I’ve been sick in bed for the past 2 days.

It’s nothing terrible, just the kind where your body aches for a few days.

And sitting here typing this at 50%, I’m realizing how much work has piled up. And I’m feeling behind.

I know you’ve felt this way before after missing a few days. But those few days feel more like a few months.

And here's the part that surprised me most…

It wasn't being sick that made it hard to get back on track. It was the story I told myself about it.

That I hadn't just paused. But I'd lost my place.

That I wasn't picking up where I left off, I was starting over.

And the feeling of having to start over is exhausting.

I think this is the real reason so many of the women I work with stop. Not because they don't care. Not because they're lazy or don't have the willpower. But because when life gets in the way (it always does), they miss a week, and that missed week whispers something to them.

It says everything you built is gone. You're back at zero.

But the truth is it’s not. The same way that I’m not starting over again after a few days off.

One of my members, Dianna, said something on a call a few weeks back that I keep coming back to. She said, "Starting over is exhausting, daunting. Picking up where I left off is better."

That one sentence is the whole thing.

Imagine you're a few chapters into a book you love and life gets busy, so you set it down for a week.

When you pick it back up, what do you do? You don't start on page one. You don't reread the whole thing to earn your spot back. You find your bookmark, and you keep going. The story didn't reset just because you stopped reading for a few days.

Your routine is the same.

The workouts you did, the protein you ate, the habits you built…they don't disappear because you took a few days off.

They're sitting right there at the bookmark, waiting for you.

You don't owe the book a fresh start.

You just have to open it back up.

This reminds me of a Revitalized member, Patti.

Patti didn't finish her very first workout with me. She could've taken that as proof she wasn't cut out for this. A lot of people would have. Instead, she came back the next time. And the next.

And kept coming for over 1 year.

Instead of restarting, she just continued.

So here’s what I took from my sick week. Ironically something I’ve told the women I work with for a long time.

That the all or nothing mindset doesn't get us all…it usually gets us nothing. Which is why I recommend something different, "always something."

When you miss a few days, you don't owe yourself a perfect comeback. You don't have to make up for the lost time. You just do the next small thing.

The next workout.

The next meal with enough protein.

A glass of water and a walk around the block.

That's the bookmark.

That's you, picking the book back up.

For me, that was writing this newsletter.

So I’m right there with you.

And if you've been sitting in that "I have to start all over" feeling…I want you to try something different today.

Pick up where you left off instead.

Do one small thing, not the whole plan. Just something.

And if it helps to say it out loud, reply and tell me what your one something is going to be ◡̈

Your friend and coach,

Ben Miknis
Revitalized