April 16, 2025 • 56 mins
The episode dives into topics like overcoming shame in the gym, how movement improves mental health, and why building resilience through setbacks is the true secret to long-term transformation. Steve shares personal stories from his own journey—from the prison service to becoming a passionate PT and mentor—and reveals why mindset, motivation, and community are the foundations for change.
Whether you’re just starting your fitness journey or getting back on track after injury or burnout, this episode offers grounded, realistic steps to help you reclaim your health, build confidence, and enjoy movement again.
🎧 Tune in to learn:
- How to get started when you feel stuck
- The mental shift that makes fitness enjoyable
- Why movement is medicine—physically and emotionally
- How to normalize vulnerability in health spaces
- Simple steps to build strength, mobility, and confidence at any age
This is more than a fitness episode—it’s about choosing yourself again.
About Steve:
Hi I’m Steve, currently PT lead at Nuffield Health Stoke. I’ve been in the fitness industry for over 15 years and have always been active.
Over this time my training methods and interests have changed and adapted to meet my needs and current trends.
I’ve a passion for helping others achieve what they think is impossible and to guide them through any life changes that helps them to achieve their goals.
Along the way I’ve also taught fitness courses to 100’s of new PT’s and gym instructors and continue to look to help people get into the industry and improve the quality of PT’s through my jointly owned training centre Advanced Fitness Careers Limited.
I like to set myself challenges and prove that you don’t need hours upon hours in the gym to train. Having said that next week myself and Ryan are running the London marathon to raise money for Hospice UK which will be the biggest challenge yet to complete so if you can support us all donations will be welcome.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
In this week's episode, we talkabout lasting health and how
shifting your mindset aroundfood and nutrition from
punishment and control tonourishment and performance, how
the power of consistency.
10 times better than intensityand beasting yourself.
(00:20):
We talk about how to overcomegym anxiety and shame, and how
resilience is built throughsetbacks and how real change
comes from sticking with theprocess, even when motivation
dips or obstacles appear.
Welcome to Man (00:38):
A Quest to Find Meaning, where we help men
navigate modern life, find theirtrue purpose, and redefine
manhood.
I'm your host, James, and eachweek, inspiring guests share
their journeys of overcomingfear Embracing vulnerability and
finding success.
(00:58):
From experts to everyday heroes.
Get practical advice andpowerful insights.
Struggling with career,relationships or personal
growth?
We've got you covered.
Join us on Man Quest to FindMeaning.
Now, let's dive in.
James (01:14):
I believe that true wellness is a balance of
physical fitness, mentalresilience, and overall health.
For me, movement is not just anexercise, it's a celebration of
what my body can do.
Nourishment is about my, notabout my restriction, but about
fuel, all in my body and mindfor strength, energy, and
(01:35):
longevity.
My mental wellbeing is just asimportant as my physical health,
and I prioritize both on myjourney.
Good morning, Steve.
Tell me more.
Steve (01:46):
Morning James.
I think for me, everyone's kindof health and wellness comes
down to, as well as beingphysically able to do everything
that they need to do.
It's also, I think one of thethings that gets overlooked more
is that kind of mental healthside.
And when people look atnutrition, it's usually in a
(02:07):
negative fashion and it's reallyabout looking at fueling
yourself for what you need to beable to do.
So that you can be as fit as youcan do and able to mentally
prepare yourself and be in aplace where you want to be,
rather than letting things bringyou into a negative aspect,
really.
So for me, yeah, looking, sorry,everything and putting it all
(02:32):
together gives you the besttools as you are gonna move
forward in life.
James (02:37):
Yeah.
Yeah.
It makes a complete sense.
It's like everybody.
Season magazines and wants thatperfect body with a six pack big
chest, big arms.
But they, and that's all theyfocus on.
But when it comes to thegeneral, every day, there's the
(02:58):
mental side.
But also the nutrition side.
It's obviously with the mentalside.
If you don't, if you just focuson the physical side and forget
about the mental side, that canhave an impact on your every day
and that kind of stuff.
But at the same time, theyalways say that 80% of.
(03:19):
Our diet should, 80% of gettinginto a trim shape is nutrition.
Yeah.
20% is the physical side.
And yeah, people forget that,
Steve (03:29):
That's it.
And I think the mental aspectcomes in into it as well,
because you've gotta be in a.
In a place where you want to dothat.
There's, I say, a smallpercentage of the whole
population out there that getinto those shapes that you see
in the magazines compared towhat you would see in the gym.
Obviously, we both go to thesame gym, and when you look
(03:51):
around, you are not looking atpeople.
That have that physique.
It's people that are wanting toinvest in themselves to be
better and doing that, acceptingI want to be the best that I can
be and I want to be happy withmy life and be able to do the
things that I enjoy is moreimportant than restricting
yourself and putting yourselfinto a place where it then,
(04:16):
rather than having a positiveoutlook on things and helping
you feel better, be make you gothe opposite way.
I.
James (04:23):
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
And it's also the idea I was hit40 and there's a realization
that I can't, I can almost livethe same as in my twenties, but
if I try and keep that up for aperiod of time, I get injured.
Yeah.
And so there's this idea that wethink we can just keep going and
going, and especially with myinjuries.
(04:48):
By having a good mental side tomyself and indeed being able to
deal with the mental issues, I'mable to overcome the injuries.
Otherwise, you can get quitedown when you're always injured.
Steve (05:01):
That's it.
And I think it also, it can bethe fact that you've, whether
you struggle walking and thenyou physically walk for 10
minutes, that then has apositive effect on, you know
what?
I can't actually do this and Ican achieve what I didn't think
I could.
So it can go hand in hand witheach other in both the positive
(05:22):
and negative ways.
And I think train training doeschange as we get older.
As much as we would like tocontinue to train, as we've
trained from late teens into.
40 years now, but we have tomodify it so that we can
continue to train, feel good,because I know for me that if
(05:47):
I'm able to train, it helpsmentally, it helps me to switch
off from whatever's going onaround for an hour and I feel
good, and then I can get backinto a good place and deal with
whatever I need to do for therest of the day.
James (06:00):
Yeah.
Yeah.
Tell me what is your story?
Where did your.
Tell me about your earlier life,and then tell me how you got
into the fitness.
Steve (06:10):
Okay.
So for me, I've always beeninvolved in fitness.
I've grown up playing footballwell into my thirties.
Job wise, I've always looked atjobs that have physically active
more than sedentary, sitting atdesks which led me to going into
the prison service for 16 years.
So started working the wings andthen for 12 years I wanted,
(06:33):
under two, then thequalifications to work in the
gym area there which more of asupervised role, but it was my
way into being in an activeenvironment that was more
fitness orientated.
And at that point there as well,it allowed me to start
delivering fitnessqualifications for a training
(06:53):
provider that I did all myqualifications through.
So for probably best part of 13,14 years now.
As well as undertaking my ownknowledge and developing myself.
I've also helped probablyhundreds of students come
through their level two andlevel three PT courses and start
their journeys now.
(07:14):
And I think when I look at it,COVID was a big push for me to
move from the prison service.
And come into the industry thatI've been training people and
wanted to be in prior to beingin the prison service.
Yes, it's a big jump in anyonegetting into wanting to be a pt.
(07:36):
It is it can be a risk at start.
You're not gonna get lots ofmoney thrown at you by clients.
It's, you've gotta take yourtime.
And for me.
Now I've got a better workbalance being a pt.
I get to see people and helppeople on a daily basis.
(07:58):
For the last four years to walkaround it during the day, be
able to help people achievetheir goals and achieve things
that they didn't think they cando is more rewarding to me than
the risk that I took by movinginto that field.
Alongside that, I've still gotnow a teaching business that I'm
(08:20):
looking to develop and takefurther to help more students
get into this industry.
Because I think there can beimprovements made.
It is how we talk to people andhow we understand and how we
empathize with people.
That leads us to offering abetter service.
And I think Covid and thepandemic and everything going
virtual, reduced.
(08:44):
That reduce within our industry.
And for us it's having thatphysical element and those days
to have contact with tutors tohelp improve confidence and
knowledge in what we offer.
James (08:58):
This is it.
Fitness and mental health is soimportant and.
We need the more teachers outthere to teach all this.
Because if you are in a goodplace of physical health and
men, mentally, physically,emotionally, spiritually, then
you're going to have moreenergy.
And as you get older, you needto have, I think you need to do
(09:21):
it more as you get older becauseobviously your body frails, your
bones get weaker.
So you've gotta find ways tostrengthen stuff and to really
progress.
Steve (09:31):
That's it.
And I think for myself, my owntraining I was talking to a
client today who'd seen a postthat I put on Facebook ages ago
saying what I was, when I wastraining just weights and I was
17 and a half stone.
Wasn't able to move around muchand wasn't able to do much
cardio and I didn't enjoy that.
(09:52):
So I made the change to do morefunctional lifting, bring cardio
in because I wanted to movemore.
And I've been stable at theweight now.
So it's proof that you can trainone to one extent and then
change because you're not happyor it's not gonna be what you
think it would be.
(10:12):
Yeah.
And I think there is a lot ofthat there that we've gotta
train for functionality.
Especially as we get olderclients that I work with, it is
stressing why do we do things,especially older clients, to
strengthen the ligaments,joints, muscles for doing simple
things like sit to stands.
And it is the transition ofgoing from a squat when yeah,
(10:35):
we're twenties and trying tolift as much as we can to when
we're in the sixties andseventies.
Just being able to stand up andsit down.
Ni nice and easy.
So Sorry, go on.
Go.
No, I was just gonna say it'srelating those exercises and
making it more functional.
James (10:55):
That's it.
What I've noticed is the, Isuppose over the last 20 years
we've got so much more.
As they, the word they usesedentary, so going from the
out.
So I was born up and grown up ona farm, so I got to go into the
fields.
I got to go and play in bales.
So I had a really active outdoorlife.
(11:15):
But I feel as though back thenparents were a bit more, I don't
know if it's, we're a bit morewilling to let the kids out and
do what they want, whereas now Ithink it's a bit more of a guard
on it.
Steve (11:28):
Yeah, de definitely, and I think I say, I can remember
you used to go out in thestreets, you play playing with
whoever was in the streets oraround, and you probably
wouldn't come in until thelights come on in the streets.
There's no phones to tell youwhat time to come back or so.
Things like that.
It would be you went back whenyou went back.
And I do think that there is alot more caution these days as
(11:51):
parents because of, I think likesocial media news and everything
like that, and the stories thatcome outta what people are
capable of.
And I think that does put or hasput more concern over and we're
taking more of an interest ofwhere the kids are, what they're
doing, not letting them go out.
(12:12):
But also computers, it's easierto sit in a room and talk to'em
on a mic rather than actually goout and play.
