You had a routine, and it was working pretty well.

And then something changed in your life. A move, a new job, a baby, a separation. And the habits you had built simply fell apart. Now, when you look back at what you used to do, you think: I'll never get back to that.

It's a common situation for my clients (and soon for me as well I'm sure 😁)

It's disheartening, for sure, but I still have good news. It's not a willpower problem, you're not lazy. It's very, very normal.

Our habits are neural circuits tied to a specific context: a place, a time of day, a sequence of cues. When that context changes, the triggers disappear. The brain can no longer run on autopilot, and a very small action that used to happen without thinking now requires conscious effort. And when everything in your life is new and demanding at the same time, the first things to go are usually the ones that were keeping you sane.

Luckily, those circuits don't disappear. They weaken, of course, but they don't vanish. The neurological pathways you built through practice persist even after a long break. Which means someone returning to a movement practice after months away will progress far more quickly than someone starting from scratch. Your body remembers, even when it doesn't feel that way (especially the first time you come back to it 😅)

The usual mistake is to try to slap your old practice on top of your new life. But if you're already dealing with the newness of your situation, that's just going to cause overwhelm.

What I'd like you to try instead:

Let's not try to rebuild everything at once. For now, you need one thing. One movement, one stretch, one short practice that you already know well enough not to have to think about. Something so familiar it can survive the chaos of a new life. We want to build momentum.

From there, regularity does the rest. Ten minutes, five days in a row will do more than an hour at the weekend. Not because of the physical effort involved, but because repetition is how the brain rebuilds the circuit. A little, often.

Think of one habit you've lost that genuinely made you feel better. Do it tomorrow morning. And the day after. And the day after that.

By day three or four, your body will start to remember.

Om, peace 🧡

Clem