If you live in the UK right now, you probably want to put your foot through the gogglebox as the media goes into hyperdrive panic and you realise its all "talk talk talk talk until you lose your patience"*.
So rather than worrying if your passport will still work in 2 years, why not edify and enlighten yourself with my top picks of health and fitness news stories, and non fitness books and youtube videos over the last few weeks. Plus my top Netflix pick.
First up
Vegetables on the rise. The BBC and several other media outlets report a rise in vegetable consumption in the UK of 4% in the last 5 years.
At last a positive news story, the British public aren't all eating deep fried mars bars, with a Glasgow salad, and diabetes in a can. All the more surprising since vegetables have no advertising budget or celebrity sponsorship, people aren't all mindless consumers.
Yes, a few people spiralising courgettes on the internet has probably helped.
This has lead one supermarket to trial 'vegetable butchers'. Someone who will show you how to chop a carrot. Fair enough, someone might need help with that.
A vegetable ready to be butchered or wrangled or chopped.
What I can't grasp is why would you call them 'vegetable butchers'. Vegetables are the last thing you would associate with butchery. This makes as much sense as calling them 'vegetable bakers' or 'vegetable fishmongers'.
Why not call them 'vegetable chefs' or even cooler 'vegetable wranglers'?
New fitness trends: rucking with a rucksack. Those kids you see lost in your local forest with massive rucksacks on, they may not be the annual Duke Of Edinburgh intake, they may actually be 'rucking'. In case you can't guess, this involves going for a walk with a rucksack. I'm guessing the term comes from the American military, as they call backpacks rucksacks, whereas in the UK the military call rucksacks Bergen's. I can't find the original post I read about this, but a quick google search and it turns out this is more popular than I knew.
Of course, going for a walk is always a good thing. And as Stuart McGill, professor of spine biomechanics, has shown, walking with a backpack can even be good for people with lower back pain. He even gets a mention in this Mens Health article on rucking:
What always makes me laugh is when something that is completely non specialist and simple gets packaged into a new product. With advice on things like how to pack your rucksack, just in case you've never been on holiday and don't know how to pack a bag. Add in the military element, and bingo, you've got a hardcore fitness product.
I spent a large proportion of my youth wandering around the Brecon Beacons, Dartmoor and Scotland with a 'backpack' on, little did I know I was actually rucking.
In fact, every commuter and tourist in London is inadvertently 'rucking'. Whats more, most tourists have their rucksack on the wrong way, with it in front for security reasons. Hence, they are making rucking even harder. I call it 'Urban Rucking' (patent pending, copyright) unless someone else got there first.
I saw this in a bookshop and bought it on spec without reading any reviews. I really enjoyed it, Newport has an engaging, easy to digest writing style, I read it in a couple of days.
The basic premise is that to do deep, important work, you need to shut off distractions and focus.
This is increasingly difficult in the connected, social media, internet world. Don't confuse 'busyness' with productivity. As anyone who works in a modern office knows, people are busy all the time sending emails, but they generally aren't being very productive or doing anything of much importance.
The great artists, writers, scientists and thinkers find time to do deep work and avoid distraction by becoming hard to find at certain times.
And Newport should know, he is a MIT post doc professor in computer science who has written several books and publishes several papers every year. All while never working past 5.30pm at night.
You need a plan, a daily/ weekly ritual, you need to monitor your deep work hours and as Newport says
"Focus on a small number of wildly important goals."
One thing he recommends doing is quitting social media for 30 days. I am currently on day 26 of doing this (which is probably why I am writing this, rather than posting video clips on facebook). And so far, I would say it has made me more productive. I will write more about this in part 2 of my post on how to form habits).
Reading this book led me to find Brian Johnsons youtube channel, he actually does a really good job of summarising the ideas in Cal Newports book (see video below).
He has some really good summary videos of various books and ideas, in what he calls 'philosophers notes'. I have been watching quite a few of these (probably due to quitting social media!).
Yes, you could watch some Vloggers trying to sell you their latest product placement, or showing you how to cook microwave rice. OR you could fire up the digital zoetrope that is youtube and watch this channel instead.
Don't have time to read 1000 pages of War and Peace. No problem, the school of life summarise Leo Tolstoys life and philosophy for you, and how it is applicable today.
(Talk about deep work, these guys in the past all managed to write paradigm shifting epic books, sometimes in between being imprisoned and sent to labour camps, and I struggle to write 1000 word blog once every month).
This channel is a mix of philosophy, life advice, education and commentary on modern day life.
Netflix top pick: Love I watched this the first time it came out, and liked it so much I just watched it again over the last couple of weeks. Currently only one season is available.
See the trailer below. It is actually better than the trailer would suggest. Its funny, touching, shows how relationships really are, how they pan out, and how people interact with each other. It also has a cool soundtrack.
Careful when you go on Netflix, don't click on the erotic film of the same name by mistake like I did!
Well that's a wrap. Have a good week. I'm off to change my pounds into euros ready for a holiday (if only I had done it last week) and prepare to end up paying the equivalent of �8 for a cafe au lait in France.
"I was burned out from exhaustion, buried in the hail, poisoned in the bushes and blown out on the trail." - Bob Dylan, Shelter From The Storm.
After a long time ultra-running my body was gradually breaking down. I'd made perfunctory efforts at mobility and tried to stay strong as well. My right ankle mobility was gone, my calves were always tight, my right hip and right knee were like rusty hinges, and my T-spine had always been like a breeze block, and it later turned out to be Sheurmanns disease. I was chronically stiff, and my posture was edging towards Mr Burns on a bad day. It was time to do something.
Mr Burn: former ultra-runner
I had to dedicate specific time to mobility, flexibility and breathing. Tacking it on to my normal gym workout wasn't going to cut it.
I decided to do some home Yoga. I knew I wasn't going to commit to going to a class, due to my schedule changing, trying to find a class near me that suited my time (and budget) and my general male ego of going to a class of mainly female Yogis. Also I knew doing this once or twice a week wasn't going to be enough.
Don't get me wrong, I knew the benefits of having a teacher who could correct you 'hands on' in the moment. I had a one to one with a Yoga teacher I work with, which highlighted even more the stiffness in my joints and what I needed to work on. But having one to one sessions every week wasn't an option. And I knew without some kind of guidance I wasn't going to break into spontaneous self guided Yoga sessions at home.
I tried some Yoga apps, they were okay. Then I found some Yoga channels on youtube, these were more like it, Yoga with SarahBeth and Yoga with Adriene. I liked the fact the videos were at varying lengths, some only 15 minutes, some longer 30-40 minutes. Which I could fit into my schedule. I also liked the tone of the videos, passionate about Yoga, good teaching without being overly serious.
I started doing a few a week, mainly in the evenings before bed, I liked the Yin Yoga ones, good for relaxing, and focusing on the areas I needed to work on. Plus for me, I didn't need to really focus on the strength moves, I didn't need Yoga for weightloss or anything like that.
Then someone mentioned ROMWOD. A crossfit website, with 20 minute routines. I signed up. This involved holding the poses for a long time, holding poses like lizard and pigeon for 2, 3, 4, 5 minutes at a time. This is hard. Each session may only contain 3 or 4 poses or positions at most.