So I do think, yes, part of itis caution from parents, and
part of it is through technologythat seems to have become less
and less really.
James (12:34):
Do you feel that what's your opinion on how.
Technology has impacted ourfitness.
I think there's two sides to it.
It's the good things, the keepan eye in being able to record
stuff easier.
And then there's the bad sidepeople H hooked their phone.
Steve (12:51):
Yeah.
I think, like I say, it depends.
It depends on the way that it'sused by the person doing it.
Obviously for those that aretraining or trying to be active,
it's good because it's going toshow you.
How many steps you've done,you're gonna be able to check
your heart rate.
It's all gonna link to like youriWatch, telling you what,
(13:14):
setting your monthly goals,setting your step target,
stepping your setting yourthings like that, or being able
to look at your phone and seewhat workout it is and input all
your data.
So there is that good side toit.
I think the bad side is Isuppose the social media side,
that everyone's there.
(13:36):
Then whilst they're doing theexercise, scrolling on the
phones, it's not necessarily theapps that are there to help you
track and help to make youactive.
I think it's the apps that arethere that are a convenience.
As you, you'll probably see whenyou're walking around, you do
your sat, do your apps try tomove on.
(13:58):
You can see someone there that'son the phone and they're
scrolling through Facebook orInstagram.
And I suppose it's, there's lotsof images out there with people
that will show an image that'sin the gym and you training you
can be like this, but thereality of that image isn't.
(14:18):
What every day is.
So I suppose that feeds intosomeone then striving to be
something that's that personphysically isn't.
And it's hard to distinguish forthat.
James (14:33):
In your opinion, how does regular exercise help?
Somebody who feels stuck has alow confidence or maybe is
feeling has struggling withanxiety or depression?
Steve (14:48):
I.
Yeah.
And as I said to you, startingthis anything that I do that's
new, I get anxious.
I am not sure how it'll bereceived, and I can relate that
to someone setting foot in, in agym for the first time, or
thinking I've not, I struggledwalking to the shops and back,
(15:09):
or, I struggle to do this.
And I suppose until you actuallytry it and until, what you're
capable of, that anxiety'salways gonna be there until you
commit to doing something.
James (15:22):
Yeah.
Steve (15:22):
Recently working with a client who was in that similar
situation, had thought about PPT because of what they felt
they were capable as.
It put it off for a while andfinally bit the.
Said, I want to invest and helpmyself because I'm not gonna do
(15:43):
this on my own.
Simple things like coming andbeing able to use the equipment,
have the confidence of knowinghow to use the equipment, what
they can do, and actually thisperson who said that they could
only walk for five or 10 minutesbefore stopping, we walk for 20
(16:03):
minutes.
So already that anxiety thenstarts to come down and the
realization comes from, ah, youknow what I've actually done.
So I've got a sense ofachievement.
And this person now walked awayfrom that excited about what
they could do with a smile andevery session that they've been
(16:23):
in since.
There's an accomplishment.
It's this big picture thateveryone puts up of, right?
This is what I want to do.
It's little baby steps that getus there.
It's not a massive jump.
It's we're struggling.
We don't need to run.
We walk.
(16:44):
When we start walking more, wecan walk quicker.
We can walk on inclines, we can,if we're able to then progress
the jog, then we jog and weslowly build it up.
So piece by piece, we puteverything together to get to
where we want to be.
It's not gonna be a magical keythat gets handed to us.
James (17:05):
I've done over I think I've done over a hundred
recordings, not for thispodcast, but other things as
well.
And even now, there's times,especially at the beginning
where I get a little bituncomfortable and I have to say
a sentence and, oh, I saidsomething wrong and then I have
to start again.
And, but it's, I think it's oneof those things.
(17:26):
So for anybody who's thinkingof.
Getting fit or wants to improvetheir health or their mental
wellbeing, what kind of initialsteps would you first recommend?
Steve (17:39):
For me, I always say, and I always break it down'cause
people always come in and say, Iwant to get fit.
First of all, we want to getactive.
If you are not doing anything,the first thing is to get up and
walk.
It's weather's getting nice now,so why not get out for a walk?
We're not.
Telling you to get a gymmembership, we're not telling
(18:01):
you to do this initially.
We want you to walk, we want youto get up and do stuff that you
are keep putting off or notdoing.
And then as that comes down, sowe're looking at getting active
and healthy first.
Once we get active and healthyand we're able to move a little
bit more and a bit more freerand we are starting to work hard
and long, then we can look moreat the kind of fitness drive and
(18:26):
look at how we can do that.
But in those instances, it'ssmall goals.
It's the small targets, and Isuppose from speaking to people,
one of the biggest things thatstops people is their perception
of what other people will think.
So walking into a gym forsomeone that's never been in a
(18:46):
gym, never done anything, theywalk in and we'll go, oof.
What's everyone gonna think whenI'm doing this, and will they
think if I do something wrong oranything like that?
But majority of gyms, everyone'sgonna help you.
No one's gonna be stood therelooking at someone going, what
(19:07):
are they doing?
What is it?
They're all involved in theirown little world as well,
because that's what they'rethere for.
So sometimes your perception ofwhat others are gonna think are
gonna stop you from doing it.
So if it's something that youwant to do and your.
Wanting to be committed to doingsomething.
'cause that's what it's gonnatake.
(19:27):
It's not gonna have one walk,it's gonna change it.
You are gonna have to commit todoing something daily, and I
think it's 21 days to make ahabit.
So continually walk for 21 days,make little tweaks.
With what you're doing.
They've not got to be drasticchanges, but it's just something
(19:49):
that you can commit to doing.
First of all, if you're wantingto go to a gym, commit to 20
minutes, 15 minutes and buildthat process up to longer, it's
about doing something thatyou're gonna feel happy to go
back and do not do.
One session.
James (20:09):
Gole not going back there.
It's like the the CrossFit.
So CrossFit gets got quite a badin some respects and has some
quite a bad name for gettingpeople injured from my own
perspective, shall I say?
Steve (20:24):
Yeah.
James (20:24):
And you walk into a CrossFit gym and they're doing
all these weightlifting movesand these, they kipp the kipping
and all that kind of stuff, andyou're like, oh my God, what's
going on?
But what I found is that.
You can get caught, you can getcaught up in all the energy of
the CrossFit gym and get andcompete with people.
And that's where I think peopleget injured is trying to compete
(20:47):
all the time against everybodythere.
But what I find is that if youare there just to focus on a
couple of moves, then there'sthis idea that it's take for
example weightlifting.
You got you got, what's it.
Power cleans and all that kindof stuff.
Yeah, there's quite a lot ofcomplex moves.
(21:07):
If you test it one bit at atime, gradually over time you
get the movement and it's almostthe same as when we look at
lifestyle and habits and quiteoften people know exactly what
they should do.
They can't, they don't do it.
Yeah.
What do you think pe, what doyou think really holds people
(21:29):
back from honoring their healthlong term and how can we start
to break it?
Steve (21:35):
I think it's breaking out cycle.
People get into cycles of doingstuff.
It's sim simple as.
How many people order takeawaysa week?
How many people will havemultiple takeaways a week?
And it's easier to do that thaninvest in themselves for
healthier options andalternatives and to do things.
(21:56):
So I think it brings in thattechnology.
It brings in the fact that weare not as active as we used to
be and with prices andeverything else that goes up
with the economy at the minute.
It is probably the last thingthat people are thinking of to
do that.
(22:17):
And like you say, when you'retalking about CrossFit and the.
The exercises and breakingthings down.
Like I say, you walk into aCrossFit gym and you'll see
people that have trained foryears doing that and you think I
gonna be able to do that.
But it's piece by piece doingit, of starting with ring rows
into bandaid, pull-ups, intoit's pieced together.
(22:39):
And the only way to do that inlife again, is the small
changes.
And it's changes that you'regonna stick to.
I always tell people like ifit's nutrition wise, if you
enjoy chips, if you enjoychocolate and things like that,
it's not about giving that up.
(23:01):
It's about learning to moderateand learning that you can have
it.
It doesn't have to be a reward.
But if you are having a platefull of chips or three chocolate
bars a day and things like that,then something's got to give in
it.
You are not going to becomehealthier by continuing with
your diet, but little changesand subtle changes that you are
(23:24):
gonna be able to stick to.
And now, oh, I can have chipsand I can have this, but I need
to have them in moderation.
I.
Then that's where we've got tohead to with these changes is.
Pick one thing, stick to it, andthen change something else.
If you try to change activitylevels, nutrition levels and
(23:45):
mindsets are all at once.
That's a lot of things to go onwith everything else that you've
got to do anyway.
So pick one thing, start tochange that when it sticks,
change something else.
And as daunting as it might be,the only way to do it is to
start and commit to it.
James (24:07):
There's so recently as a child I've eaten a lot of fruit
and I've always had a sweettooth, but that's also had an
implication on my teeth.
And so I've had two teeth takenout.
And then just I think two monthsago, I have a third taken out.
And by that point, my dentistsaid to me, you need to cut out
all sugar.
(24:27):
Yeah.
Otherwise I'm gonna have to havethe, she was threatening to take
the lower ones and I was likeno, no more.
So I've gotta, and you've got,I've gotta take out not just
sweetss and chocolate, but fruitas well.
Yeah.
Now I don't get it wrong.
I am berries in the evening withsome yogurt and then I brought
my teeth.
But it's that idea that if mostof the time we haven't got that
(24:52):
emotional tie.
To help us to break habits.
Yeah.
A few of us do.
And it's quite lucky because Iknow that if I got any more
teeth out the way I'm going,I'll have false teeth by the
time I am 50.
And I don't want false teeth bythe time I'm 50.
I want, I keep my teeth.
So is that incentive, but formost people, how do you help
(25:15):
people to build habits?
Steve (25:17):
I suppose for me it's just talking.
Looking at what quarantinepatterns are.
So first of all, seeing what youcurrently eat and then seeing
how we can make small changes toit.
Most people, when you talk aboutfruit, for example, if you're
trying to get someone to havemore fruit, first thing that
people will think of is, oh,I'll have a smoothie.
I'll make it into a smoothie.
(25:40):
But what happens when you make asmoothie, if you put the portion
that you would usually eat intoa smoothie maker.
It becomes very small, so thenyou put more fruit in.
So then again, you're addingnatural sugars into it, which is
one of the things you'd try tolimit.
But it's looking at kind ofstructure of things and how we
eat.
(26:00):
If we're more active, we, itgives us the opportunity to eat
a little bit more because ourcalorie need will be more.
People who I suppose think, oh,I want to lose weight.
I am just gonna eat one meal aday or two meals a day.
I'm not going to eat.
