Life is stressful.
Nearly all of us wake up at an hour that doesn’t quite feel right, go to work, try to eat the right foods in the right amounts, handle house chores and find time to exercise. And when something unexpected pops up or our routine gets thrown off, all of it becomes even more overwhelming.
So something has to give.
And unfortunately, the thing that usually takes a back seat is taking care of ourselves.
We all get to this point in some form or another. We’re human, living in a society that’s obsessed with progress.
Bosses ask, “What have you done for me lately?”
Old friends ask, “What have you been up to since I last saw you?”
And somewhere in that, we lose sight of our everyday happiness and trade it for promises about tomorrow.
Let’s start with the cornerstone of why your coaches at Vegvisir do what they do: helping you build your perfect day.
Setting the Compass
A couple of years ago, after my first year as a gym owner, I realized something important. What makes a great coach doesn’t always make a great business owner.
So I got help from a business mentor.
Just like we have On-Ramp for CrossFit classes, I had to go through my own version for running a business. I had to break things down. I had to understand why I was doing what I was doing.
There were a lot of exercises that helped with that, but one I still come back to every six months is this:
What is your perfect day?
Take out a sheet of paper and write down what actually matters to you. What would need to be in your day, every day, for you to be happy?
Family? Pets? Where you live? What time you wake up? What time you go to bed? Do you exercise? How?
Write it out from the moment you wake up to when you go to sleep.
And this isn’t your perfect vacation day. This is your real, everyday life.
A lot of people realize they would still work. It might just look different. Maybe fewer hours. Maybe something new.
You already go to a gym, so fitness matters to you. That’s part of your day.
How much time would you spend with your family?
How much time would you keep for yourself?
There’s no right answer. What matters is that you write it down and acknowledge it.
And here’s the part most people miss. You may not have to change as much as you think.
For example
My perfect day starts with waking up when the sun rises and easing into the morning with a slow breakfast.
Then I work on the gym for a couple of hours before having lunch with my family. I go outside and play with the Border Collies.
We live in a house where Katelyn has space for her furniture remodeling, and I still get my truck in the garage.
I work out at Vegvisir for about 90 minutes each day, with a fully healed elbow, and coach three to four times per week.
The gym is in its permanent space and has become about 90% of what we hoped it would be.
I travel once a month for a weekend getaway, and Katelyn and I take our future kids on longer trips during their school breaks.
Break it down
You can go into as much or as little detail as you want. I kept mine shorter, but when I look at it, I realize something important.
I’m already living a good chunk of it.
Most days, I wake up with the sun. I get that slower breakfast. I play with the dogs every day. I work out regularly.
Those are wins.
And they were part of the “perfect day” I wrote down two years ago.
You should feel the same way when you look back at what you’ve already done.
Celebrating wins matters. It’s how progress sticks.
If this is your first time doing something like this, think of it like a 1-rep max back squat. This is your baseline. The next time you do this, you’ll have something to compare it to.
Now look at what’s missing.
Those are your long-term goals.
Some of them might mean you’re on the right path. Others might mean you need to make changes.
But now you have direction.
You have a true north.
And if it feels far away, that’s okay.
If you want to lose 100 pounds, it won’t happen in a day.
If you want to build a retirement plan, it takes years.
If you want to go to bed earlier, you can start tonight, but it still takes time to build the habit.
That’s why we break big goals down into smaller ones.
For instance
“I want to lose 100 pounds.”
Start by joining a gym with coaching and committing to three classes per week. Schedule them ahead of time so you’re locked in.
“I want to build a retirement plan.”
Find a financial advisor and start setting aside a percentage of your income.
“I want to go to bed earlier.”
Start with 15 minutes. Set an alarm to plug your phone in and wind down.
Get after it
Every big goal can be broken down.
What matters is that you’ve made it a priority.
Taking care of yourself isn’t selfish.
Your mood affects you and everyone around you.
If you’re exhausted, frustrated and burned out, your family feels that.
But if you start building your perfect day, even just one hour at a time, something shifts.
Your wins start stacking.
Your energy changes.
And that spreads to the people around you.
Because when you see someone who looks like they’re living their best day, what do you think?
“I’ll have what they’re having.”
Dad joke. Had to.
So, what does your perfect day look like?
I want to hear it.
Send it in a reply or grab me in person. Everyone at Vegvisir wants to help you get there, and once you put it out there, we’re in your corner.
Have a wonderful day, and I’ll see you in the Gym,
Kidd Ellis
Vegvisir CrossFit