I think I’ve overcomplicated cold approach so much that I’ve actually gotten worse at it. How do I simplify this?

I think I’ve overcomplicated cold approach so much that I’ve actually gotten worse at it. How do I simplify this?
I’ve posted here a few times, and I think I’ve finally figured out what my actual problem is.
Before my last relationship, I did pretty well with women. I wasn’t studying “game,” thinking about openers, transitions, attraction, etc. I just flirted, had fun, and somehow it worked. I was confident and spontaneous.
Then I was in a serious relationship for about three years. It ended six months ago, and a lot changed around the same time. I had surgery, gained weight, lost a lot of confidence, and my family’s financial situation became much less secure than it used to be.
I’m working on getting myself back physically and building my own financial future, but dating has somehow turned into this huge skill I feel like I have to master.
And I think that pressure is making me worse.
My biggest problem right now is cold approach, especially in places that aren’t explicitly social, like the gym, beach, mall, etc.
Sometimes a contextual opener naturally comes to me and everything is fine. But when nothing obvious comes to mind, I freeze.
I want to be able to approach someone without needing a clever reason. Just see someone I want to meet, walk over, and start talking like I would with someone I already knew.
Instead, my brain starts doing this:
“What’s the opener? What observation can I make? Is this socially acceptable? Does this sound forced? What do I say after that? How do I transition?”
Then my heart starts pounding, my voice gets higher, and the interaction feels unnatural before I’ve even said anything.
For example, imagine two girls tanning at the beach with headphones on.
I could walk over, get their attention, and say something contextual like, “It’s so hot, I genuinely don’t understand how people can lie here tanning.”
Or at the gym, I could make some playful comment about how focused someone looks.
But those things feel weird when I’ve deliberately walked across the place just to say them. It feels like I’m pretending the observation is the reason I approached when obviously it isn’t.
At the same time, being completely direct every single time doesn’t feel natural to me either.
Then there’s the second problem: the first five minutes.
Even if I approach successfully, I start thinking:
Opener → transition → topic → attraction → what next?
And suddenly I can’t think of anything to talk about.
Ironically, studying this stuff seems to have made me more self-conscious than I was when I knew nothing about it.
There’s also a deeper fear behind all of this.
I’ve put this pressure on myself that I need to become exceptionally good with women, because otherwise I’m scared that when I eventually want another serious relationship, I won’t be able to meet the kind of woman I’m attracted to.
I catch myself thinking I need to become some kind of “super seducer” who can attract almost anyone. Rationally, I know that’s probably an unrealistic standard, but the fear still drives a lot of this obsession.
I don’t want another 50 techniques or another complicated pickup system. I’ve consumed enough information already.
I want to simplify.
If you had to give someone ONE basic framework to practice for the next few months, what would it be?
Specifically:
How do you approach when there’s no obvious contextual reason to talk?
How do you stop needing the “perfect” opener?
What do you actually do during the first five minutes so you’re not desperately searching for topics?
How do you practice this until approaching feels normal instead of like a performance?
I’d rather choose one imperfect approach and practice it hundreds of times than keep reading contradictory advice about direct vs. indirect, observations, pickup lines, etc.

Even watching this vid got me paralyzed without idea how to approach the women in the video

https://youtu.be/P8v26Beydtc?si=AVarn3aeC5p9puim