Spend 5 minutes a day on these small actions, and you’ll see a big difference.

Darren Shane is a world-renowned personal trainer, business entrepreneur, and yoga instructor. Originally from Richmond, B.C., he now lives in the beautiful coastal city of Onjuku, Japan, where he and his wife, Matsumi, run Turquoise Wellness Studio. You’ll hear Darren talk about his experience on the TV show Dragon’s Den, what it takes to pursue a dream, and the small changes you can make that pay off in a big way.

Find Darren here: https://share.google/gAQPdk8BN4dhEbXCD

https://www.instagram.com/mrexercise?igsh=YjBjenhrOHNheXl6

Featured musician: Jeassea K Thyidor & Chris Russell  https://open.spotify.com/track/2xV5zlIEhsZUdzaUd2kZS9?si=kRqo2g1cRVOzuFWWSoVW8g

Intro and outro music: 

Unknown Stories: Good Morning  

Creative Commons: Cinematic Music  

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Thanks for listening. You can see the recorded video on YouTube. I have business page up on Facebook. Please feel free to reach out and comment, like or follow me on your favorite streaming platform. 

Have a good day. ☺️

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Welcome to the Series 31 Podcast.

SPEAKER_05 0:04

Hey everyone. On today's show, you'll hear a close personal friend who is an expert in fitness, wellness, yoga, and personal training. You're going to hear him teach you how to optimize your physical and mental health and what it was like to be on the TV show Dragon's Den. Enjoy the episode. Hello everyone and welcome to another episode of the podcast. I am your host, Chris Tawes. And if you want to find motivation and energy, then you have clicked on the right show. Nice. My guest today is a close friend of mine from Richmond, BC. He's been a personal trainer and yoga instructor for the past 25 years. First began studying law and then shifted his focus to business and English. He's been very successful in running multiple businesses in the lower mainland, such as Astone Fitness, Lava Yoga Fitness, and the 24-hour Gym Sports Central, just to name a few. He has also appeared on numerous TV and radio programs. In 2023, he and his wife moved to Japan and have opened their own business called Turquoise Wellness Studio, specializing in sports fitness, nutrition, and yoga. Well, yeah. And he's a kick-ass ball player for the Tokyo Osaka Warriors. Thank you. Yet his third ball team he has played for in Japan over the past 25 years on Instagram. He is referred to as Mr. Exercise. He's just an incredible person, and I'm so glad he has agreed to be on the show today. Friends, please welcome Mr. Darren Shea. Ah, thanks, Chris.

SPEAKER_06 1:32

A long time friend of mine. We've known each other, boy, for the better part of 20 years, 25 years.

SPEAKER_05 1:39

25 years.

SPEAKER_06 1:40

A long time, yeah. It's good to see you here back in our home tour of Richmond in Canada. Yeah. Yeah, back from Japan, a brief trip here.

SPEAKER_05 1:49

It's always good to for us to reconnect when I'm in town, right? I always appreciate it. You always reach out, you always let me know when you're coming in town, and we always make an effort to make it happen. So, you know, it's another chapter, right? Welcome, man. Thank you for being on the show. Thanks for having me. Um, I thought we'd start off kind of like at the beginning a little bit.

SPEAKER_06 2:10

When did fitness start becoming like a big part of your sports have always been pretty paramount in my life? And you know, I think if I look back at the the history of when I was younger in sports to the current age, fitness was not as paramount. Really, it wasn't. You look now, you know, kids have got coaches, trainers, it's, you know, there's just gyms that have so much more access. Although I do remember getting my first set of dumbbells, and I must have been about 12 years old. Well, I didn't. I look at the book, The Wider, I had like the Arnold thing. So that was sort of the you know, the plan of the scene. I always liked it. Really, fitness has been part of my life forever. And then work-wise, you know, my older brother was in the fitness industry before he's a physio now. And, you know, I have been in Australia where we met. We we, you know, a couple times we hooked up there in, you know, in Sydney and then in Perth. And I came back from Australia, and that was when I first started my studying. And that was sort of around 99, 2000. And my brother said, it's a great industry. And I originally got into it more for my knowledge rather than making a career out of it. But I found I really enjoyed it. I found, you know, I was learning a lot rather than what I was just previously doing. And I was working at a golf club at the time, and I was able to offer some my what I was learning to some of the members there just to get some clients. And I was like, wow, it really was impacting people. And then, you know, you fast forward 25 years later, and you know, I've worked, I've had my own private studios, maybe four of them, and I've ran a 24-hour, 60,000 square foot thing with, you know, thousands of members, you know, 30 staff. So I've seen a lot in the industry from my own company that I create with my products, as we know, which we'll talk about. So I've traveled the world and I've, you know, it's been a rewarding industry.

