Week 01 (2026-W01): New Year in Transit

Keeping Your Center While Everything Moves

There’s a version of the holidays that looks calm on Instagram.

And then there’s the real version: suitcases, train platforms, time zones, family logistics, and the emotional whiplash of saying “goodbye” to one place while trying to be fully present in the next.

This week was the real version.

We were still in Japan through January 1st, and then we shifted back to Germany and into family mode: first back to my brother-in-law’s place in Berlin for a couple of days, then to my father-in-law’s on January 3rd, and finally home to Chemnitz that same night.

It was a week of transitions — and transitions are where habits either disappear… or prove they’re real.

Japan until January 1: the “last days” feeling

The end of a trip is its own emotional season.

The early days are excitement and novelty. The middle days are rhythm. And the last days have that “hold on, this is ending” feeling—especially when you’re traveling as a family and you can tell everyone is storing memories in real time.

I won’t pretend I was perfectly rested or perfectly structured. But I was aware of something important:

When you travel, wellness stops being a routine and becomes a relationship.

A relationship with sleep that’s imperfect.

A relationship with food that’s unfamiliar.

A relationship with movement that might look like walking and exploring instead of training.

And that’s not failure. That’s reality.

January 1: the pivot from travel to family

Then came the hardest shift: leaving Japan and re-entering “home life” — not directly home, but into family homes, which is its own kind of intensity.

Returning from a major trip is rarely restful. It’s a swap:

• from adventure logistics to home logistics
• from “we’re exploring” to “we’re coordinating”
• from novelty to re-entry

And because it was New Year’s, there’s also this invisible pressure to decide what the next year “means” immediately.

My honest take: the first days of January are overrated for big decisions.

They’re better for two things:

1. Recovery
2. Resetting your basics

Berlin for two days: short windows, simple anchors

We spent two days back in Berlin at my brother-in-law’s place.

In weeks like this, people tend to swing between extremes:

• “I’ll do nothing, I’m exhausted.”
• “I’ll fix everything starting now.”

Both are understandable. Neither is ideal.

What actually works (for me) is choosing small anchors that don’t require perfect circumstances.

Anchors like:

• getting outside for a walk, even when you don’t feel like it
• drinking water before caffeine
• eating one meal that feels grounding
• going to bed without trying to “win” the evening

These are not glamorous. But they’re the foundation of consistency—especially during family-heavy stretches.

January 3: one more move — father-in-law, then home

On January 3rd we traveled again: to my father-in-law’s house, and then home to Chemnitz that same night.

That last “final leg” travel is always the one that tests you. You’re already tired, you’ve already done the heavy lifting, and the finish line is close enough that everything feels slightly annoying.

And yet: that’s the exact moment your system matters most.

Not a perfect workout plan. Not perfect macros. Not perfect tracking.

Just a calm inner rule like:

“I don’t need to do everything. I just need to do the basics.”

The lesson of the week: consistency is portable

This week reminded me of something I want every busy professional (and every parent) to hear:

You don’t need a perfect routine. You need a portable one.

A portable system is built from behaviors that survive:

• travel days
• family days
• jet lag
• disrupted meals
• irregular sleep
• the emotional “noise” of transitions

It’s not dramatic. It’s not motivational-poster material.

But it’s what actually keeps you moving forward.

Tiny experiment for next week (under 2 minutes to start)

I’m using a “3-anchor reset” after travel-heavy weeks:

1. A short daily walk (even 10 minutes)
2. Water before caffeine
3. One consistent bedtime trigger (same small routine)

No heroics. Just stability.