From Management Consultant In The Fast Paced Arena Of Global Supply Chain To Conditioning & Performance Coach, This Journey Saved My Life!

Being busy for Dom was, as they say, 'par for the course' from early on in his working career. As a graduate Civil Engineer working in a large materials handling corporation working days in heavy construction, through to oil refineries specialising in large scale technical lifts of mobile cranes and specialised haulage equipment, Dom was always on the go, 7-days a week.

Transitioning to consumer goods with companies like Coca-Cola to national logistics roles and eventually into management consulting, Dom worked in the fast paced domains of supply chain, global procurement and business transformation niche's. With frequent extended stints living out of a suitcase, from China to India, Germany to Saudi Arabia, the USA, UK and home to Oceania, he'll be the first to tell you, the glamour soon wears off and the 'busyness' can sneak up on you if you're not on top of it.

At 42, the house of cards he was trading his health & fitness with came crashing down. Dom did what most career minded guys did. He ignored the obvious signs, put it down to 'being busy' and in today's speak, 'grinding it out' and thought it was just how life was supposed to be when you're busy and on the up & up.

Despite the obvious signs, the phrase 'ignorance is bliss' rang true.

• Fluctuations in weight,
• Challenges with sleep or getting enough of it in quality terms,
• Monday morning red eye flights returning Friday night on the last flight out and weekends on the laptop playing catch up with everything else,
• What we now call early onset sleep apnea and snoring like a proverbial freight train,
• Irritability like someone with multiple personality disorder,
• Skins irritations from bouts of shingles to severe facial rosacea, and
• Reflux so severe it was vomit inducing at times and was medicated by literally chewing on Mylanta tabs before escalating to medications like Zantac and later Losec.

Dom's path saw him survive 2 transient ischemic attacks (aka strokes) after a significant downward spiral in his health, the result of burning the candle at both ends for too long. and the typical excuse 'I don't have time'.

Taking stock of what was important to him, his 2 young children and a marriage desperately in need of some TLC, Dom dove head first into his recovery. Learning more about his situation and how it can be repaired. The change started with himself. Learning about his health markers and what triggered them, to how movement & a simple 30-min window every day can lead to long term results with commitment & accountability.

The new path took time, had a few hiccups as like your average joe, Dom did the shiny objects, latest hack and gimmicks too, until the obvious again smacked him in the face. Phase 2, do what feels right, not what was 'on trend'. Start back at the basics, and do them well and do them at a high level.

After seeing the changes in himself, Dom made the decision to make a subsequent career change to become a certified fitness professional specialising in conditioning & performance coaching. On this new path, Dom has tackled a few challenges, including his own 25kg weight loss, an MMA debut @ 46 years of age, and 50+ Spartan Races and civilian Navy Seal style commando immersions.

The lessons learned have all been documented and form the basis of his own program, the personal protocol for his coaching business. If there one thing about Dom and his coaching approach - 'Practice What You Preach'.

'The changes we make should not be about the quick fix or short term hacks. If we make changes, they should last. This game is not a sprint, but a marathon. It's what I call, The Long Game!' (Dom McStraw)

Progression, regardless of your starting of desired end point, should be based on longevity. The actions we take are not done with success in 7, 14 or 28 days. For some, yes, they do get results of sorts, but not typically sustainable results as they've missed the key changes, lifestyle.

In my own personal change, the images above show that change can take place, even if it's over a longer period of time. What I refer to as Playing The Long Game. This is my proof that the changes I made to my lifestyle were sustainable and enabled me to keep progress front of mind.