SPEAKER_05 4:00

It really has. And I think that you you you nailed it like you saw the impact that you were having there. I think you were working at Make Fair Lakes, right?

SPEAKER_06 4:07

Absolutely. And also, you know, being in this industry, I mean, health has always been something I've liked, but it it's that one little thing, like that burn on my shoulder that makes me, you know, really want to be healthy, my best version of myself too, and to motivate others to encourage my clients and just to live a healthy life. So tell us a little bit about the human trainer.

SPEAKER_05 4:28

That's one of your big things.

SPEAKER_06 4:29

Sure, yeah. Well, my I mean, I had first gone to Japan around 2003, 2004. I came back from Japan and I was working for Gold's Gym in Tokyo. And then outside of Gold's Gym, I also had a bunch of expat clients. One of my clients was the president of Credential Insurance, very busy guy. So I trained him at his apartment. And for example, I remember you know, he had this long corridor and we're doing lunges, and you know, I had to try to bring some fitness equipment if he didn't have it. Right. There wasn't a lot, you know, in the sense of good quality resistance bands. So when I came back from Japan, a friend of mine and I, we started the company, um, A-Stone Fitness, which our core product at the time was our rip cores resistance bands. And I mean, we have sold hundreds of thousands of those globally over the years. Um, around 10 years later, through our RD, we launched another product, our Human Trainer, which is a dual suspension body weight suspension gym. And that product, you know, really got us globally even further, where we started traveling to different um trade shows from Germany to Vegas to California, um, to also being featured on Dragon's Den.

SPEAKER_05 5:38

Great by him.

SPEAKER_06 5:38

And so, you know, again, we've been able to put quality products in people's hands to help them, you know, be able to exercise, whether they're at home or they're traveling. So it's been a, again, another rewarding thing to be able to see that we're helping people.

SPEAKER_05 5:53

So tell me more about that experience on Dragon's Den. I find that really fascinating. How did it start and tell me about that day?

SPEAKER_06 6:00

Sure. So to get on to Dragon's Den, let's look back to that so people understand how to even get on. Each province, you know, they have usually one or two auditions per year if the show keeps running. And so they'll have a few of their casts that basically are just seeing people. So you want to try to do your best job to showcase your business in that you know 60 second pitch. So we brought a couple of models. My business partner Joel and I, we put up a cage, you know, and we really, you know, we wowed them on that one. So they gave us a call, they said we want you. Um, but we had been designing this pretty cool rack. Because racks, you know, if I understand explain what it is, some sort of big frame, whether it's an A-frame or something that's heavy-duty metal, strong to hold body weight. Yeah, with you know, these straps. We built this rack. It was it was a literally a bulletproof glass rack. It had, you know, flare of these Lexin glass sheets. Each sheet, my goodness, must have been 100, 150 pounds. Really? Screwed in together. You could pound on them fair weight with a wooden brand. You'd be like jumping airborne. So they saw this thing because we and they said, no, no, this thing needs to be on the show with us. This thing weighs thousands of pounds, requires a crate. And the week before the show, we were in Germany at the FIBO show. We had to fly that from Germany to Toronto. It was not cheap. No, I was gonna say, and they didn't pay me for much of it. But you know, nonetheless, it was a showstopper. I mean, this thing was was unbelievable. You know, you'll see people like literally kicking, extending their feet in the air, airborne. So um that was that's you know, was when we got on the show. But, you know, why did we go on the show? You know, knowing that we did a lot of research, Chris, on what Dragon's Den ultimately is, you know, it's a lot of things. But you know, I think historically, if you really look at it more than anything, it's probably a reality TV show that happens to be about business. Right. Of course, deals happen. They do, and you know one's gonna discredit, but you know, we look at the statistics, most don't get deals. We went on for a marketing focus more than anything. You know, not really preparing, looking to get a deal. They offered us, three of the dragons offered us, you know, a half a million. We were able to, you know, on both parties, we didn't agree on what they offered because usually they want to take a large percentage.