But our body then starts tostore these fuels.
(26:23):
I.
And doesn't burn effectively.
So we actually hold on to eatfor longer than we would if we
ate just under what we needed.
And I think there's a lot ofthings out there with regards to
nutrition that people willpromote and talk and hear.
And it is a case of one, onestyle, one pattern does not fit
(26:48):
all.
You've got to find what worksfor you.
And I think that's the hardthing with nutrition is the fact
that you can't just give someonethe, if you eat like this is
gonna happen because everyone'sbody's different.
You might find a few things thatwork off one thing, few things
that work off the other.
It's about having that healthybalance, and that's what we've
(27:12):
got to try and get around tothat.
Foods aren't bad for us.
This isn't bad for us, but we'vegot to have things in moderation
for it to be good.
And our body does need certainamounts of fats.
It does need certain amounts ofcarbs and protein, and dependent
on what we're doing when we'retraining, that's gonna depend on
(27:33):
how our body's gonna react toit.
James (27:37):
It's get it's out open now.
We probably both know thatthere's been, in the past
there's been a big war on bats.
Yep.
And we've been told, and schoolsstill teach that bad, that fats
are bad for you.
Yeah.
And so let's get us out in theopen.
Bad fats are not bad for you.
(27:57):
The, too much of the wrong factscan have an implementation
effect, but good fats are goodfor you.
Steve (28:04):
That's it.
People out there will stresscarnivore diet, which is your
meats butter, your good fats andthing, things like that.
Eat is all cooked with fat andthere's very limited carbs in
it.
And again, not, it's not gonnasuit everyone.
People are gonna need to havethat carb fuel in carb sauce.
(28:28):
Is, when we look at thenutritional values for protein,
carbs, and fats, fat is theheist for every gram of fat that
we have, it's nine calories forevery gram of protein that we
have.
And carbs, it's four calories.
So when you weigh it up,obviously we are gonna have more
calories if there's more fat inthere.
(28:50):
So it is about limiting certainmeals or and foods and making
sure that it meets what yourbody needs a day.
Obviously, you craze a few yearsago or might still be
intermittent fasting, whereyou're gonna eat for that eight
hour period.
(29:10):
You are still going to eat thesame amount of calories as you
would in the day.
In that eight hours, you arestill gonna need those basic
requirements of calories.
So if you've got a family andyou've got kids and you're at
work, is that eight hour windowgonna work for you?
(29:32):
No, but you can try and it'sabout trying and not being
afraid to go, you know what?
It's not working.
What can I tweak to make it suitme?
And it's like with the trainingwith nutrition, take the best
way that, and the better resultsthat you are gonna have is by
taking ownership of it and notbeing told what you could do.
(29:57):
Because I dunno about you, butif I'm told to do something, I'm
probably less likely to do itthan if I choose to do
something.
So that's the mindset that we'vegotta get round to is we can
give people all these options ofhow to get active, what we can
do, what they can do, how theycan eat, how they can think.
(30:20):
But unless they've got thatmindset that they want to
change, it's gonna be very hardto get them to do all the other
bits consistently.
To get the change that theywant.
And that's where, for me,everything links in together
because it all starts with themindset of, you know what?
(30:42):
I want to make the change andbecome healthier.
For me it's, I'm going on hereand go, you know what?
I'm gonna do something where.
I'm gonna be uncomfortable, butI'm going to come on here and
talk about something that I'mpassionate about and that I
like.
And you know that I'll walkaround the gym for every hour
that I'm there.
(31:02):
Talking about health relatedstuff and working out ways that
people who say, oh, I can't dothis.
Oh, have you tried doing it thisway?
And then they go, ah, actually,and it just makes a little bit
of difference.
Starting with that positivemindset and showing someone that
they can do the smallest ofthings.
James (31:24):
There's an idea that if somebody doesn't wanna do it,
they probably won't do it.
They might start it if they'reforced.
Yep.
But then they'll probably stop.
But it's more almost like youbecome the example.
If you want somebody to dosomething, you become the
example of that.
And then they'll see that andthey'd be like, oh, I like what
(31:45):
he's doing.
I'm gonna try that.
So then suddenly they've just,they've just said, oh, I'm
gonna, I'm gonna do it.
Steve (31:51):
Yeah.
And it is.
And the thing is, through eachlittle stepping stone that you
do becomes a sense ofaccomplishment that then makes
you do something.
So it is that positivereinforcement that you get.
And that's why I suppose.
People who enter into makingthese changes with a good
(32:13):
supportive network, whether it'stheir partner, whether it's
family, whether it's friend thatwant to commit to do it, it's
more enjoyable and they can holdeach other accountable.
Taking to these changes, and Isuppose we've both trained on
our own, we've both trained withothers and you do get that
(32:33):
enjoyment more with someone.
So for someone not having notdone anything before, if you can
come with a friend, if you cando start to do something with
someone, that's the firstbarrier broken down.
And then you're gonna starttalking to people and then
you're gonna get drawn intodifferent, whether it's classes
or going to different things,going for walks on a weekend.
(32:57):
You get drawn into doing morethe more that you are around
people that are a SI similarmindset.
James (33:04):
Yeah.
Yeah.
We all know, as we talked aboutearlier, that as we get older,
our body changes and what we cando changes.
So what type of training do yourecommend people do?
In their thirties, forties, andfifties, if they wanna stay
strong, mobile and energized.
Steve (33:27):
So I suppose again, the energized bit comes down to
fueling and sleep.
So what we're eating and makingsure we're getting enough sleep
to recover and be for what wewant our bodies to do.
Because if we don't have a goodquality sleep and we are not
eating enough, we are not gonnafeel that energy to want to
train and do everything that.
(33:48):
We want a need to do dailytraining wise, again, I think it
comes down to a lot of what youlike to train and your
backgrounds for training,because obviously there are
still people that will trainheavy into their fifties, into
the sixties and so on.
For me, as we're getting older,becomes less about the
importance of weights and theweight number, but more
(34:10):
important about functionalityand range of movements within,
especially like hip joints, kneejoints, shoulders, elbows.
Those are the tendencies that weseem to see at the gym where
people do start to suffer asthey get older.
And it's looking after thejoints.
And obviously every, most peoplewill start lifting heavier into
(34:33):
the twenties, but like you say,you get little niggles.
If you try to push through thatlifting heavy, we are gonna have
some repercussions coming laterand we need to take care of our
joints.
So for me, the weight side ofthings becomes more about making
sure that we're hitting thatfull range of movements.
(34:53):
Taking it from right, I cansquat my body weight to can I
lift myself up out of a chairwithout putting my hands on my
knees and putting my hands onthe side?
Because that is something that Iknow we will struggle with as we
get older.
Knee replacements, hipreplacements, numbers seem to be
(35:15):
going up.
With them.
So again, looking at how we canbest support those joints, and
I'm a firm believer that if wehave, if we've got to have some
sort of treatment done or wehave to have medication to help
us, then if we're active enough,then hopefully we can have the
lower end of whatever we need tohave.
(35:35):
But cardio wise as well.
Okay.
We're gonna get to a stage whereI'm not gonna want to run.
But I'm still gonna want to walkeverywhere and be mobile and
keep my independence.
So I think looking at yourlifespan, it comes from, as a
child, you run around like anutter doing everything you can
(35:56):
without a care in the world.
We then get to a stage where wecan go into a gym or somewhere
and be active and train, and wemight get involved with weights,
but then.
As we get older, things willstart to take the toll and
eventually we start to think ofhow am I gonna keep my
independence?
(36:17):
What do I want?
And we want to keep active andkeep moving and be an
environment that helps us to bethere.
I know that speaking to manymembers at the gym, it's a very
social gym.
They come there, it helps themwith mental, the mental side of
things because they're able totalk to friends, they sit have
(36:37):
coffees after they've donevarious classes or activities
upstairs.
I think it's definitely gonna besomething that as we get older,
the more active we've been, thathopefully the better
independence that we have andthe quality of life that we
have, because we'll become restless reliant on.
Medication or AIDS for our body.
(37:01):
But at the same time, our bodiesare wonderful things.
That's sometimes they like tothrow spanners in the works and
go, no, you need a little bit ofhelp.
And if we need that, then we'vegotta look at, but we've gotta
help ourselves as much as wecan.
James (37:17):
You mentioned about looking after your joints.
How can, so knowing what I know,how can people in their thirties
and forties look after theirjoints so that when they hit
sixties, seventies, they'restill able to to walk and do the
as better, do suffer as best asthey can.
Steve (37:37):
I think especially when it comes to movements and things
like that, it's definitelywarming up, making sure that
joints if we're in the gym,joints are nice and warm before
we do any weight training on'em.
Explosive training, obviously,making sure nutrition wise we're
(37:57):
eating enough so that thenutrients are getting around our
body to help su.
To supply adequate provisionsto, and obviously you've got the
supplements out there as well,but I think it's look, looking
at kind of the, from an activitypoint of view, it is, rather
than thinking I'm just gonnaload this bar up and do this, or
(38:18):
leg press and do this, because Isuppose knees would be the first
one or knees or hips are thefirst joints that people would
think of as we get older.
It is making sure we've got thatfull range of movement in them,
not limiting what we can do.
Because at the end of the day,as we get older, that's what's
(38:38):
that's where we're gonnastruggle.
If the more we put on them, themore kind of wear and tear that
we have in general, wear andtear is gonna come.
If we're out running.
Obviously cartilage on cartilagewithin our knee joints, things
can wear away.
So we've just gotta be mindfulof the fact of what activity
(38:59):
that we do in our thirties canimpact us later on.
Do we need to run every singleday?
Personally, I don't, but I'll doa couple of runs.
But I am, but I'm conscious ofwhat I saw my granddad who used
to do marathons and everythingdoing in his sixties, seventies,
eighties, how the knees startedto play up and things like that.
(39:23):
So for me, it's a conscious of,from what I've seen from family,
that I don't want to runhundreds of miles a week and
things like that.
But I will do it occasionally,and I don't mind.
So I think it's just taking thecare at rest, not overdoing it
would be for me.
So nutrition, warmup activities,dynamic warmups.
(39:46):
So moving nice and steadythrough full range of movements.
Rest and just taking care of anylittle niggles and injuries as
they come up.
James (39:58):
We all know that.
As things happen, we getinjuries, we get, we can
sometimes feel, get depressed,get anxious.
How can we start to buildresilience?
So for those of us who, so whenit comes to discipline and
resilience, where do you seemost people fall?
(40:21):
And how can these people startto build the resilience they
need?
Steve (40:26):
I suppose it come again, it comes down to mindset.
So when you want to make achange, the, you say you're
gonna make a change and youmight, new Year's resolutions.
