Two Thursdays ago, the governor ordered a mandatory evacuation of Chatham County where we live due to Hurricane Matthew. The Husband and I decided to pack up the two dogs and tortoise into our small car and leave. The usual 4 hour trip took 9 hours.

The next day I twisted my ankle.

While displaced, we spent time with family eating out, celebrating birthdays, and enjoying the company. We came back to the house in good shape but without electricity for 5 more days. Immediately after the power came back on, we had family arrive for several days. We spent time with family eating out, celebrating birthdays, and enjoying the company.

In most of that time I didn’t run (twisted ankle). I ate a lot of food, drank a lot of beer (and mead?), stayed up late, slept in, didn’t write, didn’t blog. This blog went without a new post all week (a first in a long time).

I got off track.

Most things written about getting back on track detail forming habits, a morning routine, and scheduling habits. I don’t consider my habits gone, nor do I need to schedule out “time to run” on my calendar. I assume I’m not alone. Sometimes we just need to recognize when we’ve left routine. Here’s 6 tips to get back on track.

6 Tips for Getting Back on Track

1. Let go (just for a moment)

For me, I let go of the rigidity.

Was I going to stay up all night after a 9-hour evacuation to write blog posts? No. So, I let it go and the guilt associated with it. I didn’t beat myself up over not having a buffer of blog posts for emergencies.

After eating out a lot, we had a bunch of leftovers. I’m not going to waste that food. I’ll appreciate that I don’t have to prepare food for the next few days and spend that time getting on track with other things.

Let go of panic, guilt, or anxiety. Move forward with what you have.

2. Find a break

Maybe you’re still in the middle of over-indulgence. Maybe you’re still in chaos for a little while longer.

We have more family coming next week! I know I’m going to eat out, drink good craft beer, and stay up too late. (I can’t wait!)

But, this current week exists. I have this week to get back on track a little, to get the miles in, and to make healthy eating choices. It would be tempting to just not bother, because another upset is on its way.

There’s always going to be another upset. Holidays are coming, my friend.

I’m also careful not to fill this time with friends (although they are dear to me), start a new hobby, or even a new habit. It’s time to relax and settle back into my routine, to get back to normalcy if only for a short time.

3. Assess and address

Open that bank account history and tally up transactions against your budget.

Take notes on when you’re going to bed and when you’re waking up.

Track your food intake.

Figure out how far off “normal routine” you are. It might be a little or a lot. Address how things got off track, if those conditions still exist, and how you would like to move forward.

Example: I am not running, because I twisted my ankle. Does my ankle still hurt? No. Ok, today I will go run because that reason is no longer valid.

I have been trying bullet-journaling, so just getting back to writing entries and monitoring my activities has really helped me get back to “normalcy” without much trouble.

4. Get back to your rules

For me, my rules are:

1. Two beer limit the day before a hard run
2. Shut off the TV at 10 PM
3. Avoid lactose
4. No caffeine after 3 PM
5. Follow the morning routine

These are hard and fast rules that make me happy and healthy. I’m getting back to them immediately.

When you get back to the simple rules you had, you’ll be surprised what else falls into place.

5. Transition when needed

Consider how you want to transition back into every habit, even if that transition is just to dive in.

To get back to 6 AM wake-ups, I’m going to take the week to transition. Yes, I could just jump in and force myself to get up at 6AM tomorrow, but I don’t think that will really work.

On the other hand, I’m afraid that if I don’t get all of this week’s blog posts written that inconsistency will become a trend. I don’t want that to happen. So I’m jumping into writing all of my posts again.

For running, I missed 5 days of running (and 25 miles according to my training plan). When I ran again, I shortened the prescribed amount to get back into the groove. The next day, I was ready to tackle the training plan as written.

Each habit needs a strategy to get back on track.

6. Don’t swamp yourself with errands and chores

When the city is without electricity for almost a week, the laundry, chores, and errands are going to pile up.

You may find yourself in a similar situation.

But don’t just throw it all into the week’s to-do list and run yourself into the ground. The idea is to get back to routine, not to make everything perfect instantly. If you are blessed to have the time, pick one day as a recovery day to wipe out all the yard work, laundry, and errands.

If you don’t have that time, pick 3 things that really need to get done this week. Prioritize them and be happy if all that gets done is those 3 things and some semblance of normality.

Also consider delegating errands to your partner, trying out a ready-to-cook meal subscription service, paying someone to mow the lawn. Or… maybe just don’t vacuum this week.

Getting Back on Track

As the Uncluttered Life podcast below reminds, you’re not developing new habits here. You’re just getting back to your normal.

It’s OK to be where you are. It’s OK to overindulge sometimes.

And it’s important to get back on track, so that you can keep going toward your goals.

Further Reading:

• Overhauling my Sleep Routine + 4 Hacks for Better Sleep
• Day in the Life of an Amateur Marathoner
• Favorite Find Friday: Working on Goals
• An Uncluttered Life Podcast Episode 171: Your Recovery Plan After You’ve Overdone It

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How do you get back on track?