Identity Crisis

I am a martial artist, I always have been. During the brief period when I wasn’t practicing martial arts I was still a martial artist, I was just in denial. What we do for fun and what we take seriously defines us, our profession, our family and our passion. What happens when you lose that? What happens if you become injured? What Happens when you lose the ability to do what you love because of changing circumstances? You get an identity crisis and this is what Corina is dealing with right now.

Corina has been a martial artist, she actually holds more black belts than I do. We met through martial arts all those years ago, but she is no longer a martial artist. Corina became a triathlete, she was converted and brought to the dark side, her identity switched and she found something that she loved. After she competed at the World Championships she was burned out from all of the training and we moved to America. 

Once in America Corina became a runner, not serious, but serious enough. She loved it, the smile on her face after a successful run was infectious. Corina still swam, she loves open-water swimming but she would still describe herself as a runner. Then the injury… like a black cloud it took not only her ability to run but also her identity. Was she an injured runner? Was she a swimmer?

When a new client comes in we ask them what they do. This may seem like a smile question if you have an answer but if, like Corina, you are unsure this question hits you quite deeply. Funnily enough the question of what you do is also asked by clients. Yes I have done triathlon, I have even ran a half marathon, I practiced yoga for a few years, I have done many sports but since the age of 7 I have done martial arts. Explaining that the martial art that I do is the art of drawing the Japanese sword is often too much information but clients like to know that I can relate to their activity.

Corina still cannot truly answer the question of what she does… until her injury heals she is a swimmer, I know that she loves swimming, but unless she can run and then decides to be a swimmer she will have an identity crisis.

Alan

Success is a team game

One of my strengths is that I surround myself, and my business, with people who are smarter than me. I know my areas of expertise and where my limits are, the same should apply to your health and fitness.

The Wolf Studio is surrounded by smart people, we are advised by a business strategist, we have an excellent attorney and our referral network is vast. We are experts in the field of exercise, bodywork and tape but when we are taken outside of this arena we rely on experts in other fields. You are probably and expert in something… it maybe IT, managing people, looking after children, constructing houses or any other thing that would be completely outside of my comfort zone. I know a little about all of those things and I know enough to know that I don’t know enough…

In the exercise industry there is a proliferation of information and misinformation from the media. Many clients think that just because it is in Men’s Health or Muscle and Fitness it is gospel, what is even more worrying is when exercise professionals think the same. I liken this to an investment manager using a tabloid to assess the stock market. Reading these publications does not make you an expert! If you want to know how to get the most out of your training, recover from an injury or have reduced stress levels then it helps if you contact an expert and that is where we fit in! Chances are we don’t have your expertise and you don’t have ours!

We like to refer out to other professionals. This may seem counterintuitive when building a business but if we reach an impasse with a client then the best thing that we can do is refer out to someone that can help them rather than just say that it may take longer. Sometimes we can help a client by referring them to a counsellor, or an acupuncturist, or a chiropractor. We have a very wide range of other therapists that we trust with our clients.

If you want to be successful in your march towards health and fitness then taking advice from people like us at The Wolf Studio will help you achieve you goals faster and with less pain… you don’t know what you don’t know until it is too late.

Let us be part of your team on your journey towards success.

I don’t like gyms… outside of the gym thinking.

Yes we hear that all the time, and yes for the most part we agree. Big box commercial gyms are not everyone’s cup of tea, but they are right for some people. We love working with clients who’s goals are set firmly outside of the gym.

If your goal is to deadlift 700lbs then we are probably not the right facility for you. If you are an Olympic cyclist and in the course of your explosive training you get up to deadlifting 700lbs then welcome to The Wolf Studio.

There are not many serious runners who do all of their training on a treadmill, treadmills will make up some of their training but only a small percentage. Cyclists will use the indoor trainer for some workouts but this is seen as a necessary evil rather than their exclusive training tool.

Gyms are useful to help you become fitter, faster, stronger and more injury resistant, that is why we set up The Wolf Studio. By combining exercise, bodywork and taping we can help clients at all levels achieve their goals.