Everyone makes a New Year'sresolution.
What happens two days later oreven the following day?
I'm not drinking second.
Oh, I've got some drink left.
We may as well finish it off.
(40:47):
Oh I may as well carry on.
'cause So just because we failat something I.
Doesn't mean that we have tostop it and let it set us back.
One bad meal, one chocolate bara day isn't gonna throw us off
course, but we've gotta continuein the mindset that we have.
(41:09):
And I think that's where peoplefail.
It's they see, oh, I'm supposedto be eating healthy.
I've not done this, or I'msupposed to be going to the gym.
I've not gone tonight.
Oh.
I've got a long day of work.
I'm not gonna go tomorrow.
I'll go the next.
Any.
They just keep them putting itoff.
Putting it off, so it becomesharder and harder, more so in
(41:30):
their own mind than it, itactually is.
So for me, it's having thatmindset of, okay, I've not been
able to come to tonight becauseof work, or I'm injured.
I'm gonna go tomorrow night, I'mgonna swim instead.
And if I don't go, I'm not gonnafeel guilty about it, but I'm
(41:50):
gonna do my best to go.
I'm gonna have a bag packed whenI go to work so that on the way
home I can go to the gym ratherthan going home going, you know
what, I can't be bothered to goback out again.
It's about putting little stepsto stop us from reverting back
to that behavior.
Trying to navigate it away from,and you are not gonna change 40
(42:12):
odd years of behavior, 20 oddyears, 30 odd year in a week.
You've got to learn and adapt tothe new routines, the new
behaviors of what you want overtime, and it's not gonna be
easy.
And you're gonna have days whereyou're gonna have a setback.
(42:33):
And points through the day whereyou might not feel like it, but
coming and being around peoplecan help you get that mindset
and keep that mindset.
And I think we, I said itearlier, is it is that
surrounding yourself bylike-minded people that want to
help you to improve.
(42:56):
'cause it can be a, it would bea lonely task on your own.
And it would be hard.
It's easier when you've gotsomeone that you can talk to
help you see that.
You know what, it's just onething.
It's don't let it derail whatyou're trying to achieve.
Because if we do, we're gonna beback at square one and then we
(43:16):
revert back to.
That loop that we were in at thefirst place until we then make
another conscious effort to comeout of it.
So I do think with wanting tomake changes and overcoming tho
the barriers, that becomes moreof a mental and psychological
aspect then necessarily thephysical because we're, we will
(43:39):
overthink and stop ourselvesbefore our body's going to.
James (43:44):
This is the, I think I mentioned to you before I was
told that my feet splay out soit duck walking.
Steve (43:51):
Yep.
James (43:52):
Yeah, so that's you.
I was seeing a physio about itand she, not physio, massage
therapist, and she was sayingthat's probably the cause of my
lower back pain and my issuesand so happen to create.
Correct.
That's where I have to,obviously I have to turn my feet
in.
I also have to bend my kneesslightly.
(44:13):
Then there's having the arch,which I've got an insole for
now, and making sure that mycore is braced and my chest is
up.
That's a lot of modifications tomake, and as you said I've done
it for 40 years.
So then suddenly going to haveto change the way I walk after
40 years is a tough challenge.
(44:35):
But it's that idea that in orderto create that resilience, you
have to take it a step at atime.
Baby steps, as you said.
And,
Steve (44:45):
and that's it.
Like I say, if you come into agym and I am trying to get you
to lift to do a deadlift, liftthe bar up off the floor, there
are a million not a million, butlots of different cues that I
could give you to set it up.
But first of all, I'd want tosee how you lifted something
(45:07):
from the floor and stood up allwith it, because then I'll just
give you one cue at a time.
To improve your technique,rather than saying right feet
under the bar, hands this backin this position, hips down here
short, it becomes a little bitmore information overload.
So it's got to be simple in thefirst instance for you to take
(45:33):
on board.
What's needed, and then as youdo it more, we can increase and
the points come more refined andthe technique gets better and
the weight gets more.
And bit by bit you build it upuntil you're at the point where
you're confident in doing it.
James (45:52):
In what you've seen, what are the mindset shifts that you
see that help people go frominconsistent and overwhelmed to
committed and empowered in theirhealth journey?
Steve (46:05):
I, for me, it's kind, I suppose it's the seeing of the
results or the feeling that theyget of an accomplishment.
I say not thinking that theycouldn't walk for 10 minutes,
walking for 20 minutes, whichhas then given'em the confidence
to go out.
I.
And do walks outside of the gymthat they'd previously not done
it.
This, the smile and theenjoyment that comes on the face
(46:27):
from someone talking about that.
For someone saying that they seedifferences, ah, I can.
Top fitted better, dress fitteddifferently.
As soon as they start to seethat little change, or they feel
a sense of accomplishments, itgives them the motivation to go,
(46:48):
you know what?
This is paying off.
Or it's this is helping for mymental health.
This is how I'm different aftercoming here.
Okay?
Whatever's going on in the day,I can call him.
It helps me to switch off and Ican go out and I'm de-stressed
and I'm in a much better placethan what I was when I turned
up.
(47:09):
And I know not everyone's gonnahave that mindset.
Not everyone will see the gym asan enjoyment, but we've gotta
find a way of trying to make itas enjoyable as it can be.
And as rewarding as it can be.
While whilst they're there.
And like I say, first thing I dois talking with people.
(47:33):
What's your goal?
Tell me your big goal and thenwrap.
Let's work down.
Let's work on a small goalfirst, because these are gonna
be the things that are gonnakeep you accountable for doing
every little step to get towhere you want to be.
James (47:50):
Yeah.
So for people who perhaps letthemselves go or have basically
have done nothing, what's onepowerful first step they can
take to basically turn thingsaround?
Steve (48:03):
So for me, it's men mentally commit to making that
change.
Get up and move.
I say.
The more that we move, the moreour body's gonna need.
Energy.
Energy comes from the foods thatwe eat.
(48:24):
The more we're moving, the morewe're gonna start burning.
We don't need to eat more tokeep up with what we're doing.
Keep that the same, but movemore.
That you're not gonna seesomething in a day.
You've gotta have a realisticterm.
(48:46):
But if you stick with it and youstick with the process, you will
be able to achieve what you wantto achieve.
Whether that's losing weight,whether that's walking more
improved health, runningquicker.
It's one little step at a time,not the whole picture.
James (49:10):
The big thing there that I picked out was making the
decision.
Yeah, because first thing about10 years ago I went for a
breakup, which left me at mylowest anxiety depression, a
whole lot.
And it was that moment and thatprecision to take responsibility
for myself, which put me on thistra this trajectory.
Steve (49:31):
Yeah.
James (49:31):
And it is the start.
It is the decision to take thatfirst step.
Steve (49:38):
It is, it's not being afraid of what other people
think because you are doing thisfor you.
You, I always use this, thephrase I'll control what I can
control and what I can't.
Why should it bother me?
So I can control what I do?
I can control what I put in me.
(49:58):
I can control my activity.
I can't control what anyone elsewants.
Wants me to do, I can't controlwhat anyone else is doing around
me, so why should that affect mymental state?
Why should it so that it's likeright water off a ducks back?
What want people want to say?
So long as I'm happy and I'mdoing what I want to do, that's
(50:20):
all that matters.
James (50:21):
What, with regards to people you've seen and your
clients, yep.
What role does shame orembarrassment play in keeping
people away from the gym andasking for support?
Steve (50:32):
I think that's like a stigma that's I.
People use as a barrier.
I think like we've said earlier,it's people will always think,
oh, they're gonna, they're gonnathink I'm shouldn't be in here.
What?
They're gonna think this,they're gonna think that.
And within certain gyms.
Or I'm hoping all gyms, it's notthe case.
(50:55):
Once you're in there, youactually realize, oh, you know
what?
Most people are friendly.
You know what, they're all intheir own little world.
As I'm walking on the treadmillhere, I've got someone running
down there.
He is in his own little worldwith his headphones on.
That's the biggest thing thatstops people is the thought of
what other people are thinking.
But at the end of the day.
(51:16):
Do you want to make that change?
Like I say, it's there.
It's something that you put onyourself more than anyone else
would put on you.
You wouldn't walk, I know.
I wouldn't walk into the gym andknow that people are gonna look
at me or anyone else and go theydid.
They don't belong here.
They look, oh, that's weird whatthey're doing, but.
(51:39):
No one actually does.
They're own in their own littleworld.
They don't.
What you are doing isn't gonnaimpact them.
What they're doing isn't gonnaimpact you.
So it shouldn't stop you fromdoing it.
And like I say, it's gettinginto this, into the environment
first of all, is that step todo.
It's that mindset of going, I'mcommitting to this and going I'm
(52:04):
in it for me.
That's stigma of, oh, people aregonna think this, people are
gonna think that I shouldn't dowhat you want to do is something
that you should do.
Yeah.
And it shouldn't be held backbecause of a perception that you
think is gonna be there when youwalk in.
James (52:29):
You always hear people say, I will join, I'll join the
gym when I'm fit.
Steve (52:36):
And that's kinda pointed out, oh, I'll do it at the end
of the month.
Oh, I'll do it next week.
I'll start next week.
And eventually it will kick in.
And sometimes you do need thewhy to do it.
So you do need the why to make achange, whether it's a doctor, a
health check, a health scare,whether it's just something
(52:59):
that's made you realize whetherit's n.
Not being able to do a walk thatyou used to do, whether it's
something so simple that you'relike, oh, you are gonna
eventually want to make thatchange.
So the sooner you go I've gotthat feeling.
(53:19):
I wanna make that change.
Commit to it and stick with it.
Because sooner you commit to it,the sooner then you'll start to
see the changes that you wantand you want to get from it.
James (53:36):
How can we start to normalize vulnerability in
health spaces?
Steve (53:41):
I su, I suppose in summary, some respects social
media, again, out there, thereis the true side of people.
Pointing themselves out thereand being vulnerable now.
And it's okay to ask for help.
And it's okay to be upset whenyou, if you're not able to do
(54:03):
stuff, you put more pressure onyou to do something than anyone
else is gonna do.
And I think that's where mostvulnerability and most
disappointment comes from, isfrom within rather than anywhere
else.
And I think it's obviously, it'sokay not to be okay.
(54:24):
And it's okay to ask for helpbecause people will be there to
listen to you.
People will be there to helpyou, but you've just gotta,
you've just gotta be ready toask, felt, and say, put
yourself.
Out there to be helped inwhichever way you want.
James (54:45):
Yeah.
So for those people who arelistening, what is it that you
do and how can they get incontact?
Steve (54:53):
So obviously I'm a PT at Northfield Health, so obviously
it's a private gym, so obviouslymembers that can obviously book
in at reception with me, see meon the gym floor.