This felt like what I needed, these longer holds to really open out. After a while though I began to dread another session of holding Lizard for 5 minutes. It became too repetitive for me. Sometimes it felt like I was getting better, but other times it felt like my hips were feeling chronically worse. I decided to cancel my subscription. I still think it is a good option for a lot of people.
One of the yoga youtube channels had a 30 day yoga camp, so I decided to do that. I knew from previous experience, that one way to ingrain a habit was to commit to doing it every day. I had done it last year with meditation.
This would help me form the habit. I would start on the first of the month and do every session for 30 days. First of all I couldn't believe that this was actually free, a new session every day, varying in length from 15 to 50 minutes. Second, I knew doing it everyday was the best way for me to form a habit.
100 days of meditation.
I'd always been interested in meditation, and like many people, had tried a few times, sporadically to do it, but given up.
I had started reading increasingly about mindfulness, neuroscience and decided it was time to really try meditation again. (please note: this isn't going to be a discussion about the benefits of meditation or mindfulness, but how I formed the habit).
I already had a comprehensive guide in meditation, a whole set of DVDs I had bought from Zenways years before. I had watched all the DVDs. dabbled in the meditation and then given up. I even had a meditation cushion. And when I realised I couldn't crowbar my ultra-running hips into a lotus position I bought a meditation bench as well.
In the little booklet that came with the Zenways DVDs, Wake Up and Live, it mentioned the practice in Zen tradition of meditating 100 days in a row. So I decided to try 100 days in a row, if you miss a day, you start again.
I didn't realise at the time this is a productivity idea called breaking the chain, attributed to the comedian Seinfeld (Of course, there is a good chance the Zen monks probably came up with the idea before Seinfelds sitcom aired and Jerry came up with the funky slap bass opening theme tune). When asked about writing jokes, he said write every day, and mark off on the calender everyday with a big X, it will get to a point where you don't want to break the chain, so you keep going. This article here explains it.
Class calendar picture
And so it was with the 100 days of meditation. I didn't actually mark anything off on a calendar, and I didn't write it down as a goal, I just resolved to do it.
I started with the 8 week mindfulness audios that come with the book 'Mindfulness: A practical guide to finding peace in a frantic world'. It was easy to commit, some of these were only 10 minutes a day. I already had some John Kabat Zinn guided CDs as well, which I had done a few times.
I then moved onto the Zenways 8 week course, starting at the beginning,
As I had resolved to do this every day no matter what, the times I did the sessions were variable. I don't work 9-5 Monday to Friday. Sometimes I would do the session in the morning, other times I was doing them at 11.30pm at night, making sure I was getting them in before midnight.
I committed 100% to doing the session by the end of the day no matter what, however tired I was, whatever was happening that day.
I also downloaded the insight meditation time app, I can't remember when. This has a timer on it, and other guided sessions. Even now I use this to get a 10 minute meditation on the bus or at home.
All these various guided sessions were very useful in forming the habit. Especially with meditation it is very hard to sit down yourself and essentially do nothing. The guided sessions give you a sense of 'I have to do this', the guiding voices help. Also, I can get annoying pulsating tinnitus, Bodhidharma may have stared at a wall listening to ants scream for 9 years, but he probably didn't have to put up with tinnitus. At one point, I was on holiday during the 100 days, and I had to do the sessions in my hotel room unguided, sitting on pillows every morning after breakfast, but at this point I wasn't going to stop.
It was the same with Yoga. I could have tried doing Yoga by myself everyday with no videos, after all I know a lot of moblity and flexibility exercises. I just knew, that wasn't going to happen for me. Much like going to a class, I need to switch off and be guided by the teacher at first.
At some point I passed 100 days of meditation, and I kept going. The habit was formed. Later in the year I went to a meditation retreat for a few days, and that was a good experience. It was good to hear that you can't really do meditation 'wrong', if you're doing it, you're doing it.
"Think of your meditation practice as mental training." - Julian Daizan Skinner.
Once the habit was formed, missing a few days here and there didn't matter. No need to beat yourself up, you always know you are going to come back to it, the ground work has been done. I knew I was going to do this forever.
I could apply the same to Yoga.
30 days of Yoga: First let go of judgements.
One thing I had probably learned from meditation, or it would be more proper to say 'gradually absorbed' rather than learned was to be a bit less judgemental and open.
When it comes to exercise, I have quite a strong evidenced based idea of what I think is 'good' and 'bad' exercise. With the Yoga for 30 days, I decided to do all the exercises and moves that came up regardless of what I may have previously thought about them or judging them.
Same with the idea of Chakras and that type of thing, it get mentioned a fair bit in Yoga, and I decided to be okay with that.
I did the 30 day Yoga Camp with Adriene on Youtube. And much like the meditation, I did it whenever I could, it might be 7am it might be 11pm, it helped that the sessions varied in length.
Unlike the meditation, I did write down everyday in a journal/diary what I had done. I also put asterisks next to sessions I really enjoyed so I could go back to them again. I also started to write down meditation sessions in the diary.
After a while I didn't want to break the chain, and more importantly, I was enjoying it, I looked forward to doing it, especially at the end of the day after being at work. I could see how people called it moving meditation.
At some point I decided it was time to buy a Yoga mat. (This involved a trip to the land of sub minimum wage worker exploitation Sport Direct, explaining to the girl I didn't want the pink mat, I needed the black manly mat, which involved her having to go up a ladder to a high shelf. I'm sure official ladder training protocol had been broken).
I did also go to a Yoga workshop and Yoga Nidra session. The Yoga workshop was hot Yoga, for me there was no benefit to it being hot. And some Yoga sap who was sweating profusely said he wanted it hotter, at which point I could only think of Hank Hill, King of the Hill, 'If it gets one degree hotter I'm going to kick your ass.' But hey, each to their own.
Hank Hill after going to Hot Yoga
I liked the Yoga Nidra, it was basically a progressive relaxation technique.
After 30 days.
The 30 days finished, and I carried on. I'm no Yogi, I'm never going to have the perfect technique or posture. This is not a story of transformation, I can't suddenly do the splits, and all my injuries didn't suddenly disappear. But it did help, I feel more mobile, without sounding like a cliche it does make you feel better mentally and physically.
This isn't meant to sound all 'look how great I am I did Yoga for 30 days and I meditate too'. I'm essentially a neophyte when it comes to these things, I'm no expert. I just happen to like them and think they are beneficial.
I'm not saying you have to go and start meditating or take up Yoga, that is up to you. What I am saying is you can apply this simple technique to forming any habit.
And for me this technique works, do something for 30 days or longer, resolve to do it everyday, no exceptions and the habit is well on its way to being formed.
In part 2, I will briefly show have I also applied it to nutrition and social media. And the reason why these are harder habits to form, and why I still think SMART goals are dumb.
Resources.
This is a list of resources I used. I am not affiliated to any of them. And I'm sure there are equally good youtube channels and meditation apps and books I am not aware of.
Yoga with Adriene, the youtube channel for the 30 day Yoga Camp. Why don't I live in Texas? Sarah Beth Yoga, another youtube channel I like, especially the 20 minute deep stretch videos.
