You’ve got your workouts on the calendar. You’re finding your rhythm. You’re feeling pretty good about keeping it going through the holidays.
Then work runs late, there’s a holiday party to get to, and the workout you planned just isn’t happening.
Now what?
Here’s how to get back to your workout routine when life interrupts your plans. It starts with a pretty simple backup plan.
I call it the short-term memory loss plan. 🤣
How to get back to your workout routine after a missed day
As soon as the day is over, we reset.
Whether you did yesterday’s workout or not, today is a new day. We pick it right back up and continue with the plan.
No need to overthink it. No need to make up the workout you missed. Just do what’s on the schedule today.
That sounds almost too easy, but think about what can happen after a missed workout.
You were supposed to train Monday, but life got in the way. Now it’s Tuesday, and you’re trying to figure out whether to do Monday’s workout, Tuesday’s workout, or somehow squeeze in both.
Before you know it, getting back to your routine has become another thing you need to figure out.
Let’s make it easier. Open today’s workout and start there.
Your workouts aren’t a pile of overdue assignments
Over the years, I’ve coached people with all kinds of schedules, goals, and fitness levels. Something I want people to understand is that missing a workout doesn’t mean you now owe yourself an extra one.
If you treat every missed session like a debt, a busy week can leave you feeling so far behind that you don’t know where to start.
But you can start today.
You don’t need to clear the backlog first. You don’t need to wait until Monday so the week lines up perfectly again.
You just need to get back to the next workout.
Have a smaller option ready, too
Sometimes there really isn’t time for your workout. Other days, there’s time for a little movement, just less than you planned.
That’s one reason we have five workout levels at The Get Better Project. You can choose a level that fits the time, equipment, and energy you have that day.
Even if you normally do Level 4 or 5, you can hit Level 1 when that’s what fits your day. You still showed up, moved your body, and kept that appointment with yourself.
And if the workout doesn’t happen at all? Use the reset plan tomorrow.
The smaller workout is an option. Getting back to your routine is still the goal.
Decide what happens after the interruption
We spend a lot of time planning how we’re going to stay consistent. It helps to spend a minute deciding what we’ll do when something interrupts that consistency, too.
Here’s a simple plan you can use:
- Check what fits today. If you have time for a shorter workout or an easier level, do that.
- Let the day end. If you missed your workout, you don’t need to keep rearranging the whole week around it.
- Follow the next day’s schedule. Get right back to the plan you already had.
And if the same interruption keeps happening, that’s useful information. If your evening workouts keep getting bumped by work or family plans, it might be time to choose a different workout time.
An occasional missed day calls for a reset. A schedule that rarely works calls for an adjustment.
Have a plan waiting when you come back
This is part of what we do at The Get Better Project. We give you a workout plan, five levels to choose from, and coaching support so you have somewhere to start and someone to ask when you need help.
When life gets busy, knowing what to do next makes getting started a little easier.
If you’d like to try it, start with two free weeks of The Get Better Project. Find the level that fits you, put your workouts on the calendar, and practice coming back when life interrupts.
Your backup plan doesn’t have to be complicated. Today is a new day. Pick it right back up.
Cheers!
Joe
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