diff --git a/.config/shell/bin/upd b/.config/shell/bin/upd
index 1a955d0..7b0bf4c 100755
--- a/.config/shell/bin/upd
+++ b/.config/shell/bin/upd
@@ -23,6 +23,8 @@ fi
 # Avoiding copy pasting this over and over
 g() { git -C "$REPO" "$@"; }
 
+REPOS_TO_UPDATE="${REPOS_TO_UPDATE:-}"
+
 # path_append from https://superuser.com/questions/39751/add-directory-to-path-if-its-not-already-there
 # checks if a path is already in the PATH and if it exists
 path_append() {