Males throughout Bedford and Milton Keynes have been benefiting from the experience of MAN v FAT Well being & Wellbeing Coach Dave Griffith, as he lends his information to each our soccer and rugby communities.
Dave’s laborious work and successes in his two golf equipment – the established Soccer membership in Milton Keynes and the fledgling group in Bedford Rugby – has seen him shortlisted for Coach of the 12 months at this yr’s MAN v FAT Awards, so we caught up with him to seek out out extra.
Inform us a bit about your background in teaching and your specialism on this space
I’ve an unconventional background in teaching. It started whereas working in a career that included a number of worldwide journey, time modifications, disrupted sleep and inconsistent meals selections. Observing my very own expertise, I started a interval of self reflection and introspection, inspecting my very own state of affairs with regard to mindset, diet, sleep and health, regularly creating efficient methods to deal with my each day challenges.
Having studied Social Sciences and Psychology, I’ve a lifelong fascination with society, relationships, human behaviour and the thoughts. My specific curiosity is Optimistic Psychology, which is grounded in what’s working as regards to our behaviour, fairly than what’s damaged. This emphasis on character strengths, function and resilience varieties the background to my teaching fashion, working collectively to construct
confidence, develop abilities, and supply help to these searching for optimistic change.
After additional examine, finishing programs in Dietary Recommendation, and Sleep CBTi, I started by working with colleagues, focussing totally on bettering dietary selections, and introducing higher sleep methods,in addition to championing the deserves of standard train.
I used to be privileged to have been concerned within the MEND (MIND, EXERCISE, NUTRITION, DO IT!) mission when it was first rolled out in my native space. The aim of the twice weekly course, delivered over a ten week
interval, was to supply help for youngsters between the ages of seven and 13 and their households, to attain and keep lasting more healthy way of life behaviours.
The staff was tasked with encouraging households to be extra bodily energetic, in addition to studying that wholesome food and drinks selections could be nutritious, inexpensive, in addition to scrumptious. The outcomes from the programmes that I delivered had been merely staggering, with each mother and father and kids benefitting from weight reduction, and enhancements in shallowness.
What attracted you to turn out to be a MAN v FAT coach within the first place?
I’ve at all times had a ardour for sport, and specifically have a lifelong love of soccer and rugby. I’m additionally enthusiastic about males’s well being, as a result of the stark actuality stays that males proceed to have the next mortality fee than girls, dying nearly 4 years youthful and going through larger charges of heart problems, most cancers, diabetes and dying from suicide.
It’s important that we take steps to reverse these alarming traits by tackling excessive profile danger behaviours, similar to extreme consuming, smoking, and drug dependency in addition to poor weight-reduction plan and lack of train.
I’m an advocate of encouraging males to see searching for assist as a power fairly than a weak spot, and encourage them to routinely go to a GP, and to be proactive as regards to particular well being dangers, similar to prostate most cancers. Decreasing the stigma round psychological well being can be important, and you will need to begin the conversations that maintain traces of communication open.
What have you ever loved most about teaching at MAN v FAT?
Every participant concerned within the programme has a singular story, and start their MAN v FAT journeys from completely different ranges of confidence, health, information and skill.
Supporting every participant from the outset as they settle into the swing of issues, making them snug, and understanding their particular wants and studying fashion is at all times an vital component of the bedding in course of. By participating in non-judgmental open and trustworthy dialogue, both with myself, a teammate, or via the staff chats, gamers often embrace the optimistic tradition of their friends, and try for enchancment.
Empowering these unbelievable males to take higher management of their well being, whereas doing one thing that they take pleasure in, and having fun and a joke alongside the way in which, is extremely rewarding and galvanizing.
What impresses you most concerning the males you help within the programme?
The most important factor for me, is the extent of mutual help that these wonderful males reveal in direction of one another. The camaraderie and respect is extraordinary, in addition to their dedication and dedication to rise to challenges. The resilience that I witness on a weekly foundation is really awe inspiring.
What are the primary variations you’ve observed between the Rugby and Soccer communities you take care of, and what themes run true via each programmes?
Having begun my MAN v FAT teaching expertise on the established membership of Milton Keynes, competitors and staff rivalry was embedded within the weekly soccer fixtures. The robust want to win on the pitch is a
theme that continues, and no quarter is given on match days. This doesn’t nevertheless diminish the robust camaraderie and supportive nature of gamers relationships off the pitch.
Teaching Bedford Rugby from its inception, I’ve had the privilege of seeing each the membership and the gamers evolve. Nonetheless within the growth stage as a membership, with development of numbers a precedence, the present gamers place much less emphasis on the outcomes on the pitch, focusing as a substitute on the enjoyment and satisfaction that they get from these periods. With one participant stating at a current session “that is the spotlight of my week”.
The widespread theme that runs via each of those programmes is the engagement, dedication and dedication of every group to make significant and optimistic sustainable modifications to their existence.
Mutual help can be strongly represented throughout each sports activities, with many gamers assembly socially, coaching collectively on the fitness center, or strolling collectively. Each communities are acutely conscious that merely turning up and taking part in each week, isn’t enough, however the attribute of exhibiting up with candour and openness concerning the triumphs and challenges of the week underlines the power of the gamers dedication.
Banter and humour can be a useful asset, maintaining spirits excessive, on a chilly moist night, or disarming awkward conditions.
You’re one of the vital skilled coaches on the brand new look system, having used it for Rugby beforehand. What distinction do you assume it’ll make to coaches and gamers because the Soccer programme totally migrates throughout?
The brand new look system is an enchancment on its predecessor. From a coaches perspective, it permits entry to the entire related data simply and successfully, seamlessly shifting from one part to a different.
The person participant data is concise and useful, displaying stats and participant milestones collectively in a single place, which is especially helpful when chatting with a participant. The roundup tab is a godsend, itemizing the entire vital weekly data in a single place, making my weekly membership roundup simpler to compose.
Gamers from Rugby and Soccer don’t have anything however reward for the brand new system. The Participant Portal has been universally accepted as a noticeable improve to the outdated weekly e mail system. Gamers are impressed with the extent of element and quantity of knowledge at their fingertips.
Though I’m solely in week 4 of the brand new system at Milton Keynes, the improved system is indicating enhanced participant engagement and accountability.
The English Authorities launches its Males’s Well being Technique in 2025 – what do you assume are the primary priorities for males’s well being within the coming years?
Bettering wholesome life expectancy of males, by focussing on lowering the drivers of CVD, similar to hypertension, extreme alcohol consumption, smoking, drug abuse and weight problems.
Decreasing the stigma round Psychological Well being and make it simpler to for males to succeed in out to counsellors and psychological well being professionals.
Encourage males to be empowered and assured to succeed in out and ask for assist fairly than struggling in silence once they have an issue. It’s important to place the suitable help the place it issues, in order that it isn’t solely accessible, but in addition efficient – an App isn’t at all times the most effective answer!
