This is a classic dilemma I guess, and which is why you need to have a clear idea of your goals, and of your reasons for getting into pick up.

If you want to meet a woman for a monogamous long term relationship, then pick up can help you do that. But alas, be prepared to have to bring it to a halt once you're in a relationship which is an implicitly exclusive relationship.

There's nothing wrong with doing that. But you're right, if and when you return to being single, it will again take you a little while to get to grips with it all. Practising pick up is like working your social muscle. You go out and practice, and it grows bigger and stronger and more useful. You don't go out, and you don't practice, and it withers and shrinks, and you regress.