Mindfulness book and 8 week audio course. From the guys at the Oxford Mindfulness Centre, no religious or 'new age' overtones if you don't like that kind of thing. Practical and clear.
Romwod : Crossfit mobility videos. Good if you need to hold stretches and positions for a long time to see results. There is a 7 day free trial.
Insight meditation app for your phone or tablet. Loads of guided meditations or just use the timer.
Accommodating block conjugated periodised occlusion based eccentric triphasic dynamic effort Bulgarian HIIT HIT isometric energy systems based steady state interval training Karvonen Maffetone method. Confused? You will be.
All industries and professions like their specialised language and nomenclature, it's what separates a professional from a normal member of the public.
Now with unprecedented access to information and knowledge in the arena of training there are more and more complicated and advanced training techniques being used on a daily basis in gyms around the world.
Gyms have mostly moved on beyond rows of cardio machines and some chrome dumbbells.
But do the general public need complicated training programmes?
Now, if you are training for the Olympics or you are are at Westside trying to get your deadlift from 950 to 960 pounds then stop reading this article now. You need to do the things that give you the extra 1%. If not, then read on.
Intelligent and effective programming doesn't have to be complicated. However, complicated can be confused with effective.
As every Instagram coach knows... If you are selling programmes then complicated looks good.
To use a nutrition analogy, for most people to lose weight and get a bit healthier the advice is obvious - eat less junk, stop smashing a bottle of wine and a pint of Ben & Jerry's every night and eat some more vegetables. But that doesn't sell many customised nutrition plans, where the coach has worked everything out to the gram. It also doesn't sell much bone broth, or gluten free bread or special powders.
As every instagram coach knows
Complicated looks effective
Most things work for most people most of the time as long as...
.. they are committed and believe in the programme.
No one is going to pay you to write 5x5 starting strength, because it's too simple, it's available for free all over the place. And people like to think they are more advanced than they are, or there is a special secret sequence of exercises that will transform them.
Advanced training for beginners.
It's not unusual to see band resisted and chain resisted movements, and Olympic lifts in the average gym. The level of access to equipment is unprecedented. 10 years ago power racks were as rare as unicorns in gyms, now it's not unusual to have 2 or 3 of them in a health clubs or budget gym. When we first bought a power rack for the gym I work in, probably 8 or 10 years ago, hardly anyone used it, no one knew what to do, they kept doing squats on the beloved Smith machine.
Training programmes can become massive hybrids, coaches having people doing Russian squat cycles combined with Olympic lifting, add in some condition and WODs and don't forget to somehow combine body part split training with powerlifting training. Hint: If the kid is squatting less than 80kg you probably don't need to be doing all this.
See the picture below of Paul Anderson. One of the strongest humans that ever lived. No power rack? No problem, dig a hole. Also note the lack of a special Texas power bar or buffalo bar. Now I hear people complaining that there gym doesn't have Eleiko plates or bars or a freaking vibrating platform.
Paul Anderson: He's stronger than you. Can't find any weight plates? Get a couple of passing 'broads' to sit on some barrels. Picture source: oldtimestrongmen.com
Looking at programmes of professional athletes, it is surprising how simple some of them are. Everything that doesn't work has been stripped away. There is a laser like focus on the goal at hand, to improve performance in one area, while preventing injury and burn out.
Joe Kenn, is the S&C coach for the NFL team the Carolina Panthers. In a presentation I watched he stated there are three guys in the NFL he would trust to do dynamic effort work with bands. And yet in the average gym you see average guys attaching bands to things all the time. Many NFL teams use machines to train, and completely avoid movements like snatches, instead favouring jump squats and less technical movements. Don't forget these are elite professional sports-people.
The difference is, the athlete is expected to do these with 100% intent and explosiveness. Not tack them onto the end of a leg workout as a 'finisher'.
Olympic lifting for who? Training doesn't need to be advanced to be effective. I like Olympic lifting but it doesn't mean everyone should be doing it.
Go into the average gym and literally everyone and his aunt is wearing lifting shoes. I've seen people do their entire workout in lifting shoes including warm up. And the only people who should be wearing heels this much in a gym are Brazilian fitness models.
A complaint I here more and more from people, is my knees hurt all the time squatting, invariably they are wearing lifting shoes for most exercises.
If you like Olympic lifting fine, if you are competing in Olympic lifting or crossfit, also fine. If you just want some general fitness and weightloss (90% of people in the gym) then you don't need to be doing a Bulgarian lifting programme, plus met-cons plus biceps plus low carb etc etc.
The average client does not need an overly complicated or technical programme. Spending hours with someone on a platform trying to get them to do something that they don't have the hip mobility or need for is a waste of time. You're basically trying to teach someone a sport. Would you take the average client and try and teach them to be a decathlete or high jumper if all they wanted was some fitness?
If an NFL pro is not doing overhead snatching then your fat loss client probably doesn't need to either.
In this example, you can replace Olympic lifting with any complex skill based activity such as plyometrics or gymnastic moves. If you really want to learn a new skill and love the idea of complex technical things, and you are injury free, then these are for you. If not, think again. Special populations are the easiest. In the UK, there are level 4 fitness qualifications. These are the highest fitness qualifications and are generally concerned with training so called special populations, like those who have had a stroke, cardiac issues, diabetes or blood pressure problems.
If you do one of these courses, you spend a lot of time looking at medications, stages of change models, working out % of VO2 max (which you will never use again) and so forth.
It is made to sound like these populations are the hardest to train, and the most complicated. In fact, they are the easiest. The nature of the population immediately narrows the options available to you.
They are starting at such a low base, that anything works. Guess what, going for a walk is one of the best things you can do. Add in some chair squats, step ups, and if you have access to resistance machines you can a few of them in too! No machines, grab some resistance bands.
It's all movement. If someone hasn't really been moving, get them moving and moving often.
Show up, take it easy at first, gradually progress, listen to your body. That's it, level 4 referral right there.
These populations are generally easier to programme for, compared to trying to get someone ready for competition, dropping their fat percentage down to 5%, or trying to finish top three in a race. Now you are dealing with the fine details, now you might need to be complicated. But what proportion of the population does this apply to?
Of course, there are some caveats to special populations, sometimes the details matter. For example, exercise for back pain. But these are not the type of things they teach you on a level 4 back pain course anyway. What to do? This. Most people most of the time need a total body training approach.
Do they need a specialised bicep day? Probably not. Does attaching a band to an exercise instantly make it better, probably not.
For the average client think:
Squat Hinge Push Pull Core
Then get their heart rate up in some way.
Machines are okay, they are not some dark force sent by Globo gym, some people benefit from them. Scale the workout to the client. Use the tools you have available, but use them correctly, at the right time, in the right dose.
Examples:
Squat could be bodyweight, goblet, back, front, or could be leg press or step up. Hinge could be RDL, glute bridge, deadlift with kettlebell or bar, or guess what ,you might have to use the leg curl or swiss ball leg curl Push - press up variations, DB press, shoulder press Pull - rows, TRX row, low row machine Core - pallor press, plank, dead bug
Rep ranges, don't get hung up, enough to get a response.
You get the idea.
