What to do when you get out of a routine

For most of the best athletes in the world, routine is basically something they have learnt to love with everything in them as it leads to them being able to achieve the best part of their dream.

The majority of people who are living a healthy lifestyle are used to having a routine, it is quite normal to know what you are getting up to at what points in the day, even those times where you are resting or not being productive. It means that you can plan out what you are eating and prepare it without feeling the strain or pressure of having to get everything done at the last minute, which is an effect of not having a routine.

By not sectioning periods of the day where you get things done is the main reason why a lot of people become stressed or overloaded, they put a lot of pressure on themselves because they will have a list of things to do like: train, meal prep, work, socialise. But because they haven’t been organised and made a routine, they try and cram everything into a tiny section when really, they could have called that person they needed too when they were driving home from work or sent that email three days ago so that if any complications came up you had time to deal with it.

This can link to your fitness lifestyle too, not just in general or your work life.

If you feel like you don’t have time to organise what food you are eating in the day, you suddenly go and pick up something from the local shop on the way into work because that is easier. But by doing this you are potentially lining yourself up for a setback, as a lot of pre-made food in supermarkets are packed with sugar, salt and fat. It is also not that great for your wallet. By buying food off the shelf every day you could be spending double or triple a month for food that isn’t as good for you and your progress, so setting out time to ensure you have all of your meals ready for the following day is crucial to your fitness and weight loss / gain progression.

But don’t worry, here are some tips for you to keep striding towards your goals:

Tip 1: That ‘special’ food

We all hate it when days just don’t go to plan, and we know that they are going to happen at some point. Maybe life has thrown you a curveball and you’re stuck with no food.

You need to find that fuel, that meal that you know you can get from a supermarket which is going to give you a boost, stay within your macros and keep you full for a little longer until we are able to get back on track.

Some people I’ve seen with grab water and Greek yoghurt, that is the go-to food for them

Others like beef jerky (which is a good on the go snack to have which is full of protein)

Sometimes we also need these types of food because chicken and rice is simply getting boring after three days in a row. Educate yourself on food in the market, you can check out some that I post on Instagram (@charliejohnsonfitness)

Snacks are not bad for you; a little treat here and there isn’t going to ruin anything. But keeping a good list in our minds about what is going to be best for us will only increase our chances of getting closer to our goals.

Tip 2: Planning always helps

Setting aside an hour one evening to set up your meals for the next couple of days will really help take the load of you when you are so busy living your life anyway. Make up some meals and put them into pots and you can either freeze them for when you need them or have them in the fridge ready to go.

It may be that you eat the same thing for three days but at least you know that you are getting in what you need during the day and aren’t steering away from your goals.

But be kind to yourself, sometimes we just can’t keep on track. You may forget a birthday dinner or you forget your food one day (we’ve all done it) but just having that routine of keeping some spare time for you to be able to dedicate it to your meal prep will be very good for all that work you are putting in the gym.

Tip 3: DO . NOT . PANIC

This is key, please do not panic so much over food. We all know that we need it, we all know there is good and bad food in the world but the best thing to remember is that you are human. We live in a world now that is trying to better itself and have the opportunity to do that to ourselves. We also have a variety of apps and channels to find out what is the best food for us, what is the best routine and what works for us.

It is the same with your fitness, sometimes morning cardio works for people, sometimes it doesn’t. Find out what works for you and keep plugging along, accept mistakes as they happen but move on as quickly as you can.