Training for the sake of training is inherently dissatisfying and we find that those clients who come in with these goals actually have a deeper goal that they think will be achieved by just doing some work in the gym. A client who’s goal is to squat their bodyweight may actually think that if they can do this then their friends won’t laugh at their sparrow legs, a lady who wants to do do circuit training every day may actually have the goal of impressing her mother in law by losing that baby weight faster. If you can focus on a goal outside of the gym then you will find that your gym training is easier and more profitable. 

Most of our clients are made to think hard about their goals and when you drill down we always find that their goals reside outside of the gym, whether it is a performance goal or just wanting to feel more confident in their own skin.

Train to live rather than live to train!

How to look after your balls

We have been using exercise balls for a lot of years now. During that time we have seen some sights and heard some great stories of what people have done to their balls (and what you shouldn’t do!). So, here is the top 3 tips on how to look after your balls:

1. Buy a burstproof exercise ball. You can get balls at some amazing prices these days. But many of the cheaper balls are not burst proof. That means if they get punctured they will pop like a balloon, rather than deflate slowly like a car tyre. If you are on top of a ball at the time this is not something you want to happen, so invest in a good quality ball. The most common reasons we have seen that people puncture their balls is rolling over a drawing pin on the floor or a cat or dog deciding to play with the ball. A bursting ball may persuade your pet not to do it again, but I still wouldn’t recommend it!
   
2. Get the right size for you. OK, this one is more how to look after yourself than the ball, but it is still important. Using a ball that is much too small or large for you can make exercises very difficult to do and can put your body into strange positions, leading to injury. The right size ball for you is when you sit on it (and it is inflated correctly) your thighs should be horizontal or slightly above. Getting the right size of ball will make your exercise more enjoyable, so you’ll do more of it!
   
3. Keep it at the right inflation. Most commonly we see balls that are under-inflated. The balls are more soft and deform more when you sit on them. This makes them easier to use, so you don’t get nearly as much benefit from the exercise you are doing. If you are going to do the exercise you may as well get the most benefit from it, right? We have also seen the opposite problem, over-inflation, most dramatically seen by the fire crew who decided to attach a ball to the high-pressure air hose and see what happens. By all accounts the ball got as large as the fire engine before it burst!

Public Speaking… turning a weakness into a strength

When I was in university I had to give a 5min presentation to my peers and the faculty. This 5min presentation was a minuscule part of the final grade but cost me many, many sleepless nights. We students were given many lectures on presentation technique, how to structure an effective presentation and (this is in the days before Powerpoint) how to use overhead projectors and acetates. I practiced that presentation so much that nearly 20 years later I think Corina can still recite most of it. During the presentation I was a bumbling, stuttering, stammering mess and the content was annihilated by the faculty…

Right now I consider myself a professional pubic speaker in addition to my skills with body coaching, massage and taping. I know that I can hold the attention of a group of people I barely know and enthuse them on subjects that they previously thought boring and mundane. I have lectured in front of many hostile audiences and converted most of them, I have made them laugh and I have challenged and changed many long held beliefs. I have been asked to do an hour lecture on a specific topic with only a few minutes notice and totally wowed the audience. 

So what changed me from the stuttering, stammering idiot reading from his notes to an award winning lecturer and presenter?

The quote from Sun Tzu’s Art of War that summarizes my approach is this “It is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you will not be imperiled in a hundred battles; if you do not know your enemies but do know yourself, you will win one and lose one; if you do not know your enemies nor yourself, you will be imperiled in every single battle.”

I tell a lot of jokes. During my presentations, I use funny pictures in my Powerpoint presentations and make jokes about my height and receding hairline. I know that if I can make my audience laugh they will be more relaxed. I know this because the body cannot produce stress hormones while you are laughing. Some audiences think that I just like telling jokes, this is true, but there is also a very deliberate tactic involved here. Often my jokes are planned and scripted sometimes off the cuff, I know that I can deliver a line and I know that is a learned skill. I have written presentations for other people and the jokes often fall flat, but when I deliver the line it brings the house down. I pride myself on being fun and informative. 