For anyone else, I'm onFacebook, Instagram drop me a
message.
Happy to do online coaching,whether that's from a fitness.
(55:19):
Perspective activity, nutrition,all combined, looking at mindset
work and things like that.
But for me, I do enjoy helpingpeople eat.
Not just something that I see asa job, it's something that I'm
invested in and I want people tobe the best version of
(55:40):
themselves that they can be andbe able to achieve everything
that they want.
So for me, seeing that inpeople, that's as rewarding as
anything.
James (55:51):
Just to clarify, that's Northfield Health in Stoke,
Trent Stature uk.
Steve (55:56):
That's right.
James (55:59):
Thank you very much, Steve.
No problem.
Cheers
Steve (56:02):
for having me, James.
In this week's episode, we talkabout lasting health and how
shifting your mindset aroundfood and nutrition from
punishment and control tonourishment and performance, how
the power of consistency.
10 times better than intensityand beasting yourself.
(00:20):
We talk about how to overcomegym anxiety and shame, and how
resilience is built throughsetbacks and how real change
comes from sticking with theprocess, even when motivation
dips or obstacles appear.
Welcome to Man (00:38):
A Quest to Find Meaning, where we help men
navigate modern life, find theirtrue purpose, and redefine
manhood.
I'm your host, James, and eachweek, inspiring guests share
their journeys of overcomingfear Embracing vulnerability and
finding success.
(00:58):
From experts to everyday heroes.
Get practical advice andpowerful insights.
Struggling with career,relationships or personal
growth?
We've got you covered.
Join us on Man Quest to FindMeaning.
Now, let's dive in.
James (01:14):
I believe that true wellness is a balance of
physical fitness, mentalresilience, and overall health.
For me, movement is not just anexercise, it's a celebration of
what my body can do.
Nourishment is about my, notabout my restriction, but about
fuel, all in my body and mindfor strength, energy, and
(01:35):
longevity.
My mental wellbeing is just asimportant as my physical health,
and I prioritize both on myjourney.
Good morning, Steve.
Tell me more.
Steve (01:46):
Morning James.
I think for me, everyone's kindof health and wellness comes
down to, as well as beingphysically able to do everything
that they need to do.
It's also, I think one of thethings that gets overlooked more
is that kind of mental healthside.
And when people look atnutrition, it's usually in a
(02:07):
negative fashion and it's reallyabout looking at fueling
yourself for what you need to beable to do.
So that you can be as fit as youcan do and able to mentally
prepare yourself and be in aplace where you want to be,
rather than letting things bringyou into a negative aspect,
really.
So for me, yeah, looking, sorry,everything and putting it all
(02:32):
together gives you the besttools as you are gonna move
forward in life.
James (02:37):
Yeah.
Yeah.
It makes a complete sense.
It's like everybody.
Season magazines and wants thatperfect body with a six pack big
chest, big arms.
But they, and that's all theyfocus on.
But when it comes to thegeneral, every day, there's the
(02:58):
mental side.
But also the nutrition side.
It's obviously with the mentalside.
If you don't, if you just focuson the physical side and forget
about the mental side, that canhave an impact on your every day
and that kind of stuff.
But at the same time, theyalways say that 80% of.
(03:19):
Our diet should, 80% of gettinginto a trim shape is nutrition.
Yeah.
20% is the physical side.
And yeah, people forget that,
Steve (03:29):
That's it.
And I think the mental aspectcomes in into it as well,
because you've gotta be in a.
In a place where you want to dothat.
There's, I say, a smallpercentage of the whole
population out there that getinto those shapes that you see
in the magazines compared towhat you would see in the gym.
Obviously, we both go to thesame gym, and when you look
(03:51):
around, you are not looking atpeople.
That have that physique.
It's people that are wanting toinvest in themselves to be
better and doing that, acceptingI want to be the best that I can
be and I want to be happy withmy life and be able to do the
things that I enjoy is moreimportant than restricting
yourself and putting yourselfinto a place where it then,
(04:16):
rather than having a positiveoutlook on things and helping
you feel better, be make you gothe opposite way.
I.
James (04:23):
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
And it's also the idea I was hit40 and there's a realization
that I can't, I can almost livethe same as in my twenties, but
if I try and keep that up for aperiod of time, I get injured.
Yeah.
And so there's this idea that wethink we can just keep going and
going, and especially with myinjuries.
(04:48):
By having a good mental side tomyself and indeed being able to
deal with the mental issues, I'mable to overcome the injuries.
Otherwise, you can get quitedown when you're always injured.
Steve (05:01):
That's it.
And I think it also, it can bethe fact that you've, whether
you struggle walking and thenyou physically walk for 10
minutes, that then has apositive effect on, you know
what?
I can't actually do this and Ican achieve what I didn't think
I could.
So it can go hand in hand witheach other in both the positive
(05:22):
and negative ways.
And I think train training doeschange as we get older.
As much as we would like tocontinue to train, as we've
trained from late teens into.
40 years now, but we have tomodify it so that we can
continue to train, feel good,because I know for me that if
(05:47):
I'm able to train, it helpsmentally, it helps me to switch
off from whatever's going onaround for an hour and I feel
good, and then I can get backinto a good place and deal with
whatever I need to do for therest of the day.
James (06:00):
Yeah.
Yeah.
Tell me what is your story?
Where did your.
Tell me about your earlier life,and then tell me how you got
into the fitness.
Steve (06:10):
Okay.
So for me, I've always beeninvolved in fitness.
I've grown up playing footballwell into my thirties.
Job wise, I've always looked atjobs that have physically active
more than sedentary, sitting atdesks which led me to going into
the prison service for 16 years.
So started working the wings andthen for 12 years I wanted,
(06:33):
under two, then thequalifications to work in the
gym area there which more of asupervised role, but it was my
way into being in an activeenvironment that was more
fitness orientated.
And at that point there as well,it allowed me to start
delivering fitnessqualifications for a training
(06:53):
provider that I did all myqualifications through.
So for probably best part of 13,14 years now.
As well as undertaking my ownknowledge and developing myself.
I've also helped probablyhundreds of students come
through their level two andlevel three PT courses and start
their journeys now.
(07:14):
And I think when I look at it,COVID was a big push for me to
move from the prison service.
And come into the industry thatI've been training people and
wanted to be in prior to beingin the prison service.
Yes, it's a big jump in anyonegetting into wanting to be a pt.
(07:36):
It is it can be a risk at start.
You're not gonna get lots ofmoney thrown at you by clients.
It's, you've gotta take yourtime.
And for me.
Now I've got a better workbalance being a pt.
I get to see people and helppeople on a daily basis.
(07:58):
For the last four years to walkaround it during the day, be
able to help people achievetheir goals and achieve things
that they didn't think they cando is more rewarding to me than
the risk that I took by movinginto that field.
Alongside that, I've still gotnow a teaching business that I'm
(08:20):
looking to develop and takefurther to help more students
get into this industry.
Because I think there can beimprovements made.
It is how we talk to people andhow we understand and how we
empathize with people.
That leads us to offering abetter service.
And I think Covid and thepandemic and everything going
virtual, reduced.
(08:44):
That reduce within our industry.
And for us it's having thatphysical element and those days
to have contact with tutors tohelp improve confidence and
knowledge in what we offer.
James (08:58):
This is it.
Fitness and mental health is soimportant and.
We need the more teachers outthere to teach all this.
Because if you are in a goodplace of physical health and
men, mentally, physically,emotionally, spiritually, then
you're going to have moreenergy.
And as you get older, you needto have, I think you need to do
(09:21):
it more as you get older becauseobviously your body frails, your
bones get weaker.
So you've gotta find ways tostrengthen stuff and to really
progress.
Steve (09:31):
That's it.
And I think for myself, my owntraining I was talking to a
client today who'd seen a postthat I put on Facebook ages ago
saying what I was, when I wastraining just weights and I was
17 and a half stone.
Wasn't able to move around muchand wasn't able to do much
cardio and I didn't enjoy that.
(09:52):
So I made the change to do morefunctional lifting, bring cardio
in because I wanted to movemore.
And I've been stable at theweight now.
So it's proof that you can trainone to one extent and then
change because you're not happyor it's not gonna be what you
think it would be.
(10:12):
Yeah.
And I think there is a lot ofthat there that we've gotta
train for functionality.
Especially as we get olderclients that I work with, it is
stressing why do we do things,especially older clients, to
strengthen the ligaments,joints, muscles for doing simple
things like sit to stands.
And it is the transition ofgoing from a squat when yeah,
(10:35):
we're twenties and trying tolift as much as we can to when
we're in the sixties andseventies.
Just being able to stand up andsit down.
Ni nice and easy.
So Sorry, go on.
Go.
No, I was just gonna say it'srelating those exercises and
making it more functional.
James (10:55):
That's it.
What I've noticed is the, Isuppose over the last 20 years
we've got so much more.
As they, the word they usesedentary, so going from the
out.
So I was born up and grown up ona farm, so I got to go into the
fields.
I got to go and play in bales.
So I had a really active outdoorlife.
(11:15):
But I feel as though back thenparents were a bit more, I don't
know if it's, we're a bit morewilling to let the kids out and
do what they want, whereas now Ithink it's a bit more of a guard
on it.
Steve (11:28):
Yeah, de definitely, and I think I say, I can remember
you used to go out in thestreets, you play playing with
whoever was in the streets oraround, and you probably
wouldn't come in until thelights come on in the streets.
There's no phones to tell youwhat time to come back or so.
Things like that.
It would be you went back whenyou went back.
And I do think that there is alot more caution these days as
(11:51):
parents because of, I think likesocial media news and everything
like that, and the stories thatcome outta what people are
capable of.
And I think that does put or hasput more concern over and we're
taking more of an interest ofwhere the kids are, what they're
doing, not letting them go out.
(12:12):
But also computers, it's easierto sit in a room and talk to'em
on a mic rather than actually goout and play.
So I do think, yes, part of itis caution from parents, and
part of it is through technologythat seems to have become less
and less really.
James (12:34):
Do you feel that what's your opinion on how.
Technology has impacted ourfitness.
I think there's two sides to it.
It's the good things, the keepan eye in being able to record
stuff easier.
And then there's the bad sidepeople H hooked their phone.
Steve (12:51):
Yeah.
I think, like I say, it depends.
It depends on the way that it'sused by the person doing it.
Obviously for those that aretraining or trying to be active,
it's good because it's going toshow you.
How many steps you've done,you're gonna be able to check
your heart rate.
It's all gonna link to like youriWatch, telling you what,
(13:14):
setting your monthly goals,setting your step target,
stepping your setting yourthings like that, or being able
to look at your phone and seewhat workout it is and input all
your data.
