16/8/18

Hey guys!

Welcome to the very first edition of our new weekly emails! These email will also pop up here in our blog space. I am really looking forward to sending you a little bit of weekly something and hope it can provide you with some value! I aim to get these out to you every Thursday, I always have a lot to bang on about, so I expect I’ll never be short on something that’ll hopefully be informative, educational, thought provoking, inspiring, quality banter, etc.

I want to enter this space as I want to find more ways to provide more for you.

We are a gym, as a shell we can be just seen as a place that gets you fit, makes you healthier and prevents chronic disease. We do it primarily in the form of effective physical exercise prescription and nutritional guidance, and the support of the best most uplifting members you’ve ever seen!

I think that is great and of course I believe it is effective. But the more I evolve in this business and grow as a coach and a leader and have meaningful conversations with people and members and other leaders and thought provokers, the more I know that there is so so so much more to helping people in the area we are working in.

It isn’t as cut and dry as… do fitness, eat good, get results, happy.

We live in a time where there is more opportunity than ever to do and achieve whatever it is we want. But we also live in a time where there is more self esteem issues and mental instability than ever, at a critical level.

So many of us are missing out on those opportunities we so greatly desire because we doubt ourselves, we don’t think we are good enough, we think we’re too fat, too ugly, not smart enough, nobody likes us or respects us.

When the reality is, we are good enough, we can achieve this things, we can live happy, healthy, fulfilling, chronic disease free, bitter free, blame free lives. We’re just a bit stuck. This is the area I want to explore.

CrossFit Cranbourne absolutely nails the physical fitness side of things, we’re getting better and better at the nutrition side of things. We bust our buts to try build the self esteem/mental health side of things, most of it is via the physical changes we experience as a result of fitness and diet, and of course a whopping good community that does nothing but bring each other up like I have never seen before in a fitness environment. But I think there are big gaping holes in the effort to improve mental health that we are only just scratching the surface on. I am confident, I have good self esteem. I will have a crack at anything and I’m sure as f*** not afraid to fail.

But I didn’t always. I was bullied by my should-have-been best mates in my first year of high school. I had to move schools as a result. Not long after that my parents split up because my father wasn’t faithful. And there you have a solid method to completely obliterating an 11 years olds confidence in himself, and the feeling of complete inability to confide in someone, due to a now broken mum and an ex-superhero of a dad. I didn’t think I had many options than to just bottle that s**t. But somewhere along the way I turned it around… My face may have turned tomato red every time there was a suggestion a girl might like me, I may have been unable to get through an english oral due to my hands shaking so profusely that nobody was able to hear me over the sound of my paper, my heart might have beaten out of my chest every time the bus rolled into school every morning (unbeknown to me it was this thing called anxiety), I might have become a ferociously competitive and hard nosed footballer as a way of expressing myself… But I turned it around. How? F’d if I know. But this is what I want to find out. How can I help people get out of this mental hole?

Footy gave me some confidence. I had really wonderful mates. I have always been pretty mature for my age. I don’t like to be wrong. I don’t like to be just average. I had some grown ups believe in me and did the best thing for me… throw me in the deep end. After a few months at my first gym, my first gym boss told me I was going to take a cycle class.

“Have you ever done one before?”

“Nope”

“Okay well you’re taking the class next Friday, so you’d better jump into some classes before then.”

“Okay!”

F**k.

Sink or swim.. I don’t like to lose. I don’t like to be average. Time to step up.

If I could pinpoint a turning point, that must be it.

This doesn’t mean that in one terrifying hour of stationary cycling I was cured. It was an ongoing process. I think the main two things I did every time these daunting experiences were thrown my way were:

1 – Back myself (as best I could, whether I was terrified or not I certainly didn’t let anyone see it)

2 – Learn from whatever I stuffed up and to NOT beat myself up about it.

There’s a start. My vision for this place is to go well above and beyond just a space for fitness. We do a damned good job of helping change lives, inspire active lifestyles, boost self confidence, turn you all into total fitness badasses who are capable of just about any physical task. But I know I have the capacity to do more. I’m not happy with a 100% fitness and diet success rate if I don’t have a 100% mental health success rate. I reckon we’re at about 50% and that is probably a damned good score across the health and fitness industry. But it isn’t good enough (especially when there are areas of the fitness industry where owners and trainers are absolutely demoralising their clients and their mental health… But that is for another email).

Where to start?

I have already started.

1 – Raise the Bar Radio podcast. Search us on iTunes and Soundcloud.

We search for inspiring and interesting people. We search for leaders in these areas that can educate, as well as people like you and me with inspiring stories that can get the thought and confidence juices going. This Podcast is a POWERFUL tool. In the 3 short months I have been involved I have grown immensely. I am good at this and I am inspired to deliver damned good conversation. Do yourself a favour and tune in. Starting with episodes 17, then 20, then 15. And then 19…. In that order. 2 – These emails.

I will be sure to share all of my thoughts and learnings right here for you all to ponder, learn and discuss.

3 – My Instagram and CF Cranbourne’s Instagram. (@stuart_cunningham27, @crossfitcranbourne)

Booty and ab shots are great. But thoughtful and meaningful content is better. Instagram can be a very positive space if you follow the right people. It is your own personal and customisable magazine, so don’t fill it with trash. I try to share others thoughts and ideas, and my own in this space. As well as snippets of the lifestyle I try to lead. I am happy, I believe I am doing a good job of chasing that. It ‘aint always unicorns and rainbows (well for Harper it is, they’re her favourite 2 things!). But I don’t think it should be either. A comfortable life is a boring life. But I reckon I’m getting a good handle on this balance.

4 – In the gym.

One of the most important spaces FOR SURE. What goes on in our 4-walls is fantastic. Ongoing positive growth of the amazing community we have, sharing positive thoughts and ideas, staying humble, being generous, being grateful, empowering others. If my staff and I can uphold these values, and instill them into the people that enter our gym, things can only get better.

Time to Explore.

If you’re reading this and aren’t currently a member and want to get involved in the wonderful place that is our gym. Here’s what you can do…

Head to www.crossfitcranbourne.com.au and book in for a Free Trial. No obligations. Just a class on CrossFit and what it’s all about. We will look after you, teach you some cool stuff and give you a little workout. It is for everybody. All ages, all sizes, all fitness levels (that includes level 0). We got you. We promise.

Contact me on my personal phone number: 0400518009

Email us at info@crossfitcranbourne.com.au

Message us on Facey, just search CrossFit Cranbourne.

Or message us on Insta, same deal.

We also have a tonne of useful content you can watch and read. Our Facebook video’s, YouTube account and Website is chock full off FREE INFO that can get you started before even entering our doors.

HAPPY THURSDAY!

Stu.

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