I know my subject. I lecture and present on subjects that I find interesting and that I am passionate about. I try to know far too much about the subject I am talking about, I deliberately over-prepare. There is no such think as overkill is my motto when I am preparing a presentation. I have an extensive library, I use the internet and I have over 10 years of experience and learning in the field of exercise, bodywork and taping to draw upon. Experience is a wonderful thing and I have learned from many years of lecturing that I operate best when I am over-prepared.

I made mistakes and learned from them. When I look back at some of the public speaking and lectures that I have given I cringe… I can think of a few people who I owe a debt of gratitude to for believing in me and allowing me to grow and develop as a presenter, in particular Mr Todd my Judo Sensei who first taught me how to teach when I was only 14 years old and Maggie Brooks-Carter of The Scottish Massage School who believed that a short cocky fitness guy could teach her courses! Sure I made mistakes, tons of them, but I like to think that through reflective practice I have learned from what I did wrong and what I did right. I spoke to my students and asked their opinion and took criticism without taking it too personally, it still hurts a little though and that is part of how we grow. I continue to make mistakes and learn from them.

I don’t read my notes. My notes during a presentation are on the screen if I am using Powerpoint. Like most people I am a visual learner and as anyone who has attended one of my lectures will attest I use a lot of pictures, cartoons and photographs during my presentations. I know that I am slightly dyslexic and that if I have to read a script word for word I am in trouble. If I cannot have Powerpoint during my lecture/presentation then I will have a single sheet of paper with some pictures on it to remind me of the next topic, weird but effective. 

I learn from every source I can and I never stop learning. Yes I have read the books on public speaking, why would I not learn from experts in that field. I have listened to audiobooks, podcasts, webinars, you name it… I didn’t get good by accident. I went through a period when I was very formulaic about the way that I did my presentations but I have now developed my own style. Every time I listen to or see another public speaker I learn, I watch how the audience responds to their style, their tone, their dress, I learn from it all. I have attended courses and lectures across the globe I have seen presenters hold an audience in the palm of their hand just standing on a stage and talking passionately and I have seen acclaimed speakers fall flat while using some of the most elaborate presentations I have ever seen, I learned from it all.

I prepare. Simple right? I think I spend 5-6 hours in preparation for every hour I present. Counter-intuitively I can spend longer on a shorter presentation when I want to get a specific message across. For a recent 8 min presentation I spent at least 6 hours perfecting what I was going to say, this is without using Powerpoint. If I was going to use Powerpoint then the time consumed would have more than doubled. I thought about my audience, how to make them accepting of my message and how best to deliver my key points. 

I practice. Yep, sometimes I practice aloud, sometimes in my head, the less I know about the audience or the subject the more I practice. I will practice delivering my key jokes, and my back-up jokes. I practice answering the questions I expect the audience to ask, the questions I have deliberately orientated the presentation towards. I practice dealing with conflicting points of view and I practice dealing with interruptions such as mobile phones and IT failures. I go through many “what if?” scenarios in my mind and prepare for positive and negative possibilities.

I pay attention to detail. I had a lecturer at university who instead of using a traditional pointer used a Swiss Army knife to point to things on a slide, I don’t remember what he lectured about but I remember the knife… I know that I have my foibles when I lecture, but I am always smart and I will always be consistent. I try to minimize distractions, I think about my background and I empty my pockets and my hands as much as possible when I lecture. I will deliberately use British or Scottish words in my presentation because I know that these wee turns of phrase will be noticed and commented upon.

I know what works for me. After many years of lecturing and presenting professionally I know what works best for me. Some of this may seem weird and a little OCD but I am self-aware and my method is as unique as I am. I perform best when I have Corina as my assistant, she removes any worries I have about nutrition and she can deal with any administration that needs to be addressed. I am best when I use Powerpoint, I can use visual jokes and explain complicated or abstract ideas using visual aids. I like to arrive early, very early, I would rather be 2 hours early than 2 mins early. On the way to the lecture or presentation I like to relax by listening to Motley Crue, particularly ‘On with the Show”...I like to settle my nerves by being alone for 5-10 mins before the presentation and I like to practice laughing before I go on stage… I am unique, I know my own quirks and I know what works best for me and for my audience! 