So there is that good side toit.
I think the bad side is Isuppose the social media side,
that everyone's there.
(13:36):
Then whilst they're doing theexercise, scrolling on the
phones, it's not necessarily theapps that are there to help you
track and help to make youactive.
I think it's the apps that arethere that are a convenience.
As you, you'll probably see whenyou're walking around, you do
your sat, do your apps try tomove on.
(13:58):
You can see someone there that'son the phone and they're
scrolling through Facebook orInstagram.
And I suppose it's, there's lotsof images out there with people
that will show an image that'sin the gym and you training you
can be like this, but thereality of that image isn't.
(14:18):
What every day is.
So I suppose that feeds intosomeone then striving to be
something that's that personphysically isn't.
And it's hard to distinguish forthat.
James (14:33):
In your opinion, how does regular exercise help?
Somebody who feels stuck has alow confidence or maybe is
feeling has struggling withanxiety or depression?
Steve (14:48):
I.
Yeah.
And as I said to you, startingthis anything that I do that's
new, I get anxious.
I am not sure how it'll bereceived, and I can relate that
to someone setting foot in, in agym for the first time, or
thinking I've not, I struggledwalking to the shops and back,
(15:09):
or, I struggle to do this.
And I suppose until you actuallytry it and until, what you're
capable of, that anxiety'salways gonna be there until you
commit to doing something.
James (15:22):
Yeah.
Steve (15:22):
Recently working with a client who was in that similar
situation, had thought about PPT because of what they felt
they were capable as.
It put it off for a while andfinally bit the.
Said, I want to invest and helpmyself because I'm not gonna do
(15:43):
this on my own.
Simple things like coming andbeing able to use the equipment,
have the confidence of knowinghow to use the equipment, what
they can do, and actually thisperson who said that they could
only walk for five or 10 minutesbefore stopping, we walk for 20
(16:03):
minutes.
So already that anxiety thenstarts to come down and the
realization comes from, ah, youknow what I've actually done.
So I've got a sense ofachievement.
And this person now walked awayfrom that excited about what
they could do with a smile andevery session that they've been
(16:23):
in since.
There's an accomplishment.
It's this big picture thateveryone puts up of, right?
This is what I want to do.
It's little baby steps that getus there.
It's not a massive jump.
It's we're struggling.
We don't need to run.
We walk.
(16:44):
When we start walking more, wecan walk quicker.
We can walk on inclines, we can,if we're able to then progress
the jog, then we jog and weslowly build it up.
So piece by piece, we puteverything together to get to
where we want to be.
It's not gonna be a magical keythat gets handed to us.
James (17:05):
I've done over I think I've done over a hundred
recordings, not for thispodcast, but other things as
well.
And even now, there's times,especially at the beginning
where I get a little bituncomfortable and I have to say
a sentence and, oh, I saidsomething wrong and then I have
to start again.
And, but it's, I think it's oneof those things.
(17:26):
So for anybody who's thinkingof.
Getting fit or wants to improvetheir health or their mental
wellbeing, what kind of initialsteps would you first recommend?
Steve (17:39):
For me, I always say, and I always break it down'cause
people always come in and say, Iwant to get fit.
First of all, we want to getactive.
If you are not doing anything,the first thing is to get up and
walk.
It's weather's getting nice now,so why not get out for a walk?
We're not.
Telling you to get a gymmembership, we're not telling
(18:01):
you to do this initially.
We want you to walk, we want youto get up and do stuff that you
are keep putting off or notdoing.
And then as that comes down, sowe're looking at getting active
and healthy first.
Once we get active and healthyand we're able to move a little
bit more and a bit more freerand we are starting to work hard
and long, then we can look moreat the kind of fitness drive and
(18:26):
look at how we can do that.
But in those instances, it'ssmall goals.
It's the small targets, and Isuppose from speaking to people,
one of the biggest things thatstops people is their perception
of what other people will think.
So walking into a gym forsomeone that's never been in a
(18:46):
gym, never done anything, theywalk in and we'll go, oof.
What's everyone gonna think whenI'm doing this, and will they
think if I do something wrong oranything like that?
But majority of gyms, everyone'sgonna help you.
No one's gonna be stood therelooking at someone going, what
(19:07):
are they doing?
What is it?
They're all involved in theirown little world as well,
because that's what they'rethere for.
So sometimes your perception ofwhat others are gonna think are
gonna stop you from doing it.
So if it's something that youwant to do and your.
Wanting to be committed to doingsomething.
'cause that's what it's gonnatake.
(19:27):
It's not gonna have one walk,it's gonna change it.
You are gonna have to commit todoing something daily, and I
think it's 21 days to make ahabit.
So continually walk for 21 days,make little tweaks.
With what you're doing.
They've not got to be drasticchanges, but it's just something
(19:49):
that you can commit to doing.
First of all, if you're wantingto go to a gym, commit to 20
minutes, 15 minutes and buildthat process up to longer, it's
about doing something thatyou're gonna feel happy to go
back and do not do.
One session.
James (20:09):
Gole not going back there.
It's like the the CrossFit.
So CrossFit gets got quite a badin some respects and has some
quite a bad name for gettingpeople injured from my own
perspective, shall I say?
Steve (20:24):
Yeah.
James (20:24):
And you walk into a CrossFit gym and they're doing
all these weightlifting movesand these, they kipp the kipping
and all that kind of stuff, andyou're like, oh my God, what's
going on?
But what I found is that.
You can get caught, you can getcaught up in all the energy of
the CrossFit gym and get andcompete with people.
And that's where I think peopleget injured is trying to compete
(20:47):
all the time against everybodythere.
But what I find is that if youare there just to focus on a
couple of moves, then there'sthis idea that it's take for
example weightlifting.
You got you got, what's it.
Power cleans and all that kindof stuff.
Yeah, there's quite a lot ofcomplex moves.
(21:07):
If you test it one bit at atime, gradually over time you
get the movement and it's almostthe same as when we look at
lifestyle and habits and quiteoften people know exactly what
they should do.
They can't, they don't do it.
Yeah.
What do you think pe, what doyou think really holds people
(21:29):
back from honoring their healthlong term and how can we start
to break it?
Steve (21:35):
I think it's breaking out cycle.
People get into cycles of doingstuff.
It's sim simple as.
How many people order takeawaysa week?
How many people will havemultiple takeaways a week?
And it's easier to do that thaninvest in themselves for
healthier options andalternatives and to do things.
(21:56):
So I think it brings in thattechnology.
It brings in the fact that weare not as active as we used to
be and with prices andeverything else that goes up
with the economy at the minute.
It is probably the last thingthat people are thinking of to
do that.
(22:17):
And like you say, when you'retalking about CrossFit and the.
The exercises and breakingthings down.
Like I say, you walk into aCrossFit gym and you'll see
people that have trained foryears doing that and you think I
gonna be able to do that.
But it's piece by piece doingit, of starting with ring rows
into bandaid, pull-ups, intoit's pieced together.
(22:39):
And the only way to do that inlife again, is the small
changes.
And it's changes that you'regonna stick to.
I always tell people like ifit's nutrition wise, if you
enjoy chips, if you enjoychocolate and things like that,
it's not about giving that up.
(23:01):
It's about learning to moderateand learning that you can have
it.
It doesn't have to be a reward.
But if you are having a platefull of chips or three chocolate
bars a day and things like that,then something's got to give in
it.
You are not going to becomehealthier by continuing with
your diet, but little changesand subtle changes that you are
(23:24):
gonna be able to stick to.
And now, oh, I can have chipsand I can have this, but I need
to have them in moderation.
I.
Then that's where we've got tohead to with these changes is.
Pick one thing, stick to it, andthen change something else.
If you try to change activitylevels, nutrition levels and
(23:45):
mindsets are all at once.
That's a lot of things to go onwith everything else that you've
got to do anyway.
So pick one thing, start tochange that when it sticks,
change something else.
And as daunting as it might be,the only way to do it is to
start and commit to it.
James (24:07):
There's so recently as a child I've eaten a lot of fruit
and I've always had a sweettooth, but that's also had an
implication on my teeth.
And so I've had two teeth takenout.
And then just I think two monthsago, I have a third taken out.
And by that point, my dentistsaid to me, you need to cut out
all sugar.
(24:27):
Yeah.
Otherwise I'm gonna have to havethe, she was threatening to take
the lower ones and I was likeno, no more.
So I've gotta, and you've got,I've gotta take out not just
sweetss and chocolate, but fruitas well.
Yeah.
Now I don't get it wrong.
I am berries in the evening withsome yogurt and then I brought
my teeth.
But it's that idea that if mostof the time we haven't got that
(24:52):
emotional tie.
To help us to break habits.
Yeah.
A few of us do.
And it's quite lucky because Iknow that if I got any more
teeth out the way I'm going,I'll have false teeth by the
time I am 50.
And I don't want false teeth bythe time I'm 50.
I want, I keep my teeth.
So is that incentive, but formost people, how do you help
(25:15):
people to build habits?
Steve (25:17):
I suppose for me it's just talking.
Looking at what quarantinepatterns are.
So first of all, seeing what youcurrently eat and then seeing
how we can make small changes toit.
Most people, when you talk aboutfruit, for example, if you're
trying to get someone to havemore fruit, first thing that
people will think of is, oh,I'll have a smoothie.
I'll make it into a smoothie.
(25:40):
But what happens when you make asmoothie, if you put the portion
that you would usually eat intoa smoothie maker.
It becomes very small, so thenyou put more fruit in.
So then again, you're addingnatural sugars into it, which is
one of the things you'd try tolimit.
But it's looking at kind ofstructure of things and how we
eat.
(26:00):
If we're more active, we, itgives us the opportunity to eat
a little bit more because ourcalorie need will be more.
People who I suppose think, oh,I want to lose weight.
I am just gonna eat one meal aday or two meals a day.
I'm not going to eat.
But our body then starts tostore these fuels.
(26:23):
I.
And doesn't burn effectively.
So we actually hold on to eatfor longer than we would if we
ate just under what we needed.
And I think there's a lot ofthings out there with regards to
nutrition that people willpromote and talk and hear.
And it is a case of one, onestyle, one pattern does not fit
(26:48):
all.
You've got to find what worksfor you.
And I think that's the hardthing with nutrition is the fact
that you can't just give someonethe, if you eat like this is
gonna happen because everyone'sbody's different.
You might find a few things thatwork off one thing, few things
that work off the other.
It's about having that healthybalance, and that's what we've
(27:12):
got to try and get around tothat.
Foods aren't bad for us.
This isn't bad for us, but we'vegot to have things in moderation
for it to be good.
And our body does need certainamounts of fats.
