Back in the Summer of 2022 I had a buddy ask me if I would check out this Mauy Thai Gym with him. I hadn’t joined in a gym in years & I certainly never considered a gym that focused in a martial art. However I thought it might be fun so I tagged along. Though Mauy Thai was a sleeper interest for me, I do enjoy the challenge & the workout is like none other but I was pulled to the Strength & Conditioning classes. Back in my home town, a year before I came to London I started working out at a military gym with some friends of mine that took power lifting rather seriously. Over that time I got in pretty good shape but since then was a rather fair-weather gym attendee.
Anyway I was really enjoying myself going to these classes throughout the week & found strength in parts of my body I did not know I had. The coach for these classes was a women whom I’d see greet every person that entered the gym with the same level of enthusiasm, no matter if they were a competitor or somebody unsure of themselves on their first day. There was an effort to learn your name & more about you as a person so you felt included coming to class. Despite sometimes being in a class of 10 everything still felt tailored to you as an individual. I never felt out of place for a second because I could tell that I was in an environment that wanted me to succeed no matter my goal.
So what is all this set up for? That coaches name is Grace & in October of 2022 she posted on Instagram that she was launching a podcast in the new year. I reached out offering my services or to even just provide some guidance in entering the podcasting space. I have been doing a lot of work for other people, meaning a third party sends me a podcast to work on, I edit it and send it back. I don’t really have the opportunity to get emotionally attached to any of these projects. I was on the hunt for an opportunity to be more involved in a project. I have worked on 5 episodes with Grace for her “The Coach Grace Podcast” & I cannot be more excited. I think she has created something really wonderful. Podcasting is a space with no barrier to entry, anybody can start one and whatever topic you are looking to cover there are already 1000 other people that have done it before you. But I think Grace has found a way to make it feel like you are part of the hang with her. I know I would be a little bias here given I worked on this show & Grace trains me, but I would argue, who would know better than somebody that has been around her in these situations. I went through something I didn’t think I would have to deal anytime soon back in November & I when I let Grace know I needed a bit of time before I finished some of later episodes, she was right there offering any help I needed & how she dealt with a similar situation.
There is a lot of “self-help” content out in the world, so much so that it can be anxiety inducing. I’ve read the books, watched the YouTube videos & listen to the podcasts & though they do offer a sense of improvement for a short time, nothing seems to stick. Now, that could say more about me than the content that I am consuming but I think Grace is different. Grace offers tangible advice and remains approachable. This is content created with the true intent of helping. Grace is coming from a place of lived experience. I think that’s the most important quality when consuming this type of content. What are these person’s qualifications? No two people are put together the same & that is at the core of what Grace talks about. “You have a body”.
“Train Your Body, Train Your Mind. Achieve Excellence. This podcast discusses the mindset to overcome and persevere. Guests and the host share stories of challenges, personal growth, and becoming the best versions of themselves!”