Generally whole body movements for most people most of the time. Could be barbell, could be kettle bell or dumbbell, could be bodyweight, you might use some machines.
Paretos Law states that 80% of your results come from 20% of your efforts or resource or customers. So it is with training, 80% of your training results are going to come from 20% of your exercise selection. This means the 20% that directly impacts your goals, the big compound movements. The rest is garnish, dedicated forearm and calf exercises and 1000 crunch variations are essentially garnish.
Of course, there needs to be some progression. And guess what it can be fun. Not everything you do has to come from a peer reviewed double blind study. But conversely hardly anyone wants to be a competitive bodybuilder, adding another complicated bro-science routine to the mix.
Sometimes, it's harder to think about what you need to take away rather than add in.
Anyone, can keep adding into a clients workout until before you know it they are training 3 hours at a time, and doing every exercise variation under the sun. If you love training like that, fair enough, bear in mind most people don't want to spend 7 days a week in the gym. If it's your hobby, your passion, you're in the minority.
We live in the age of distraction. This applies to fitness as well, so many machines, so many gadgets, so many exercise variations. It might seem like you need them all. But you don't. More does not equal better.
Do I need my Suunto GPS to tell me my average heart rate and recovery time in hours? Probably not. Does the client who is aiming to run a 55min 10k need a Garmin, does the client looking to lose a few pounds need a fitbit or should they just try and be more active during the day? Gadgets and variety are fun, but don't lose sight of what most people are in this for.
Only make your training as complicated as it needs to be. Your clients will thank you in the long run. Generally simplicity and hard work win.
Progression, habit and consistency are the keys to success.
Percy Cerutty, iconoclastic renegade running coach, leads Herb Elliot up a sand dune hill session. No GPS, no heart rate monitor, no shirt, no shoes. Source: tonireavis.com
There is a quote by Michael Pollan about food:
"Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants."
Here is my paraphrase of this for training:
Lift (relatively) heavy things. Get your heart rate up. Mostly walking.
Wu Wei: (pronounced ooo way), from Chinese Philosophy. Literally means non action. But does not mean not acting. Non self conscious yet perfectly responsive to the situation (Van Norden, 2011). More like effortless action. You lose the sense of yourself exerting effort (Slingerland, 2014).
Flow: What athletes would call being in the zone. "Flow states tend to occur when a persons skills are fully involved in overcoming a challenge that is just about manageable. A typical day is full of anxiety and boredom. Flow experiences provide the flashes of intense living against this dull background." (Csikszentmihalyi 1997;29-31)
Mindfulness: "Paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgementally, to the unfolding of experience moment to moment." John Kabat-Zinn
4am It's dark and even in August there is a chill in the air, because we are above 10,00ft. Head torches flash around. We start running, telling your mind to calm and your body to relax, your body doesn't want to be doing this at 4am, it knows there are 100 miles to go. A rhythm develops, you trip over a tree root, land on your knee, stumble back up and keep going. Into the first aid station, a half marathon has passed but it feels like no time at all since you started. Half a cream cheese bagel from the volunteers and you keep going. The sun rises over the Rockies, you remove some layers of clothing off. Ascending, it should be hard, walk, but it is easy, there seems to be no gradient, you run up above 11,000ft. Then descending back down. Your GPS has gone haywire and stopped working, you have no sense of time or speed. Down through the trees into Twin Lakes. 45 miles have passed, how long you don't know, 8 hours? A working day? You're not sure. You feel fine, effortless. You keep going. It strips you to the bone. Worn down like an old weathered skeleton in the desert. Wearing away an older version of you. Eroding the past, eroding who you were. Who were you again? An entire day passes, 26 hours. You're down to nothing, there is no happy or sad. Ultimately, running for 24 hours strips away everything until when you finish it feels like 'nothing special'. A lady embraces you and says "welcome home".
Looking Down on Twin Lakes from Hope Pass, Leadville.
And yet another time It's hard, there is no flow, everything hurts, you retch by the side of the trail, trying to throw up. You go into aid stations, you're not sure what to eat or drink. It all feels clunky. You want it to be over. You grind it out, grimace. It feels like maximum effort but you're moving through treacle. Through the streets of the town, people cheer. It's over and you never want to do it again. Two runs, two different situations, one of Wu Wei and flow, one not. Wu Wei and Flow Wu Wei or effortless action is an ancient concept of Chinese philosophy that has been around since 300-500 BCE and was espoused in various forms by Confucius, Laozi ( Lao Tzu) in the DaoDeJing (Tao Te Ching) and Zhuangzi (Chuang Tzu). It is hard to describe. Van Norden (2011) likens to it to trying to explain to someone how to ride a bike. It's very hard to explain, but when you get it, you just know.
It is kind of like the concept of flow. See the figure below, which shows where flow occurs. You are fully immersed and absorbed in what you are doing. You lose a sense of time. Flow states are about complexity and challenge, "our personal skill is perfectly calibrated to the task" (Slingerland, 2014, video lecture).
Classic examples are rock climbing, a surgeon, skiing a technical route.
If you're still wondering what flow is, Ayrton Senna explains it perfectly in this clip, 35 seconds in. (and if you haven't seen the film Senna, you need to).
It differs from something like binge watching TV, in that you emerge from the couch potato state with less energy and flow, it saps you of something. Whereas, when you are in a flow state you are energised.
However, Wu Wei is more than flow. People can experience flow in non complex situations like walking around, socialising, playing with their kids (Slingerland, 2014). Wu Wei is being absorbed in something bigger than you and it is positive.
In the classic book the Zhuangzi, there are a series of stories about skill and Wu Wei. One is about Butcher Ding. It is metaphor for how to move through the world.
"Cook Ding laid down his knife and replied, �What I care about is the Way, which goes beyond skill. When I first began cutting up oxen, all I could see was the ox itself. After three years I no longer saw the whole ox. And now � now I go at it by spirit and don�t look with my eyes. Perception and understanding have come to a stop and spirit moves where it wants. I go along with the natural makeup, strike in the big hollows, guide the knife through the big openings, and following things as they are. So I never touch the smallest ligament or tendon, much less a main joint." (Watson translation, 2013;19) This doesn't mean you have to go and become a butcher. It means the barrier is your mind. You need to switch off the analytic part. You move effectively. But it comes with practice. Your body is the blade and it moves through the world avoiding obstacles effortlessly, or in running trails, you run a technical trail with flow not by rationally thinking where you will next step.
Slingerland argues that pursuits like Ultrarunning are not Wu Wei because of the way they are pursued in modern Western culture. He states
"In our culture activities like running ultra marathons or exploring new art museums tend to be solitary and aimed at self improvement"
"It is the connection with a larger, valued whole that allows Wu Wei or true flow experiences to leave us feeling 'clean and happy'." (Slingerland, 2014;46)
Furthermore
"Wu Wei is about more than isolated individuals incrementally improving their personal bests in the Ironman Triathlon or making a new level on Tetris. Wu Wei involves giving yourself up to something that because it is bigger than you can be shared by others."
and
"An essential fact about Wu Wei is that it is not just about the experience unfolding within the mind of an isolated individual but also about social interactions between people." (Slingerland, 2014;52)
I would argue that Ultra running, specifically trail and mountain ultra running meets all these criteria. It is not just an individualistic pursuit of self improvement. Yes, some of the people racing at the front of the pack are running to win, but most are not. Even the elites at the front are part of a certain ultra running community and culture. And having seen Rob Krar run past me in the opposite direction, I can say if anyone was in Wu Wei, it was him.