It does need certain amounts ofcarbs and protein, and dependent
on what we're doing when we'retraining, that's gonna depend on
(27:33):
how our body's gonna react toit.
James (27:37):
It's get it's out open now.
We probably both know thatthere's been, in the past
there's been a big war on bats.
Yep.
And we've been told, and schoolsstill teach that bad, that fats
are bad for you.
Yeah.
And so let's get us out in theopen.
Bad fats are not bad for you.
(27:57):
The, too much of the wrong factscan have an implementation
effect, but good fats are goodfor you.
Steve (28:04):
That's it.
People out there will stresscarnivore diet, which is your
meats butter, your good fats andthing, things like that.
Eat is all cooked with fat andthere's very limited carbs in
it.
And again, not, it's not gonnasuit everyone.
People are gonna need to havethat carb fuel in carb sauce.
(28:28):
Is, when we look at thenutritional values for protein,
carbs, and fats, fat is theheist for every gram of fat that
we have, it's nine calories forevery gram of protein that we
have.
And carbs, it's four calories.
So when you weigh it up,obviously we are gonna have more
calories if there's more fat inthere.
(28:50):
So it is about limiting certainmeals or and foods and making
sure that it meets what yourbody needs a day.
Obviously, you craze a few yearsago or might still be
intermittent fasting, whereyou're gonna eat for that eight
hour period.
(29:10):
You are still going to eat thesame amount of calories as you
would in the day.
In that eight hours, you arestill gonna need those basic
requirements of calories.
So if you've got a family andyou've got kids and you're at
work, is that eight hour windowgonna work for you?
(29:32):
No, but you can try and it'sabout trying and not being
afraid to go, you know what?
It's not working.
What can I tweak to make it suitme?
And it's like with the trainingwith nutrition, take the best
way that, and the better resultsthat you are gonna have is by
taking ownership of it and notbeing told what you could do.
(29:57):
Because I dunno about you, butif I'm told to do something, I'm
probably less likely to do itthan if I choose to do
something.
So that's the mindset that we'vegotta get round to is we can
give people all these options ofhow to get active, what we can
do, what they can do, how theycan eat, how they can think.
(30:20):
But unless they've got thatmindset that they want to
change, it's gonna be very hardto get them to do all the other
bits consistently.
To get the change that theywant.
And that's where, for me,everything links in together
because it all starts with themindset of, you know what?
(30:42):
I want to make the change andbecome healthier.
For me it's, I'm going on hereand go, you know what?
I'm gonna do something where.
I'm gonna be uncomfortable, butI'm going to come on here and
talk about something that I'mpassionate about and that I
like.
And you know that I'll walkaround the gym for every hour
that I'm there.
(31:02):
Talking about health relatedstuff and working out ways that
people who say, oh, I can't dothis.
Oh, have you tried doing it thisway?
And then they go, ah, actually,and it just makes a little bit
of difference.
Starting with that positivemindset and showing someone that
they can do the smallest ofthings.
James (31:24):
There's an idea that if somebody doesn't wanna do it,
they probably won't do it.
They might start it if they'reforced.
Yep.
But then they'll probably stop.
But it's more almost like youbecome the example.
If you want somebody to dosomething, you become the
example of that.
And then they'll see that andthey'd be like, oh, I like what
(31:45):
he's doing.
I'm gonna try that.
So then suddenly they've just,they've just said, oh, I'm
gonna, I'm gonna do it.
Steve (31:51):
Yeah.
And it is.
And the thing is, through eachlittle stepping stone that you
do becomes a sense ofaccomplishment that then makes
you do something.
So it is that positivereinforcement that you get.
And that's why I suppose.
People who enter into makingthese changes with a good
(32:13):
supportive network, whether it'stheir partner, whether it's
family, whether it's friend thatwant to commit to do it, it's
more enjoyable and they can holdeach other accountable.
Taking to these changes, and Isuppose we've both trained on
our own, we've both trained withothers and you do get that
(32:33):
enjoyment more with someone.
So for someone not having notdone anything before, if you can
come with a friend, if you cando start to do something with
someone, that's the firstbarrier broken down.
And then you're gonna starttalking to people and then
you're gonna get drawn intodifferent, whether it's classes
or going to different things,going for walks on a weekend.
(32:57):
You get drawn into doing morethe more that you are around
people that are a SI similarmindset.
James (33:04):
Yeah.
Yeah.
We all know, as we talked aboutearlier, that as we get older,
our body changes and what we cando changes.
So what type of training do yourecommend people do?
In their thirties, forties, andfifties, if they wanna stay
strong, mobile and energized.
Steve (33:27):
So I suppose again, the energized bit comes down to
fueling and sleep.
So what we're eating and makingsure we're getting enough sleep
to recover and be for what wewant our bodies to do.
Because if we don't have a goodquality sleep and we are not
eating enough, we are not gonnafeel that energy to want to
train and do everything that.
(33:48):
We want a need to do dailytraining wise, again, I think it
comes down to a lot of what youlike to train and your
backgrounds for training,because obviously there are
still people that will trainheavy into their fifties, into
the sixties and so on.
For me, as we're getting older,becomes less about the
importance of weights and theweight number, but more
(34:10):
important about functionalityand range of movements within,
especially like hip joints, kneejoints, shoulders, elbows.
Those are the tendencies that weseem to see at the gym where
people do start to suffer asthey get older.
And it's looking after thejoints.
And obviously every, most peoplewill start lifting heavier into
(34:33):
the twenties, but like you say,you get little niggles.
If you try to push through thatlifting heavy, we are gonna have
some repercussions coming laterand we need to take care of our
joints.
So for me, the weight side ofthings becomes more about making
sure that we're hitting thatfull range of movements.
(34:53):
Taking it from right, I cansquat my body weight to can I
lift myself up out of a chairwithout putting my hands on my
knees and putting my hands onthe side?
Because that is something that Iknow we will struggle with as we
get older.
Knee replacements, hipreplacements, numbers seem to be
(35:15):
going up.
With them.
So again, looking at how we canbest support those joints, and
I'm a firm believer that if wehave, if we've got to have some
sort of treatment done or wehave to have medication to help
us, then if we're active enough,then hopefully we can have the
lower end of whatever we need tohave.
(35:35):
But cardio wise as well.
Okay.
We're gonna get to a stage whereI'm not gonna want to run.
But I'm still gonna want to walkeverywhere and be mobile and
keep my independence.
So I think looking at yourlifespan, it comes from, as a
child, you run around like anutter doing everything you can
(35:56):
without a care in the world.
We then get to a stage where wecan go into a gym or somewhere
and be active and train, and wemight get involved with weights,
but then.
As we get older, things willstart to take the toll and
eventually we start to think ofhow am I gonna keep my
independence?
(36:17):
What do I want?
And we want to keep active andkeep moving and be an
environment that helps us to bethere.
I know that speaking to manymembers at the gym, it's a very
social gym.
They come there, it helps themwith mental, the mental side of
things because they're able totalk to friends, they sit have
(36:37):
coffees after they've donevarious classes or activities
upstairs.
I think it's definitely gonna besomething that as we get older,
the more active we've been, thathopefully the better
independence that we have andthe quality of life that we
have, because we'll become restless reliant on.
Medication or AIDS for our body.
(37:01):
But at the same time, our bodiesare wonderful things.
That's sometimes they like tothrow spanners in the works and
go, no, you need a little bit ofhelp.
And if we need that, then we'vegotta look at, but we've gotta
help ourselves as much as wecan.
James (37:17):
You mentioned about looking after your joints.
How can, so knowing what I know,how can people in their thirties
and forties look after theirjoints so that when they hit
sixties, seventies, they'restill able to to walk and do the
as better, do suffer as best asthey can.
Steve (37:37):
I think especially when it comes to movements and things
like that, it's definitelywarming up, making sure that
joints if we're in the gym,joints are nice and warm before
we do any weight training on'em.
Explosive training, obviously,making sure nutrition wise we're
(37:57):
eating enough so that thenutrients are getting around our
body to help su.
To supply adequate provisionsto, and obviously you've got the
supplements out there as well,but I think it's look, looking
at kind of the, from an activitypoint of view, it is, rather
than thinking I'm just gonnaload this bar up and do this, or
(38:18):
leg press and do this, because Isuppose knees would be the first
one or knees or hips are thefirst joints that people would
think of as we get older.
It is making sure we've got thatfull range of movement in them,
not limiting what we can do.
Because at the end of the day,as we get older, that's what's
(38:38):
that's where we're gonnastruggle.
If the more we put on them, themore kind of wear and tear that
we have in general, wear andtear is gonna come.
If we're out running.
Obviously cartilage on cartilagewithin our knee joints, things
can wear away.
So we've just gotta be mindfulof the fact of what activity
(38:59):
that we do in our thirties canimpact us later on.
Do we need to run every singleday?
Personally, I don't, but I'll doa couple of runs.
But I am, but I'm conscious ofwhat I saw my granddad who used
to do marathons and everythingdoing in his sixties, seventies,
eighties, how the knees startedto play up and things like that.
(39:23):
So for me, it's a conscious of,from what I've seen from family,
that I don't want to runhundreds of miles a week and
things like that.
But I will do it occasionally,and I don't mind.
So I think it's just taking thecare at rest, not overdoing it
would be for me.
So nutrition, warmup activities,dynamic warmups.
(39:46):
So moving nice and steadythrough full range of movements.
Rest and just taking care of anylittle niggles and injuries as
they come up.
James (39:58):
We all know that.
As things happen, we getinjuries, we get, we can
sometimes feel, get depressed,get anxious.
How can we start to buildresilience?
So for those of us who, so whenit comes to discipline and
resilience, where do you seemost people fall?
(40:21):
And how can these people startto build the resilience they
need?
Steve (40:26):
I suppose it come again, it comes down to mindset.
So when you want to make achange, the, you say you're
gonna make a change and youmight, new Year's resolutions.
Everyone makes a New Year'sresolution.
What happens two days later oreven the following day?
I'm not drinking second.
Oh, I've got some drink left.
We may as well finish it off.
(40:47):
Oh I may as well carry on.
'cause So just because we failat something I.
Doesn't mean that we have tostop it and let it set us back.
One bad meal, one chocolate bara day isn't gonna throw us off
course, but we've gotta continuein the mindset that we have.
(41:09):
And I think that's where peoplefail.
It's they see, oh, I'm supposedto be eating healthy.
I've not done this, or I'msupposed to be going to the gym.
I've not gone tonight.
Oh.
I've got a long day of work.
I'm not gonna go tomorrow.
I'll go the next.
Any.
They just keep them putting itoff.
Putting it off, so it becomesharder and harder, more so in
(41:30):
their own mind than it, itactually is.
