Finding Grace in New Routines
Life doesn’t always stick to our plans—and sometimes the biggest challenge (and lesson learned) in staying consistent with our health and fitness is learning how to adapt when routines shift or we experience a setback.
I’ve been living this lately. As my kids grow older, I’ve realized how much they need me in the mornings. Their confidence and calm for the day starts with stability, and right now, that stability looks like me being home. That means my once-regular workout window has disappeared.
Even as someone who has lived and breathed fitness for years, these changes have thrown me off balance. And maybe you’ve felt the same—bouncing from camp to camp, struggling to meal prep, or wondering when you’ll finally find your “new groove.”
Here’s what I’ve learned: finding a new routine isn’t about perfection, it’s about grace and persistence.
1. Give Yourself Permission to Experiment
Most often, when we flop at our first attempt, we stop trying altogether. We consider it a “failure,” and worse, attach ourselves to the failure as if WE are failures. I’m encouraging you to try again…and again…and again…and a dozen more times after that. Routines aren’t one-size-fits-all. What worked last year, or even last month, may not fit your life now. Let this change happen.
Action Step: Commit to trying three different versions of a routine before deciding it won’t work. Maybe it’s three different camp times, or three different ways of prepping meals. Each attempt brings you closer to the right fit.
2. Let Your Priorities Guide You
Life will always ask for your energy in different directions—family, work, fitness, rest, etc. Instead of seeing these as competing choices, think of them as parts of your whole well-being. Some days your body will tell you it needs sleep. Other days your mind will need the reset of a workout. And sometimes your heart will need connection with loved ones more than anything else.
Action Step: Pause and check in with yourself each day: What will best support my mental, emotional, and physical health right now? By listening to what you need in this season, you’ll build routines that feel supportive, not stressful.
3. Value Progress Over Perfection
The people who succeed long-term in fitness aren’t the ones who never stumble—they’re the ones who keep adjusting until they figure it out. Adopting new habits is messy, but that’s where growth happens. Remember, consistency will always lead you further than intensity. Success doesn’t come in the form of never missing a day of exercise, only to find yourself spiraling down a dark hole of perceived failure when you do miss a day. It comes in the form of being consistent.
Action Step: Track your efforts, not just your results. Celebrate the fact that you showed up for 3 camps this week, even if they weren’t your usual times. Applaud yourself for cooking at home twice instead of eating out five times. Progress compounds.
4. Anchor Your Routine in Non-Negotiables
When life feels uncertain, your non-negotiables keep you grounded. For me, right now that means: being present with my kids in the morning, getting some form of movement each day, and keeping healthy food stocked at home.
That also means other things—like my early-morning self-care routine, 6:30am workouts, and regular date mornings with my husband—look different than before. I haven’t abandoned them; I’ve just shifted how and when they happen.
Action Step: Identify your top 2–3 non-negotiables. Then plan your workouts, meal prep, or self-care around those priorities, not against them. You’ll find it’s much easier to stay consistent when your routine supports the foundation you truly value.
Final Thought: Grace and Grit Go Together
Routine changes are hard. They require patience, creativity, and a lot of grace for yourself. But they also require grit—the willingness to keep trying until you find what works. The balance of those two is where transformation happens.
So the next time your schedule feels upside down, remember: it’s not about finding the perfect routine—it’s about finding the one that works for this season of life.
And when you do, give yourself credit: you didn’t quit, you adjusted. And that’s exactly what success looks like.