unknown 8:24

Yes.

SPEAKER_06 8:24

Um, and you know, sometimes it's good, sometimes it handcuffs a business from my experience of of studying. But to be on the show, to have done all that preparation that when they interviewed us, and we were on the show for about 45-50 minutes. Oh wow. You know, I mean, the show's only five minutes, yeah. We had all of our, we nailed, but they just try to look for anything they bike home where they might, you know, try to look you, make you look bad or make them look good or have some sort of drama, but it was a great experience.

SPEAKER_04 8:52

Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_06 8:53

You know, as soon as we were done, I mean, what a relief in many ways, right? But it was just it was a great experience. Which uh which one of the dragons did you really kind of connect with? Was it five of them generally? Yeah, exactly. Uh you know, probably Jim and Arlene, you know. I mean, not many people connect with Mr. Wonderful, you know. Kevin, but a great guy, you know. I mean, he knows his stuff. He knows his stuff. You know, again, you gotta have your characters to make that show, and there's a big reason for their years and years of success.

SPEAKER_05 9:24

Yeah, exactly. So you're pushing your dream, you're going up there in front of a camera. What advice would you give to someone who is a dream but is maybe having trouble getting it started?

SPEAKER_06 9:35

You know, I mean, dreams and visualizing your dreams and being committed to them. I mean, dreams don't happen overnight. No, you know, usually they do, and usually a lot of sacrifice. You know, I mean, a lot of people got to work a lot of hours, you gotta be committed, you need to make, you know, you gotta save money, depending on what someone's goal is and dream, and everyone's very different. Um, but you know, you don't want to give up on your dreams. No. You know, I mean, I believe that writing down what's so important to you and stay in the course. You know, whether it you know be that you want to move overseas, whether you want to buy your first home, I mean, most things are realistic. Of course, we live in an expensive city, but you know, when we talk about sacrifices, what does that mean? Does that mean I, you know, I can't go to one more restaurant a week, I go five times a week, I go twice a week. Well, you're gonna have to cut back somewhere, you're gonna have to put a little bit more money away, you know, on each paycheck, something that allows you that that slowly prepares you to reach your dream. Um, you know, and I think, you know, in my opinion, a lot of people go to bed at the wrong hour. They go to bed late. My grandpa used to say to me, I remember it still, you know, early to bed, early to rise keeps you healthy, wealthy, and wise.

SPEAKER_05 10:50

Healthy, wealthy, and wise. I like that.

SPEAKER_06 10:52

You know, and it's not easy. It's easy to be, you know, up all night, you know, watching more shows on our phones and you know, where maybe getting to bed earlier and getting up earlier, and while the rest of the world is sleeping, you're pounding away, getting stuff done, right?

SPEAKER_05 11:06

So get to bed a little bit earlier, yeah. Wake up a little earlier and learn to sacrifice a little bit. I believe so.

SPEAKER_06 11:14

You know, I mean, if you just want to keep coasting, you can, but probably, you know, in a world where cost of living is high, there's lots of challenges out there, you know, you might need to be a step ahead. And and I feel that going to bed early and getting up early is one of those key elements that will help you.

SPEAKER_05 11:35

Yeah, that's good.

SPEAKER_06 11:36

Uh-huh. Can you tell me a time when life really knocked you down and like what did you learn from it? I've been pretty fortunate, Chris, that I really haven't had any knockdowns, you know. Um, and I and I'm be very grateful for that. A lot of hard work I've you know, I've pretty much had one, two, three, four, five jobs at a time for the last the better part of thirty-five years, you know. And so you know, again, I think that trying to be easy on yourself.