So for me, it's having thatmindset of, okay, I've not been
able to come to tonight becauseof work, or I'm injured.
I'm gonna go tomorrow night, I'mgonna swim instead.
And if I don't go, I'm not gonnafeel guilty about it, but I'm
(41:50):
gonna do my best to go.
I'm gonna have a bag packed whenI go to work so that on the way
home I can go to the gym ratherthan going home going, you know
what, I can't be bothered to goback out again.
It's about putting little stepsto stop us from reverting back
to that behavior.
Trying to navigate it away from,and you are not gonna change 40
(42:12):
odd years of behavior, 20 oddyears, 30 odd year in a week.
You've got to learn and adapt tothe new routines, the new
behaviors of what you want overtime, and it's not gonna be
easy.
And you're gonna have days whereyou're gonna have a setback.
(42:33):
And points through the day whereyou might not feel like it, but
coming and being around peoplecan help you get that mindset
and keep that mindset.
And I think we, I said itearlier, is it is that
surrounding yourself bylike-minded people that want to
help you to improve.
(42:56):
'cause it can be a, it would bea lonely task on your own.
And it would be hard.
It's easier when you've gotsomeone that you can talk to
help you see that.
You know what, it's just onething.
It's don't let it derail whatyou're trying to achieve.
Because if we do, we're gonna beback at square one and then we
(43:16):
revert back to.
That loop that we were in at thefirst place until we then make
another conscious effort to comeout of it.
So I do think with wanting tomake changes and overcoming tho
the barriers, that becomes moreof a mental and psychological
aspect then necessarily thephysical because we're, we will
(43:39):
overthink and stop ourselvesbefore our body's going to.
James (43:44):
This is the, I think I mentioned to you before I was
told that my feet splay out soit duck walking.
Steve (43:51):
Yep.
James (43:52):
Yeah, so that's you.
I was seeing a physio about itand she, not physio, massage
therapist, and she was sayingthat's probably the cause of my
lower back pain and my issuesand so happen to create.
Correct.
That's where I have to,obviously I have to turn my feet
in.
I also have to bend my kneesslightly.
(44:13):
Then there's having the arch,which I've got an insole for
now, and making sure that mycore is braced and my chest is
up.
That's a lot of modifications tomake, and as you said I've done
it for 40 years.
So then suddenly going to haveto change the way I walk after
40 years is a tough challenge.
(44:35):
But it's that idea that in orderto create that resilience, you
have to take it a step at atime.
Baby steps, as you said.
And,
Steve (44:45):
and that's it.
Like I say, if you come into agym and I am trying to get you
to lift to do a deadlift, liftthe bar up off the floor, there
are a million not a million, butlots of different cues that I
could give you to set it up.
But first of all, I'd want tosee how you lifted something
(45:07):
from the floor and stood up allwith it, because then I'll just
give you one cue at a time.
To improve your technique,rather than saying right feet
under the bar, hands this backin this position, hips down here
short, it becomes a little bitmore information overload.
So it's got to be simple in thefirst instance for you to take
(45:33):
on board.
What's needed, and then as youdo it more, we can increase and
the points come more refined andthe technique gets better and
the weight gets more.
And bit by bit you build it upuntil you're at the point where
you're confident in doing it.
James (45:52):
In what you've seen, what are the mindset shifts that you
see that help people go frominconsistent and overwhelmed to
committed and empowered in theirhealth journey?
Steve (46:05):
I, for me, it's kind, I suppose it's the seeing of the
results or the feeling that theyget of an accomplishment.
I say not thinking that theycouldn't walk for 10 minutes,
walking for 20 minutes, whichhas then given'em the confidence
to go out.
I.
And do walks outside of the gymthat they'd previously not done
it.
This, the smile and theenjoyment that comes on the face
(46:27):
from someone talking about that.
For someone saying that they seedifferences, ah, I can.
Top fitted better, dress fitteddifferently.
As soon as they start to seethat little change, or they feel
a sense of accomplishments, itgives them the motivation to go,
(46:48):
you know what?
This is paying off.
Or it's this is helping for mymental health.
This is how I'm different aftercoming here.
Okay?
Whatever's going on in the day,I can call him.
It helps me to switch off and Ican go out and I'm de-stressed
and I'm in a much better placethan what I was when I turned
up.
(47:09):
And I know not everyone's gonnahave that mindset.
Not everyone will see the gym asan enjoyment, but we've gotta
find a way of trying to make itas enjoyable as it can be.
And as rewarding as it can be.
While whilst they're there.
And like I say, first thing I dois talking with people.
(47:33):
What's your goal?
Tell me your big goal and thenwrap.
Let's work down.
Let's work on a small goalfirst, because these are gonna
be the things that are gonnakeep you accountable for doing
every little step to get towhere you want to be.
James (47:50):
Yeah.
So for people who perhaps letthemselves go or have basically
have done nothing, what's onepowerful first step they can
take to basically turn thingsaround?
Steve (48:03):
So for me, it's men mentally commit to making that
change.
Get up and move.
I say.
The more that we move, the moreour body's gonna need.
Energy.
Energy comes from the foods thatwe eat.
(48:24):
The more we're moving, the morewe're gonna start burning.
We don't need to eat more tokeep up with what we're doing.
Keep that the same, but movemore.
That you're not gonna seesomething in a day.
You've gotta have a realisticterm.
(48:46):
But if you stick with it and youstick with the process, you will
be able to achieve what you wantto achieve.
Whether that's losing weight,whether that's walking more
improved health, runningquicker.
It's one little step at a time,not the whole picture.
James (49:10):
The big thing there that I picked out was making the
decision.
Yeah, because first thing about10 years ago I went for a
breakup, which left me at mylowest anxiety depression, a
whole lot.
And it was that moment and thatprecision to take responsibility
for myself, which put me on thistra this trajectory.
Steve (49:31):
Yeah.
James (49:31):
And it is the start.
It is the decision to take thatfirst step.
Steve (49:38):
It is, it's not being afraid of what other people
think because you are doing thisfor you.
You, I always use this, thephrase I'll control what I can
control and what I can't.
Why should it bother me?
So I can control what I do?
I can control what I put in me.
(49:58):
I can control my activity.
I can't control what anyone elsewants.
Wants me to do, I can't controlwhat anyone else is doing around
me, so why should that affect mymental state?
Why should it so that it's likeright water off a ducks back?
What want people want to say?
So long as I'm happy and I'mdoing what I want to do, that's
(50:20):
all that matters.
James (50:21):
What, with regards to people you've seen and your
clients, yep.
What role does shame orembarrassment play in keeping
people away from the gym andasking for support?
Steve (50:32):
I think that's like a stigma that's I.
People use as a barrier.
I think like we've said earlier,it's people will always think,
oh, they're gonna, they're gonnathink I'm shouldn't be in here.
What?
They're gonna think this,they're gonna think that.
And within certain gyms.
Or I'm hoping all gyms, it's notthe case.
(50:55):
Once you're in there, youactually realize, oh, you know
what?
Most people are friendly.
You know what, they're all intheir own little world.
As I'm walking on the treadmillhere, I've got someone running
down there.
He is in his own little worldwith his headphones on.
That's the biggest thing thatstops people is the thought of
what other people are thinking.
But at the end of the day.
(51:16):
Do you want to make that change?
Like I say, it's there.
It's something that you put onyourself more than anyone else
would put on you.
You wouldn't walk, I know.
I wouldn't walk into the gym andknow that people are gonna look
at me or anyone else and go theydid.
They don't belong here.
They look, oh, that's weird whatthey're doing, but.
(51:39):
No one actually does.
They're own in their own littleworld.
They don't.
What you are doing isn't gonnaimpact them.
What they're doing isn't gonnaimpact you.
So it shouldn't stop you fromdoing it.
And like I say, it's gettinginto this, into the environment
first of all, is that step todo.
It's that mindset of going, I'mcommitting to this and going I'm
(52:04):
in it for me.
That's stigma of, oh, people aregonna think this, people are
gonna think that I shouldn't dowhat you want to do is something
that you should do.
Yeah.
And it shouldn't be held backbecause of a perception that you
think is gonna be there when youwalk in.
James (52:29):
You always hear people say, I will join, I'll join the
gym when I'm fit.
Steve (52:36):
And that's kinda pointed out, oh, I'll do it at the end
of the month.
Oh, I'll do it next week.
I'll start next week.
And eventually it will kick in.
And sometimes you do need thewhy to do it.
So you do need the why to make achange, whether it's a doctor, a
health check, a health scare,whether it's just something
(52:59):
that's made you realize whetherit's n.
Not being able to do a walk thatyou used to do, whether it's
something so simple that you'relike, oh, you are gonna
eventually want to make thatchange.
So the sooner you go I've gotthat feeling.
(53:19):
I wanna make that change.
Commit to it and stick with it.
Because sooner you commit to it,the sooner then you'll start to
see the changes that you wantand you want to get from it.
James (53:36):
How can we start to normalize vulnerability in
health spaces?
Steve (53:41):
I su, I suppose in summary, some respects social
media, again, out there, thereis the true side of people.
Pointing themselves out thereand being vulnerable now.
And it's okay to ask for help.
And it's okay to be upset whenyou, if you're not able to do
(54:03):
stuff, you put more pressure onyou to do something than anyone
else is gonna do.
And I think that's where mostvulnerability and most
disappointment comes from, isfrom within rather than anywhere
else.
And I think it's obviously, it'sokay not to be okay.
(54:24):
And it's okay to ask for helpbecause people will be there to
listen to you.
People will be there to helpyou, but you've just gotta,
you've just gotta be ready toask, felt, and say, put
yourself.
Out there to be helped inwhichever way you want.
James (54:45):
Yeah.
So for those people who arelistening, what is it that you
do and how can they get incontact?
Steve (54:53):
So obviously I'm a PT at Northfield Health, so obviously
it's a private gym, so obviouslymembers that can obviously book
in at reception with me, see meon the gym floor.
For anyone else, I'm onFacebook, Instagram drop me a
message.
Happy to do online coaching,whether that's from a fitness.
(55:19):
Perspective activity, nutrition,all combined, looking at mindset
work and things like that.
But for me, I do enjoy helpingpeople eat.
Not just something that I see asa job, it's something that I'm
invested in and I want people tobe the best version of
(55:40):
themselves that they can be andbe able to achieve everything
that they want.
So for me, seeing that inpeople, that's as rewarding as
anything.
James (55:51):
Just to clarify, that's Northfield Health in Stoke,
Trent Stature uk.
Steve (55:56):
That's right.
James (55:59):
Thank you very much, Steve.
No problem.
Cheers
Steve (56:02):
for having me, James.
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