Picked just one thing out of that beginner strength video I mentioned instead of trying the whole 20-minute routine, and it actually stuck this time.
Chair squats. Nothing fancy — hand on the back of a dining chair for balance, down until my thighs are close to parallel, then back up. 3 sets of 8, right after I pour my coffee and before it’s gone. 6 days in a row now, which might be a personal record for anything exercise-related in my adult life.
First day my knees were shaking by the third set, which told me exactly how little I’d been using those muscles after a year of sitting at this desk for work. Second day my legs were sore going down the stairs, the good kind of sore though. By day 4 or 5 it stopped feeling like an event and just became something I do while the kettle’s still going.
What worked wasn’t the exercise itself, it was keeping it small enough that skipping felt dumber than doing it. A whole workout video still intimidates me, but ninety seconds of squats before coffee doesn’t give my brain enough time to talk me out of it.
To anyone else logging actual zero exercise days this year, picking one small thing over the whole ambitious plan is what finally moved the needle for me. Not pretending 6 days means much long-term, but it’s 6 more than I had going into this month. Sorry this got long, I tend to overexplain everything.