There is a reason most of these races take places in wild, mountainous places or desert environments. The ultra that takes place on a track doesn't capture the imagination in the same way. For sure, it is hard and requires a certain mental fortitude and skill set. But it is nature that sets apart the trail run.
The trail has a mixture of monotony and complexity. Simplicity and toughness.
Then there is the fact that pretty much no one runs these races without a crew. You are a team, you are not a lone individual. And if you don't have a crew, there is still the aid stations, the sense of community and support. And why do most people enter these races rather than run alone in the wilderness. The community, the social aspect of like minded people, you are not alone. The tribe.
Leadville 100.
Yes, there is flow, but it is more. The ethics of running in the wilderness. Leave no trace, leave no tracks. Can you be an ultra runner and be a bad person morally?
Default Mode Network (DMN) A common question is 'don't you get bored running?' and 'what do you think about when you are running?'. The answers are no, and nothing really, I'm not really thinking about anything, I don't know what I'm really thinking about for all those hours. Something has been switched off.
You brain has something called the default mode network. It is several parts of your brain linked together, and it is what you mind does when you are bored. It wanders, you day dream, you think about the past, you think about the future. It is your brains default setting.
But you can quiet it down, you can focus on the present, the now. Several studies show that one way of turning down the DMN is mindful meditation. It helps you live in the now.
In mindful meditation you let thoughts come and go, you don't become attached to them. There is awareness, but a loss of your socially constructed self.
But don't think this is an airy-fairy state. Robert Wright, professor of evolutionary psychology says
"There is an edge to mindfulness. A rebellion against natural selection. A radical re-organisation of the mind." (2015, lecture Buddhism & Modern Psychology)
If you are driving a route you always drive, it is easy for your mind to wander, the task is easy. Its the same on the standard 5k route that you run out of your front door. You know it so well, that you don't really need to think about the run. You start to think about what you are going to buy for dinner and how to quit your job.
But trail running is technical. If you stop concentrating you might fall down a hole, or on a race, you might miss a turning. You need to be in the moment. I would argue that your DMN has been turned down.
A koan is a paradoxical question used in meditation. It helps to break down rational thinking and focus on the now. Such as what is Mu? Who am I? What is the sound of one hand clapping?
The question is repeated over and over. Does the repetition result in a flow state? The question is complex and simple at the same time, and the act of repeating it over and over again is also simple on one level.
Is ultra running a moving koan?
Not just the question of why the hell am I doing this?! But the mixture of repetition, relentless movement and complexity. The trail can be complex, it can be simple, and then it goes on for a long time, maybe a whole day. You have to be flexible but have a strategy but you have to focus on each moment on the trail.
Is ultra running moving Zen. Hakuin (a Japanese Zen master from back in the day) said
"Meditation in action is a thousand times superior to meditation in stillness." (quoted in Skinner, 2015;78)
Do Zen, Moving Zen. Calligraphy by Shinzan Roshi.By Shinzan Miyamae Roshi (Daizan Skinner Roshi) [CC BY-SA 4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Transient Hypofrontality There is a part of your brain called the Pre Frontal Cortex (PFC). It is the higher part of the brain involved in decision making, planning, working toward a goal, differentiating between good and bad, working memory and more.
The work of Arne Dietrich shows that endurance exercise essentially switches off the pre frontal cortex. In a similar way to meditation, hypnosis and certain drugs.
"Although the hypothesis of exercise-induced transient hypofrontality was developed to account for the beneficial effects of exercise on mental health, the prolonged disengagement of higher cognitive centers in the prefrontal cortex also offers a neural mechanism that provides insight into the alteration of consciousness known as the runner's high. Some of the phenomenologically unique features of this state such as experiences of timelessness, living in the here and now, reduced awareness of one's surroundings, peacefulness (being less analytical), and floating (diminished working memory and attentional capacities), are consistent with a state of frontal hypo- function. Even abstruse feelings such as the unity with the self and/or nature might be more explicable, considering that the prefrontal cortex is the very structure that provides us with the ability to segregate, differentiate, and analyze the environment" (Dietrich, 2003;241)
So we have
a sense of timelessness
living in the here & now
peacefulness
not being so analytical. Switching off our rational mind
In Dietrich's studies total exercise time was no more 50 minutes, at 70-80% heart rate max (Dietrich 2004). Now imagine what happens to your PFC if your are in this zone for 5,10, 24 hours?!
You are returning to the mind of a child in some senses. As the PFC does not develop fully until your late teens.
Down regulating your PFC helps us to break categorical inflexibility. In other words, think outside of the box and not have such rigid ideas. It is one of the reasons that children can play with a cardboard box for hours, they don't just see it as a box. Their thinking has not become rigid and PFC dominated yet.
Or in the words of the DaoDeJing
"Concentrating your qi (vital energies) and attaining the utmost suppleness, can you be a child?" (Chapter 10, Laozi)
Endurance exercise is literally causing areas of your brain to switch off and return to a more child like mind! Now imagine if you take that exercise out of the lab and transpose it to a natural environment. I went into the woods.... Attention Restoration Theory Thoreau famously went into the woods. He realised the power of the natural environment.
Thoreau quote. Source: www.panampost.com
In one study (Berman et al 2008) two groups of students were given a memory task called an n-back task. They had to remember numbers and look for repetition, it means you have to hold 4 numbers in your head at any one time. After the initial task, half the group was sent for a 20 minute walk around the local town, the other half went to the University Arboretum.
Before the walk they were equally matched. After the walk, the group that had been in the more natural environment of the trees were significantly better at the task than the walk in town group.
The natural environment allows your directed attention to be restored and replenished. The natural environment is inherently rich in fascinating stimuli. There is a modest engagement, it doesn't take much to disengage and look at something else. Look at tree, look at the mountains, feel the breeze.
This is unlike the urban environment which consumes your attentional resources and drains you. Adverts are shouting at you, there is traffic. If you are out running, you have to cross the road, avoid getting run over, swerve around people.
"In sum, we have shown that simple and brief interactions withnature can produce marked increases in cognitive control." (Berman et al 2008;1211)
This is why the 10k road run is never going to cut it in terms of restoring your attention or letting your DMN quieten down. Urban environments are draining your attention.
Whereas running in a natural environment is having a restorative effect.
The quality of your mind is affected by your local environment (Clifford Saron, 2015).
Nature is effectively restoring your attention reserves and allowing your brain to work better.
Nothing special. Trying not to try. Wu Wei is a paradox. Like an athlete trying not to choke when making a crucial play. Or like trying not to think of anything.
It can't be forced. But certain circumstances will allow it to happen more readily.
Ultra running is mix of endurance exercise, repetition and complexity. Ultra running is working at several levels:-
1)It can put you in a flow state. You are at the edge of your abilities and getting constant feedback (you are either moving forward or not).