I am confident. By nature I am an introvert, I am happiest in the company of just a few close friends, I am uncomfortable in many social situations and I am a completely different person when I go on stage. I liken it to having an alter-ego, I joke that when I lecture that I channel my inner Gene Simmons (I actually channel his on-stage persona the Demon). If you don’t believe in yourself or what you are saying then why should anyone else? Yes, there is a fine line between confidence and arrogance and I believe that it is knowledge that is the main differentiator. I am knowledgeable, I am self-aware and I am a great public speaker.

Those are my own tips and how I managed the transition from stuttering idiot to confident public speaker. Not all of my tips are suitable for everyone, the Motley Crue thing in particular… I would encourage everyone who is worried about public speaking to start small and enjoy the process.

If you struggle with public speaking and would like some advice on how to improve your skill set please don’t hesitate to contact me.

Alan

I am Alan Lunn I am a Body Coach and I am co-owner of The Wolf Studio in Solana Beach, CA. If you know an organization or group that would like a dynamic presenter to deliver a fun and informative presentation on a health and wellness subject please see the contact information below.

Alan and Corina Lunn are available to teach on a wide range of fitness and bodywork subjects running workshops that have both theoretical and practical components. If you run an educational establishment anywhere in the USA and would like to have a guest speaker please contact The Wolf Studio for details on how to book Alan and Corina.

Knowing what you want

Goals are a funny thing. We all have them, but we don’t all know it. It can be quite a challenge to put your real goals into words so you actually understand what you are striving for, and others do too. It is something we have to work with every day in the studio and if we don’t take that step of pinpointing the root goal with our clients they won’t achieve it. On a personal note this is something I have had to face for myself recently.

Back in April I set my big goal for the year: Run a marathon. But it was better than that, I was going to run the Nike Womens Marathon in San Francisco on October 16th in 4 hours or less. As far as goals go this one looks on the surface to tick all the boxes. It was very specific, it had a definite timescale by which it was to be achieved by (October 16th), it was manageable and there was even a performance criteria attached to it. Much better than the usual “I want to be fitter” goal most people present with when they first come to speak to us.

However this goal only gives you the mechanics of the event that will take place. It doesn’t look into the emotions behind it. Without understanding the emotions that led to the goal being set you don’t know when the goal has truly been achieved or when it needs to be changed.

When I injured my foot we were forced to re-evaluate my goal. What was the important part of it? Did I want to run a marathon? Did I want to run that particular marathon? In under 4 hours? Or was it something different? It took quite a lot of guided soul-searching to figure out the answer.

For me there were several things behind the marathon goal. Firstly most of my friends run marathons all the time. I wanted to have done one so I could justify from experience that I wanted to stick to shorter races. I wanted to satisfy my curiosity of whether I was capable of living up to the challenge. I wanted something to inspire me to do more training and get me to the stage of running feeling effortless. And finally I wanted my body to look better, which is usually a side-effect when I get into more serious training.

So now that the Marathon itself is off the cards due to my stress fracture where does that leave me? I now know that running a marathon itself was not too important. I don’t feel like I have anything to prove any more. I may revisit this goal in the future but for now I am happy to let it go. I am also happy to have the pressure removed, it was taking away from the enjoyment of running and turning them into a chore. Having let the marathon goal go I now feel more inspired to go running again (yes, I’ll not do that until my foot has healed…) and it has also allowed me to remember how much I love swimming.

The goal of wanting my body to look better is still there. Maybe that means it was the central goal, all others just being window dressing. I don’t know and right now I don’t care. The swimming I am doing will help towards my body image goal but I know it won’t get me all the way there. So in the future I will need to decide whether I want to hit the gym again or add something else in.

Through this entire exercise I have found that getting to the root of my wants has enabled me to really focus on my goal and not be sad when the one I put down on paper is no longer going to be achieved as planned.

This is what we try to achieve with our clients. Nailing down what the root is of what you want means we can find ways to achieve it that are fun, fulfilling and something that makes you feel better about yourself right now.

Corina