SPEAKER_05 12:08

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 12:08

You know, a lot of people are hard on themselves. It's at very high bars, and that's okay. But if you don't achieve them, you know, don't get so down on yourself. You know, try to just realize that life has its its meaning and it'll unfold as it should. I mean, I, as a fairly young kid, and I don't know where it came from, the infamous Desiderada. It's Desiderata, right? Desiderada. Maybe it's a poem or a scripture. Oh man, it is. If you've never read it, search it. It is like powerful. And I tell it to you, but tell it to him, and check it out. Google it, you can see it. It is a, I mean, it maybe read takes three minutes to read, but the words that in that are in that really speak to how the world is meant to be. The world is meant to unfold as it is, you know, rather than trying to fight things.

SPEAKER_05 12:54

I love that. Yeah. Like one of my favorite books, I still read it here and there. My daughter's uh read it a few times, is The Alchemist, right? By Paulo Kaley, something like that. Absolutely, right? It's all about that life's kind of getting getting you down, maybe obstacles in the way, and you keep pursuing that dream and ends up becoming a reality. Maybe not the way you thought it was gonna go, but you ended up achieving something pretty amazing. Exactly, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 13:16

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SPEAKER_05 14:16

Let's talk about you and your wife, man. I was at your wedding.

SPEAKER_06 14:18

Yes, exactly. 18 years is coming up here soon.

SPEAKER_05 14:23

Do you have any marriage tips for everybody?

SPEAKER_06 14:25

Yeah, sure. I mean, you know, like a lot of things in life, whether it's marriage, whether it's co-workers, whether it's you know, everything, um we have to make sacrifices. We have to find balance. It's not always about me, you know, and you know, to make things work, you know, you hope that you're with a partner that you care about, you love, and is everything perfect? Nothing's perfect, you know. Um, but you have to be willing to say sacrifice that, you know, both people are unique and different in their own ways. And, you know, if there's something that you know that triggers someone else, do your best to avoid it. Maybe not do that. Yeah, exactly. You know, I mean, I don't like don't like fighting, don't like being in the dog house, and I do my very best to avoid that. Um, you know, and trying to go for walks together, try to spend time together. You know, we all could spend less time on our phones, you know, be a little bit more in tune with our partners. Um, but I think, you know, respecting them, having your own space, um, and also, you know, like I said, really knowing when to accept when someone's done something wrong, don't blow up about it. Yeah. You know?

SPEAKER_05 15:39

I I definitely have found that though we've been doing these 20-minute walks now for a little bit. Yes. End of the night, we're busy, three kids. This allows us to get some together time, exercise, and talk about life and just to, you know, connect for that 20 minutes. We're busy, so it just allows us that time to tell us tell each other about our days. Walks are important, you know, rather than just what's looking forward to for tomorrow and prepped up, right?

SPEAKER_06 16:04

You know, communicating together rather than sitting on a couch, huge. Both with your phones in your hands, right?

SPEAKER_05 16:10

Communication is huge. We've been working through that for a while. Uh you know, I found that the times that we've sort of been having some problems is when we're not communicating. Absolutely, Chris. So just going sort of disengaged, floating by, right? Yeah. So I know Msumi's from Japan. You guys just moved to Japan. Can you tell me a little bit about how you decided to do that?

SPEAKER_06 16:30

I mean, when we met, which is nearly 25 years ago in Japan at Gold Gym in Harajuku, if anyone knows the area, um, you know, we met there and then she came to Canada for a little bit of a home stay, but we spent 20 years in Vancouver together. And we'd always talked about the possibility to go back to Japan. And, you know, the timing was right. We'd been, you know, going, you know, once or twice a year for almost every year because her parents were there. And we'd found this really special town called Onjuku in Chiba. You know, it's right on the beach, stunning, beautiful beach. Sand is soft, the waves are beautiful, turquoise here, everywhere. And, you know, we that was sort of maybe the spark that really, I mean, we'd been talking about it. I know. This is the problem with that's your job, right?