2)The act of running, the repetition, the rhythm is akin to counting your breath in mindful meditation. It is down regulating your default mode network, and puts you in state of awareness, being fully present in the now.
3) The endurance exercise turns down you pre frontal cortex, the transient hypo-frontality makes you lose sense of time and rigid concepts.
4)The natural environment is restorative and make you feel part of something much bigger.
5) If you are lucky it engenders a sense of Wu Wei. You are engaging with the ground. It feels effortless.
It is beyond flow. You, the environment, your crew, the other participants, it is all in harmony.
Running is simple on one level. Running 100 mile has no benefit outside of itself.
In the words of Shunryu Suzuki when he is talking about meditation and zen and trying to attain something, it is "nothing special". In that sense running ultra marathon is no more special than not running them, or playing ping pong or washing up. But on the other hand it is a very special experience.
It is a paradox, if you go on to the trail looking to find something or change something or transform yourself, you won't. If you chase after it you won't grasp it. As some Chinese guys figured out over 2000 years ago without running a step.
The trail is waiting, it is always there.
In short, go for a trail run. It will literally change your mind!
It is the totality of the experience. It is carrying everything you need. It is being in the wilderness and switching off from everything. It is sitting in tents at night talking, lit by head torch. It is the specialness of brewing instant coffee early in the morning while chatting. Forest, beach, ocean. It is running at night with your brother, deep in the forest. I emerged from the forest, running the sand covered fire breaks down onto the beach. The sea was crashing in. I ran south. It felt like I could run forever.
"One who is good at travelling leaves no tracks or traces." (Ch 27, DaoDeJing)
Want to keep at the cutting edge of health, fitness and well-being, well look no further. These are my predictions for the top trends in 2016. Some could be real, some could be tongue in cheek, some could be both; I'll let you decide.
1.Bulletproof Tibetan Tea
Bulletproof coffee is so 2012. This year Tibetan Tea will be big. Yep, if butter is good for you, then Yaks butter must be better, plus you are getting all the health benefits of tea. And if that wasn't enough the added salt will help with your electrolyte balance post workout. Lastly, you will be helping to support local Yak herders, bonus!
Tibetan beverage: Tea, Yaks Butter & Salt. What's not to like. Image source www.fitfoodhouse.net
What could be better than Tibetan tea? This Super Chai Tea recipe that I have just invented. Super Chai Tea (Bulletproof Monk tea)
1 teaspoon of Matcha green tea (if not available PG Tips pyramid bags will do fine) 25ml of MCT Oil (if you can't find this, organic Yaks Milk or butter is a good substitute) 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric Sprinkle of cinnamon Stevia or locally sourced raw honey to taste.
Brew the Matcha green tea in the traditional way, then blend in the MCT Oil/ Yaks milk/ butter and turmeric. Sprinkle cinnamon on top, add in stevia or honey if you like it sweet.
This brew packs a powerful punch. There is the antioxidant, tumour fighting, thermogenic tea mixed with antiviral fat based fuel of the MCT oil/ Yaks milk. Add in the anti-inflammatory turmeric, and the insulin modulating cinnamon, making this the ideal breakfast concoction.
Please note I just made this recipe up but I have refused to google it just in case someone is actually drinking this stuff for real.
By drinking Bulletproof Monk tea you are supporting your local Yak Herder
2.Mindful everything
2015 was the year of mindfulness. Eating food mindfully, mindful breathing, mindful corporations, mindful colouring books and so on. We already have a mindfully based exercise system called Yoga, but there is no way to capitalise on this. Hence we need a 'mindful workout'.
In mindfulness meditation a common practice is to count your breath and count to 10. And when else do you need to count to 10? When you are counting reps in the gym that's when. And mindfulness resistance training is now born. It has to be counting to 10, low reps such as 3 while deadlifting won't work. Also when deadlifting you are focusing on making sure your back doesn't explode. Same goes for olympic lifting. But bicep curls are perfect, 10 reps of focused curling, the ultimate mindfulness exercises.
The mindfulness workout can be applied to anything in the 8-12 rep range, isolation exercises are perfect. It used to be called bodybuilding but there is no way I can sell that to you or sell it to the female market.
Les Mills Mindful will be launched later this year combining pump, balance and mindful breathing/ counting.
Follow up your mindful workout with a beverage from the land of mindfulness and loving kindness meditation - that's right a Tibetan Tea.
3.Post Natal Exercise... for Men
F**k Dad Bod. You've been sitting at home pretending to help out with the new born, but mainly you seem to be drinking tea and eating the cake that everyone keeps bringing around. Aside from the quick hoover round and nappy change your calorie output is close to zero.
You have re-discovered daytime TV and have realised it hasn't changed since you were a student. It still consists of older greying men with younger female sidekicks (Pip Schofield and Holly Willbesomething, the bloke on Countdown who used to be on The Apprentice plus a younger female number counter, and even the Daily Politics Shows has Andrew Neil, who borrowed his hairstyle from Donald Trump, and a younger female Millbank side-kick to help him out).
It's time to do something before you start looking forward to the latest spring fashion slot on the Lorraine Show. You need to get fit. But where to begin? Post Natal Classes for men of course! Where you can all get fit in a mutually supportive environment with other men, no one will judge you for having baby vomit on your Nike Dri Fit wick-away top. Then afterwards you can have a coffee and discuss whether Andrew Neils hair is real, the misogynist nature of media, if Piers Morgan is actually a cyborg sent from the future to annoy us and if you drink Tibetan Tea( bulletproof monk tea) will you be able to fit in those skinny jeans for summer?
4.The rise and rise of online coaching, Vloggers, Instagram experts and apps
Somewhere in Shoreditch a woman in her early 20's is opening a Tibetan Tea cafe using start up money from her parents who live in Cambridgeshire. One day she is frothing up a Yaks Milk Latte for a customer and realises that someone may be interested in her flex-vegan Italian-paleo recipes.
She immediately rushes home and her housemate videos her making a pasta/ paleo mash up dinner. They link this to her house-mates own Youtube page, he is trying to carve out a niche playing banjo fuelled electro pop folk fusion. They put one of his tracks over the top of the video. Her other house mate works for a local PR company and is currently working on promoting locally sourced beard grooming products which he then mentions in their Vlog.
Before, she knows it, she has 20 million Instagram followers and a 10 book publishing deal. Even though she has no nutritional qualifications, is not a qualified chef and knows nothing about fitness she is soon on Daytime TV being interviewed about her weight-loss tips.
Meanwhile a Dad is sitting at home, while changing a nappy and eating a rocky road, he hears her mention Tibetan Tea. He then tells all his mates at the Mens Post Natal Class. Before you know it, Tibetan tea has gone viral and a Shoreditch resident opens up a series of Tibetan Tea shops, which she then sells to a hedge fund.
Her banjo playing friend ends up in a structured reality TV show and then realised his own fitness DVD. His debut album is released on itunes...
5.Steady State Cardio makes a comeback
The last few years we have had HIIT and Tabatas and WODs. And these are all hard. Recently Hybrid training has started it make an impact mainly due to Alex Viada. And it makes a lot of sense.
