You can’t build today’s routine around yesterday’s life.
🏫 I love back-to-school. 😂
After a summer filled with kids, changing schedules, loose routines, everyone being everywhere all the time, and approximately 47 different versions of “I’m bored,” I am more than ready for some structure.
There’s something incredibly satisfying about seeing that first day of school marked on the calendar.
The backpacks come out. The schedules get organized. Everyone has somewhere to be.
Finally, there’s some order.
Finally, there’s a little breathing room.
Finally, I can hear myself think. 🙌 😂
And every year, somewhere in that relief, I start making plans for all the things I’m going to do with my newfound time.
Work out more. Get organized. Take better care of myself. Maybe finally get back into a routine.
And I think:
This is it. This is when I’m going to get my 💩 together.
But after doing this year after year, I’ve realized something:
Getting time back doesn’t necessarily mean I’m going to use it for myself.
My kids keep growing. Their schedules change. Their needs change. Their lives change.
But I keep trying to fit the same routine into a life that doesn’t look the same anymore.
⏰ The problem isn't that I don't have time
This is the part I’ve had to be honest with myself about.
When the kids go back to school, I suddenly have these beautiful, glorious hours without them.
And what is my first thought?
“Ooh, look at all the things I can get done without kids in the way!” 😂
So I fill them.
Laundry.🧺
Groceries.🛒
Cleaning.🧹
Appointments.📆
Meal prep.👩🏽🍳
Emails.💻
Errands.📋✔️
Because let's be honest, everything is SO much easier without the kids around.
I can grocery shop without negotiating snacks.
I can fold laundry without someone immediately needing the thing I just folded.
I can run an errand without turning it into a family field trip.
It feels incredibly productive.
Until it isn't.
Because then poof! 💨 It’s 3:00, the pickup alarm goes off, and I've somehow spent the entire day taking care of everything except me. 🤦♀️
And then I wonder why I didn't work out.
I literally bought a two-week unlimited intro package at the gym down the street thinking, Perfect! This is going to get me back into a routine.
I went once.
Once.😳
No words. 😩
And the irony? I teach fitness for a living. 🥴
Knowing how to work out and actually making time to work out for myself are two very different things.
Apparently, having the time available and having a routine that actually works for my life are two very different things.
🤷🏻♀️ My kids keep changing. Why shouldn't my routine?
This is probably the biggest thing I’ve learned.
My kids aren't the same kids they were a year ago.
Their schedules change.
Their activities change.
Their needs change.
Their independence changes.
And my life changes right along with them.
But for some reason, I keep thinking my wellness routine should stay exactly the same.
It doesn't even make sense. 🤦🏽♀️
My life doesn't look the way it did two months ago, let alone last year.
So why am I still expecting myself to work out the way I did then?
Maybe 6 a.m. workouts worked for me before and now they absolutely do not. 😂
Maybe I used to have those little 20-minute pockets of free time and now I don't.
Maybe evenings are completely eaten up by soccer, homework and dinner. ⚽️
Maybe weekends are realistically the only time I have for something longer… unless, of course, there’s a series of soccer games happening. 😂
And that's okay.
Because maybe the answer isn't trying harder to make my old routine work.
Maybe the answer is creating a new one.
🔃 What I need changes, too
I've also realized that I don't always need the same thing from my workouts or my wellness routine.
Sometimes I need strength.
Sometimes I need more energy.
Sometimes I need less stress.
Sometimes I need to sweat and push myself.
Sometimes I need to slow down.
Sometimes I need some actual sleep. 😴
And sometimes I just need to move my body and feel good for a little while.
That's a very different mindset from the one I used to have.
I used to think about working out as something I needed to complete.
A certain workout.
A certain amount of time.
A certain number of days.
And if I couldn't do it the way I had planned, I was much more likely to skip it altogether.
I'm trying not to do that anymore.
Because five minutes isn't 30 minutes.
But five minutes is also not zero minutes.😉
Fifteen minutes of movement might be exactly what I need that day.
And sometimes a 30-minute workout is perfect.
The point isn't that every workout has to look the same.
The point is that I keep showing up in whatever way makes sense that day.
👩🏽💻 why Natalie and I created OUR APP
We both needed something simple, efficient and flexible — something that fits our lives, our schedules and the time we actually have.
For me, it needed to be simple.
Open it. Press play. Go. ▶️
I don't want to spend the 15 minutes I have trying to figure out what workout I'm supposed to do.
I don't want to spend half my kid-free time driving somewhere when I could just get it done at home.
And I definitely don't want to feel like I failed because I didn't have an hour.
Five minutes? Great.
Fifteen? Perfect.
Thirty? Even better.
Whatever I've got, I can make it work.
And it isn't just about workouts.
Some days, I don't need another workout at all.
Sometimes I need some perspective.
Sometimes I need to slow down and get my head back on straight.
That's when I'll put on one of Natalie's meditations and give myself a few minutes to reset.
And sometimes, honestly, I need to go to bed. 😂
That counts too.
🛑 Stop forcing the routine
I think this is where I’ve gotten myself into trouble over the years.
I would decide what my routine should look like and then try to force my actual life around it.
And when that didn't work, I assumed I was the problem.
Maybe I wasn't disciplined enough.
Maybe I wasn't motivated enough.
Maybe I just needed to try harder.
But I'm starting to see it differently.
Maybe the routine was the problem.
If my life changes, my routine probably needs to change with it.
That doesn't mean I stop caring about my health.
It doesn't mean movement becomes less important.
It means I stop expecting myself to have the same schedule, energy, responsibilities and amount of free time I had before.
Because I don't.
And neither do you.
So what am I doing differently?
I'm trying to stop looking at my kid-free time as an empty space that needs to be filled.
Because I know myself.
If I don't intentionally leave some space for me, I will happily fill every available minute with something productive.
There will always be laundry.
There will always be groceries.
There will always be emails.
There will always be something that needs to be cleaned, scheduled, answered, bought, cooked or organized.
That list is never going to be finished. 😂
So I'm trying to let some of that time belong to me, too.
Not perfectly.
Not every day.
And not necessarily for a 45-minute workout.
Just for something that makes me feel a little better.
Something that gives me energy.
Something that makes me feel stronger.
Something that calms me down.
Something that helps me sleep.
Something that makes me feel a little more like me.
Because those little pockets of time really do add up.
I feel better. I feel stronger. I feel calmer. I feel a little more like myself. ❤️
And maybe that's what a sustainable routine actually looks like.
😵💫 Not doing the same thing every day.
Not following the perfect plan.
Not checking every box.
Just having something you can rely on, even when the day doesn't go according to plan.
So as my kids settle into their new routines, I'm working on a new routine of my own.
Not the routine I think I should have.
The one that fits the life I’m actually living — today.
And tomorrow?
I'll figure that one out when I get there. 😉 ❤️