There was a time when I was teaching ten to eighteen yoga and Pilates classes every week.

I was active. I exercised regularly. I ate well. I understood the importance of taking care of my body.

And then menopause arrived.

My sleep changed. My joints ached. My body started responding differently to things I’d been doing for years.

And do you know what my first response was?

Apparently, I needed to try harder.

Exercise more. Eat less. Be more consistent. Be more disciplined.

Which, looking back, is a little ridiculous.

I was already putting in an enormous amount of effort.

But instead of questioning whether my approach was meeting my changing needs, I questioned myself.

When Everything Becomes a Performance Review

Have you ever noticed how quickly we turn physical changes into judgments about our behavior?

You feel more tired than you used to.

You notice that certain movements are becoming uncomfortable.

You don’t recover from activity quite the way you once did.

And suddenly you’re conducting an internal performance review.

I need to get myself together.

I need to be more consistent.

I need to work harder.

But what if effort isn’t actually the problem?

What if you haven’t stopped to identify what has changed?

Because there’s a significant difference between recognizing a change in your physical abilities and deciding that change means you’re doing something wrong.

The Moment at the Clothes Dryer

I remember squatting down to get clothes out of the dryer and realizing that getting back up wasn’t as easy as it should have been.

Now, here’s what makes that moment particularly interesting.

I was teaching yoga and Pilates for a living.

I was moving all day.

And yet, here was an ordinary household task that had become unexpectedly difficult.

My initial instinct could have been to add more exercise.

But more exercise wasn’t necessarily the answer.

The better question was:

What was this particular task asking my body to do, and where was I having difficulty meeting that demand?

Getting up from a squat requires a combination of joint mobility, strength, coordination, balance, and the ability to produce force from that position.

Being generally active doesn’t automatically mean you’re maintaining every physical capacity equally.

And that’s worth paying attention to.

Your Body Doesn’t Respond to Your Good Intentions

One of the things I talk about frequently is the difference between being active and being prepared.

You can exercise consistently and still discover gaps in your physical capacity.

You can be strong in one movement and struggle with another.

You can have years of experience with a particular activity and still find that changing circumstances require a different approach.

Our bodies adapt to the demands we place on them.

And those demands aren’t always the same as the demands of everyday life.

Think about what your day actually asks you to do.

Can you comfortably get down to the floor and back up?

Carry something heavy?

Reach overhead while maintaining your balance?

Walk farther than your usual daily distance?

Move from one position to another without needing to carefully plan every step?

These aren’t questions about whether you’re fit enough to earn a passing grade.

They’re questions about the physical abilities that help you participate in your life.

And the answers can give you useful information.

Change the Question Before You Change the Workout

When something starts feeling harder, it’s tempting to respond by doing more.

But before you add another workout, another rule, or another expectation, get specific.

What has actually changed?

Is it your ability to produce strength?

Your available range of motion?

Your endurance?

Your balance?

Your confidence performing a particular task?

Are you recovering differently? Sleeping poorly? Experiencing discomfort that deserves further attention?

Those are very different situations.

And they don’t all call for the same response.

Sometimes the answer might involve building strength. Sometimes it might involve practicing a movement in a different way, adjusting the demand, or addressing something beyond your exercise routine.

The point is to stop treating every change as evidence that you aren’t trying hard enough.

You need useful information, not another reason to criticize yourself.

Your Body Is Changing. Your Approach Can Change Too.

Menopause was part of my story, but this conversation is much bigger than menopause.

Our lives change.

Our responsibilities change.

Our activities change.

Our physical capacities change.

And sometimes we continue using an approach that made sense for an earlier version of our lives without considering whether it’s still serving us.

That doesn’t mean we need to start over every time something changes.

It means we need to pay attention.

To observe what we’re actually experiencing.

To understand the demands we’re trying to meet.

And to make decisions based on that information rather than frustration or self-judgment.

That’s how we begin building physical capacity that matters beyond the workout itself.

Start With What You Want to Be Able to Do

If you’re wondering where to begin, I’ve created a free interactive tool called the EveryDay Athlete Decoder.

It helps you explore your personal goals, circumstances, and the physical abilities that matter in your everyday life.

Rather than starting with another generic exercise prescription, it starts with you.

Explore the Free EveryDay Athlete Decoder → Click To Explore

And the next time you hear yourself thinking, I just need to try harder, I want you to ask something different.

What’s actually changed, and why have I decided the problem is my effort?

Because sometimes the most productive thing you can do isn’t to push harder.

It’s to ask a better question.

Question your approach before you question your discipline.

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Prefer to watch? Watch the companion video, “Why Was This Getting Harder?” on YouTube.

WATCH THE VIDEO → Click Here