The next logical step is the rise of steady state cardio. Problem is, it is very hard to re-package and re-sell, even harder to base a PT session around someone going for a walks or doing 30 minutes on a bike at conversational pace.
Les Mills have covered most areas, lifting weights, combat sports, dance, spinning, old people, young people. But they haven't covered walking yet.
Enter Les Mills Walk and Talk. The easy workout you can do anywhere. Just download the app, and every month they update your walking play list, get out there and power away the fat with gut busting steady state tunes. Two of the tracks on the initial Les Mills Walk and Talk release are from a Banjo electro pop artist based in London.
Can't walk? Don't worry there is Les Mills Chair. A series of chair based exercises with the latest motivational music. We do, however, recommend that you buy the specially constructed Reebok Chair TM, if you are going to be doing this in a small group fitness environment. 6.Strongman training for all. Strong man/women classes
Powerlifting is so 2 dimensional, and crossfit, and who's got time to learn how to do a muscle up or a handstand walk?
But strongman, that is 3 dimensional training and you get to lift lots of cool things. Re-brand it has fat burning and glute sculpting and you've got a product.
Now you need some equipment. A company has already made a fitness specific tyre, and are charging �650 for something you can essentially pick up for free at your local tip. And someone has already got a piece of plastic, filled it with water and called it The Surge. So what can you do? Atlas stones, but we can do better, lets make it more primal. How about a rock. Yep, its a special rock, after all you can go and pick up a rock for free. But if you take that rock, paint it pink and call it Igneous Based Training System (IBTS), you've got a product.
A rock. But paint it pink, charge �200 for it and call it Igneous training and you've got a product.
Or just do some strong man inspired training with the equipment you've already got, and reap the benefits. 7.Gluten will make a comeback
Could we all be wrong, could gluten be a superfood? A special type of gluten of course, it won't be found in a loaf of Hovis. Special artisan gluten supplements harvested from a South American plant.
Or anything could become the next superfood. Personally I'm hoping it will be cheddar cheese.
8.Super hero workout.
The new Star Wars is out. And the lead character happens to lift weights, kerching. Combine with the mindfulness trend and you've got the Jedi Workout that you don't have to live in a swamp to do. Replace Yoda with a weighted vest. Or even better, if someone at Disney marketing has got their head screwed on they will produce a Yoda weighted vest.
In the summer there will also be Batman v's Superman v's Banana Man v's SuperTed. Expect all these workouts to appear in Mens Health at some point.
Banana Man v Iron Man will start production this year. The banana man workout will appear in Mens Health. Image source www.bttm.co.uk
9.Backwards running
We've had barefoot running, Hoka trainers, tough mudders and all that. Its time for backwards running to go mainstream. The easy way to avoid injuries.
Plus, you can't run backwards run on a normal treadmill, so someone will have to build a backwards running treadmill. Retail cost �15,000.
While we're at it, obstacle course racing needs to evolve. Yes, it could be run backwards or why not add a Krypton Factor element, where you have to build a 3D puzzle blindfold at the half way point.
The Krypton Factor. When obstacles and tracksuits were proper. Source: www.tvcream.co.uk
10.Carb side loading
I have no idea. Its just a buzzword phrase. But carb back loading exists. I will figure out the details of the diet later. But trust me its going to be big. 11.Nano gyms
Space is at a premium, what's smaller than a micro gym? A nano gym of course. Combine this with a Tibetan tea bar franchise and you've got a business.
Well, there you go, these are my top predictions for 2016, lets see what becomes big. All ideas are trademarked, copyrighted and patent pending.
So in part one we looked at some of the problems facing the industry, now we have to ask some tough questions and be open to new answers. Sacred Cows and Lost Opportunities. The most important thing we can do to find new solutions is break out of the old model of doing things. And the first way to do this is in the way we listen and really go back to the basic fundamental question of why does this business exist and who is it for?
U Lab and Otto Scharmer talk about 4 levels of listening. Most listening we do in meetings is at the basic level 1, this is where everyone sounds the same, talking nice and saying what the boss wants to hear, we are not learning anything new. Even at the next level of debate, all we are doing is listening and reacting, trying to defend our position, not getting beyond our point of view.
Scharmer gives an example of when American automobile executives visited Japan in the 1980's to look at the they way they were producing cars. When they returned they were convinced the Japanese hadn't shown them the real factory as it was too clean and organised. They couldn't get past their own perceptions of what their industry should look like even when presented with evidence there was a different way.
To really move on we need to go to the next level of reflective dialogue and collective creativity. We need to ask genuine questions, to move away from blame and not just defending view points and excepting all the sacred cows we cannot change.
Here are a few leisure industry/ fitness industry sacred cows and trite statements and products that we persist with, that we all buy into:-
Of course no one is in this industry for the money
Swimming pools are a money pit but we can't get rid of them
We have a sauna and steam room that most customers don't use
We have a monthly membership
People buy PT in blocks
Of course we need to have PT
Why do studio instructors get paid 3x more than lifeguards
We have to open at 6am, 7am, 24 hours to compete
We have to have student discounts even though this group is already spending �9000 a year minimum on education and is therefore willing to get into massive debt
We have to have discounts for the over 60's even though at the moment this age group have more disposable income than people in their late 20's
We have to keep running kids birthday parties even though they are a massive hassle, we can never find the staff to run them and the parents complain
We have to have badminton courts that make us �10 per hour maximum where a small PT gym in the same space as a court would make �100 per hour
We're not in it to make a profit but we do have a profit and loss spreadsheet. Leisure is somehow different from all other industries and can't make any money
We need a certain amount of cardio equipment even though most evenings now most of the cardio equipment is empty and the free-weights area is full, people's exercise habits have moved on
We don't have online coaching or products because we have a building. We can't have an online & physical business. See the example of John Lewis later for an answer this
We need changing rooms and showers
What would happen if we closed the studios and expanded the gym?
What would happen if we closed the gym and expanded the studios?
Our IT systems are too complicated and don't work for us, they make the job of the people on the front line harder, but there is nothing we can do.
etc etc
I'm sure you can think of a few yourself. In the words of U lab we need to 'turn the camera around on ourselves'.
And realise that as an industry we collectively created these problems. It's easy to blame other individuals (Peter Senge, Ulab interview) rather than looking at our part in this as well.
We are all weird now
Seth Godin has made the point there are no average people now. As an industry we still think we can attract all people at all times. We can't. The middle market that leisure centre and health clubs are all clamoring for disappeared a long time ago or never existed in the first place as a substantial business sustaining segment.
We thought we could all be Tescos and be everything to everyone, but even supermarkets can't do that any more.
Does Top Shop try to appeal to the young teenager and the old pensioner? No. But we try to, with the same space, with the same gym and then wonder why the pensioner then complains that the music is too loud. I'm never going into Hollister to shop, and I am not meant to, its not for me.
Add up all the tribes, the outliers in fitness - powerlifters, cross fitters, Les Mills (which even breaks down into sub tribes, those who only like Body Attack, those who like Body Combat), figure competitors, olympic weightlifters, yoga (which then breaks down into different types of yoga) and all these tribes out number the middle mass market.
Solutions.
