"It's Never Too Late" with Ryan Troupe

My guest on the podcast this week is Ryan Troupe. Ryan is a Legal Director at Atkins which is a part of the SNC-Lavalin Group an Engineering Group in Hong Kong. He has been living in Hong Kong since 2007. He joined Valley RFC as a rugby novice and Ryan shares his story of the re-ignition of his sporting activities in the podcast. More recently Ryan’s wife Danielle has inspired him to undertake new sports and he followed her by participating in Spartan Races and he has become hooked. Ryan had never run seriously before he ran a half-marathon. Ryan tells the story of how Kitty, Danielle’s mum, in her sixties, joined in during their training sessions and ultimately also started competing in the Spartan races. Having sporty parents and a sporty grandmother has imparted the joys of exercise also in Ryan and Daniele’s three children. Ryan discusses this in the podcast including some of the ups and downs of staying fit and healthy. The commitment to maintaining health and wellness is not always a linear process and Ryan goes into detail of his journey. Including his work arounds during Covid times and the importance of being curious.Timings03:43 I am a legal director… I came out to Hong Kong in 2007… a change in lifestyles…where my fitness journey began…05:27 I am 6’ 6” about 120 Kilos… someone suggested I try rugby…I absolutely loved it…06:46 I went back to the gym… lifting weights… I did my first half marathon in 2014…[Spartan races] In 2017 I got hooked…08:30 Over 2017,18,19, we ran “Spartan races” consistently… in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea, Japan, China …it’s been a fantastic journey for me…11:07 So when I came to Hong Kong …I was very much a fish out of water… far from my comfort zone… [rugby] I ended up loving the game… focused on being fitter for the game…11:54 With Spartan it was a similar story… Spartan changed everything…14:48 It never is too late and you can surprise yourself…15:56 My mother-in-law …she’s in her sixties…she asked if she could join us… she has kept this up…it’s been fantastic to see…17:02 This culminated in the entire family running a Spartan Race…18:23 I am trying to impart an example to my kids…22:31 I’ll be grateful if we can keep this going as it is …23:36 For me it’s about prioritizing… choosing a goal and sticking to it… the hardest part of fitness is showing up…25:22 If I couldn’t work out so much I couldn’t eat so much…26:16 Learning to be kinder to yourself is important… be realistic …set a challenge…29:54 Habits are something you have to maintain for consistency…31:38 [Morning practices] All through 2020[and the first half of 2021]we did… get up workout before breakfast… I find I am stronger in the evenings… I design my routines around the equipment I have at home…34:10 Trying to be more consistent is something I am working on… more likely to be exhausted from a body weight session… it’s outside my comfort zone…37:10 I’ve started seeing a trainer… focused on hanging strength… a different style of resistance training… learning to identify limitations and work around them… 40:13 I ripped a muscle in my pelvic floor… I was getting stiff and sore… I have to work around this…learning how to adapt… a good trainer is critical…44:12 When I was injured …I had to focus on diet… I managed the portions… QUOTE: It’s never too late to find out what you are capable of.Contact Information:Contact Ryanhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/ryan-troupe-a5098826/ Contact Vincent Newsletter: https://vincent1cd.substack.comPro Coach: https://procoach.app/vincent-hiscoxEmail: [email protected]: Vincent Hiscox