script voiced over. Something slow and safe that allows your body to enter a space where you can take deep breaths and just move. Some really awesome things have come out of having a giant pause in my life — and for me, it really started with walking.
LESLIE:
And that's what I tell people who say they can't sit still and meditate. Go for a walk. You're reconnecting — just noticing what's happening, feeling your feet on the pavement, hearing the birds.
BROOKE:
Yes. And the outside — nature, sun, birds, morning light — all of this is out there for us to replenish. So much has been created in nature to restore us. I feel like I'm bridging the gap with these 10-minute mindset movement videos — you can hear good words that aren't your own and still move your body at the same time.
LESLIE:
As women, I think we forget our lives are cyclical. We have seasons. And we need to listen to that — maybe day to day, week to week.
BROOKE:
Exactly how we were designed. Women are different from men. We've got these hormones — and I have a little book club called Age Like a Girl. Your neurons shed three major times in your life: when you start your period, when you adjust to having babies, and when you hit menopause. My doctor told me that's why women have more anxiety in their mid-40s — your hormones are up and down and your brain is trying to figure out what's happening. It's not your fault. And then I say — go for a walk.
LESLIE:
Go for a walk. Move it out. Okay friend, tell me — what is bringing you joy these days?
BROOKE:
I'm about to be an empty nester — and there are no words to describe it. Part of me is like 'yes!' and the other part is like 'no one needs me, what am I going to do with myself?' I think one of the greatest things beyond fitness right now is enjoying a slower pace. I see it as a gift — to become even more aware of who I am and who I'm going to be. I'm figuring out new rhythms. The circadian rhythm of our bodies — getting out on my porch in the morning to feel that sunlight, finding time to get real healthy food, make meals. I've actually started to really love to cook. And I have two farm dogs who need a lot of movement, so they've pushed me into my walking era. I live close to some trails and I walk them three to four miles about five days a week. I've been listening to great podcasts — I'd recommend Dr. Mindy Peltz, who wrote Age Like a Girl, Fast Like a Girl, Eat Like a Girl. She's in her upper 50s and just picked up surfing. She talks about why sand and water are so good for us — all these things created to help and heal us. And we're out here thinking, 'I need to go harder, go faster, take more medicine.' I don't know. A little woo woo — told you.
LESLIE:
I love it. And truly, one of the other things I feel like I'm learning is how to be my own best friend. So many women — when I have conversations with them and I ask, 'What do you want?' — they cannot answer. No one's ever asked them. They've never asked themselves. This is the season for that. If we didn't learn it before, let's learn it now. And pass it on to our daughters and sons.
BROOKE:
Absolutely. And it goes back to what you said — being a good friend to yourself, knowing yourself. The change you want to see in the world starts with you. And just always try to find the joy. Slow down. You have got to slow down. If you do not slow down, you'll miss all the beautiful things right in front of you — and the opportunity to become your own best friend.
LESLIE:
Create some space for your creativity. Brooke, I love you, friend. Thank you so much for being here today. Tell everyone where they can find you and how they can support you.
BROOKE:
You can find me as Brooke Robinson Fit on my app, my website, YouTube, and Instagram. I'm working on getting everything under that one name — Brooke Robinson Fit. That's where they can find me.
LESLIE:
Thank you for being here on A Lifetime to Learn. If today's episode inspired you or sparked a new thought, please share it with someone who might need it too. And if you haven't yet, be sure to subscribe to get notifications when we launch new episodes. I've got conversations with extraordinary people lined up and I can't wait for you to listen. For more information on how to work with me, visit leesliezanoff.com — it's where I share resources to help you lead with presence and live with intention. Because remember, we're not here to have it all figured out. We're here to keep showing up with open hearts and open minds. Because we've got a lifetime to learn. Until next time, friends — be well.
A Lifetime to Learn · lesliezanoff.com