From the above discussion hopefully a few points have jumped out already... nothing is sacred, what can you safely remove from your business with no detrimental effect, what do you need to hold onto, what differentiates you, how can you craft an experience?
Pull up the weeds...
Richard Boyatzis of Case Western Reserve University (Coursera.org course Inspiring Leadership through Emotional Intelligence) gives an example of a vineyard in the wine country of Barcelona.
This vineyard was making cheap $10 a bottle bulk wine, and it was a loss maker. It couldn't even make money. Then one day the two brothers running it noticed some of the grapes were exceptionally good. And they thought, what if we could produce a vintage wine only using these grapes?
They had no previous history of producing quality wine. So they went to the rest of the family and explained their vision and what they would have to do. They would have to pull up and destroy the poor vines, and start to only grow the best vines. They also went to the other growers in the area to explain their vision.
They would have to accept a transition period. They knew it would take time.
Now a bottle of wine from the Mas Doix region is worth $140 and is rated as one the best wines in the world.
So what are you best products, your best grapes? What can be ripped up and abandoned? How much of a transition period are you willing to accept?
Seth Godin gives the example of Jackson Hole ski resort when it transitioned from a resort aimed at everyone to only aiming at extreme skiers.
Yes, when you remove certain products you are going to piss off a certain number of people. There will always be that person who uses the sauna or whatever but you have to accept you cannot please everyone.
You have to ask fundamentally Why are we here as a business? And like the two brothers in Barcelona, the emotionally intelligent thing to do is take into account other peoples feelings and ideas to create your shared vision. Yes involve stakeholders and customers, but mainly involve your ground level staff to create a shared vision.
The perceived degree of shared vision predicts success (Boyatzis,2015 Coursera). If your staff aren't with you then it is already over.
And bear in mind you may not get it right first time.
'Nothing important will happen with the first try' (Ulab edx.org)
Staff again.
How your customers feel about your company is how they feel about your staff. You can either make the customer feel a little better or a little worse (Boyatzis, 2015, Coursera).
Isabel Guerro (former Vice President of the World Bank) states in an interview with Ulab)
"Remove as many obstacles as possible for people on the front line"
If the world bank can do it surely a club or centre can do this. Really think about the obstacles your staff have. Are you making your product simpler or more complicated? Are support staff helping or hindering. Are ideas lost or adopted? Do your training systems, recruitment strategies and rewards work or not?
"The people working on the front lines are often better positioned to drive continual improvements." (Robertson, 2015;33)
What your HR department thinks your organisation looks like
But really are your systems working for you?
What your organisation probably looks like, source: www.integrationtraining.co.uk
The experience.
As alluded to previously in part 1, the new economy is experienced based. The whole book Stuffocation is based on people looking for experiences rather than stuff.
People go to Disney for the experience (and it may not be an experience I want, and that's okay they are not aiming at me). People go to see Star Wars for the experience of the film.
Pine and Gilmore in Welcome to the Experience Economy state
"Experiences are a distinct economic offering"
and are they are memorable, is your club or centre memorable for the right reasons?
I see some people confusing the idea of experience with architecture. Yes, if your experience is predicated on fantastic changing rooms and designer towels and shower gel you've got no choice. But experience is much more than this. No one goes to Westside Barbell or Metroflex Gym or any crossfit gym for the shower gel and towels. It is a distinct experience.
I would say a company like Les Mills have grasped this. When I visited their Head Office in London they had very much realised that the design of the group fitness space, the instructor, the music, the lighting, the feeling of a tribe (and which tribe they were aiming at - millennials or mums) were all part of the experience. Even if many of the places that buy the licence for their product have not grasped this concept. (I have no affiliation with Les Mills by the way).
What do people remember about the experience of your product, and remember the experience doesn't just have to be in your building, it can be online too.
"I don't want stuff. I want the need or experience it fulfills." (Rachel Botsman quoted in Scharmer 2013;134)
Do we even know what experience we are trying to produce? And please don't say friendly and welcoming with good customer service! Who doesn't want to be these things, experience goes beyond this.
A company like John Lewis has grasped experience (as well as a different way of employee remuneration). A few years ago they had no online presence, now they have a massive online presence. But this hasn't taken away from their stores. Their Christmas advert has become a tradition in a few short years. People still go to their stores and buy things, especially at Christmas, even though they can buy the same things online.Why? They have created an in-store experience that people want to be part of.
Experience is about participation. The customer has to be engaged. When I switch utility suppliers I don't really care about participation, it's a passive thing. But when people come to a club or centre they are actively choosing to spend at least an hour of their leisure time with you. How do engage them, how do you make them feel like they are part of something to justify your price being more than a budget club. After all, they could easily go for a walk for free outside or put some weights in their garage, why are they with you?
What adds to your experience, what detracts from your experience? A few ideas
Does a vending machine selling the same stuff as your local petrol station add or detract from your health and fitness experience?
Does your class booking system add or detract from the experience?
Does the entry point, music, layout, staff uniform add or detract from the experience?
etc etc
Fundamentally ask why does the world need us and our product? (Robertson, 2015).
Conclusion. You may have noticed I haven't given you a prescriptive solution, as in you need to get rid of this and focus on this. First of all, every place is different, what your strengths are (your award winning grapes) I might not have even thought of.
For you the answer might be to have a hall that only has badminton, you've figured out a way to make money from a badminton only business (if someone can make a ping pong bar then this is probably viable). I hereby copyright 'Badminton Bar'!
Or your strength is rehab and GP referral and this should be your niche. Or you've figured out a way to make a business based on swimming lessons (and make a profit?!)
Or should focus on youth strength and kids fitness. Or you should have a great group fitness experience that only does Les Mills or indoor cycling like soul cycling.
I don't know what your experience should be, but please don't just try and tack on the above ideas to what you already do and hope for the best.
Secondly, collaboration is a powerful thing, I don't have all the answers, but I bet your team has all the answers you need if you let them tell you.
You should know what dead wood needs to be removed, you should know what your strong products should be, and the experience your customers should have.
Start with
"If this was my company, what would I do?' (Robertson 2015;25)
Key points
Have the conversation with the front line staff, really listen they have some of the answers
Are managers and support staff adding value to your business?
What is the shared vision?
This vision decides which choice grapes you focus on and which weeds you pull up
Accept transition and you can't please everyone
What is your experience going to be? Craft it.
Keep evolving, creating and improving.
Yes, I was melodramatic at the start of part 1, is leisure dying? It will still be here in some form, of course, and it will drag on in its current form for a while until everyone goes and opens their own microgym or goes to work for Lidl to get paid more.
But something new will emerge. And collectively we can create this. Exciting times.
"Decades of scientific research have revealed that great creativity almost always springs from collaboration, conversation, and social networks�challenging our mythical image of the isolated genius. And research shows that when a group is in flow, it�s more likely to resolve problems with surprising and creative solutions." (R Keith Sawyer quoted in The Science of Happiness, University of Berkeley, module 7,edx.org)
Film reference of the day: It depends on why you built it, where you built it and who you built it for. image source: www.corumgroup.com
References and acknowledgements. This whole thing has a big debt to two Massive Online Open Courses. (MOOCs). The future of learning probably isn't �9000 a year institutions any more.
