How to Get Back on a Horse

After you’ve Fallen Out of Step with Your Routine

Have you ever fallen out of your routine, either consciously or unconsciously, and then had trouble getting it restarted? Maybe you stopped going to the gym… or maybe you fell off your diet… or maybe you stopped working on some aspect of your business.

This recently happened to me. Late last year I decided to temporarily stop blogging and sending newsletters. Although it was a hard decision, I knew I needed to spend more time focusing in other areas of my business.  I was OK with that. But after taking a break, I’m finding it really hard to get restarted.

As I pondered these statements and how they related to restarting my blogging, I ran across an article called “How to Avoid Injury When Falling Off a Horse.” The article offered several gems that could apply to non-horse situations as well. I’m sharing them because they apply to any situation in which you’ve fallen out of your routine and want to get restarted.

Here are the top tips for “getting back on your horse:”

Relax
Tensing up your muscles before you actually fall off the horse will “severely limit your body’s natural ability to absorb impact” according to the article.

I think the same can be said for tensing our “life muscles.” Tensing up brings on stress and overwhelm, and only makes it harder to recover. So take some deep breaths and relax.

Try to Figure Out What Happened
Step back, take an objective view, and figure out what made you fall off your routine in the first place. Understanding what caused you to fall can help you be aware of that trigger in the future, which allows you to take corrective action next time.

Climb Back On If You Can
When you fall out of a routine, it can feel nearly impossible to get back into a steady rhythm. Fortunately, to correct most “life falls” all you need to do is “get back on the horse.” The truth is, the longer you wait, the harder it will be.

Remember, Be Nice
There’s no need to punish yourself for falling out of your rhythm. After all, you can’t fall out of your rhythm i you didn’t start to begin with.  So celebrate that you took action to begin with, and forgive yourself for stopping. Then move on and get over it.

Take Action
OK, let’s stop talking about doing something, and go do it! I’m starting by posting this blog on my web site and in my newsletter.

Have you fallen out of a routine that you’d like to restart?  If so please share your thoughts and ideas below, and let me know if there’s anything I can do to support you.

If you’ve had success at restarting a routine and have some additional steps to share, I’d love to hear them!