SPEAKER_04 17:19

Exactly. Almost. I go.

SPEAKER_06 17:22

And you know, I mean, the cost of living, Chris, in Japan to Canada is there's a pretty big difference. You know, and that was a factor. North America has become um continuing to be harder and harder for a lot of people, no matter how many jobs you have, right? Just, you know, the more you make, the more you spend, the bigger the house you buy. Yeah. And that, you know, a standard house here in Japan versus Canada, Canada's what,$800 to a million dollars, two million dollars. I mean, you could buy a house, very basic house for$20,000 up to you know$200,000. And then if you want to get something larger, bigger, you know, the prices go up, but that's a pretty big difference.$20,000? But you could buy a plot of land for$2,000,$5,000. My town's got all these like pretty large sort of condo apartments that were built in the bubble that face the ocean. People were buying beachfront condo for$25,000. Really? You know, you can't buy anything like that here. So that was a factor. I mean, even looking at food, you want to buy, you know, a pack of chicken or a pack of eggs. What you buy? A couple healthy breasts of chicken here, that's$14? Maybe, right?$10 to$14. There, it's two to four dollars. That's a huge difference. You know, eggs, what what does a dozen eggs cost here now?

SPEAKER_05 18:36

Uh, like six to eight dollars.

SPEAKER_06 18:38

Yeah, there they're they're a dollar fifty to three dollars.

SPEAKER_05 18:41

Wow. Yeah, I think. Like, because I've always had the idea that Japan's an expensive place to live, right? You think of all the future, the technology, and the nastyness.

SPEAKER_06 18:51

You think of it being this expensive place. No, I mean, like anywhere you go to the five-star restaurants. Right, sure. It's always but things are cheaper there in general. Like heart of Tokyo, there's obviously the like, you know, the Ginza, those are the you know, the New York, like, you know, the the the Yeltown, whatever. That's a fairly expensive spot. But outside of that, prices are considerably less. That was a factor. And also, you know, living here in Canada, my lifestyle and my wife's, we worked a lot. Yeah. Talking again about those sacrifices. I mean, I was doing a lot of 15-hour plus days, multiple jobs. My wife works 10 to 15 hours in massage therapy. You know, we certainly are working, we've got clients, we've been able to build this business in a year, but our lifestyle balance is better. So it was that sacrifice of putting all those years in in knowing that what our dream was.

SPEAKER_05 19:39

And now you're there. Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 19:41

Waiting for you to come visit. I know. I know man, I uh selling it.

SPEAKER_05 19:47

So on a previous episode, we had uh member of Parliament, Mark Holden on, and he talked about how when he went to South Korea and Japan, one of the things he really noticed right away was just like, you know, there's no sort of open addiction, challenges happening, not a lot of, you know, uh people just like milling around looking, you know, like homeless, addicted. Do you find that that's true? And if it is, then what what is Japan doing differently?

SPEAKER_06 20:13

Different. Yeah. You know, I mean, remember years ago I lived, you know, when I was going to work, this is the 25 years ago, there was a park I used to have to pass, and I was walking on my bike, and there were a few homeless guys that lived in the park. And I had to be at work early. So I was passing there at 6 a.m. These guys were up with brooms cleaning and sweeping their little the little park they lived at. I mean, you know, think of that. Yeah. How often do you see the homeless cleaning stuff? You're just dropping crap everywhere. Um, you don't see many homeless people. It's pretty rare to see them. Maybe the odd time in a station you might, but almost none. And why is that? That's a good question. I mean, I think as far as drugs, it's a zero tolerance. So, you know, we're North America, or at least Vancouver, anyways, you know, it's you know, a free-for-all. Drugs are everywhere. Yeah. So I think there's that, which is good. Um, you know, in North America, why is there such a problem? And does it start in the youth? Probably. You know, it it starts. Parents are very busy. Maybe the kids are not being watched enough for some of them. Um, and you know, there's this collective responsibility was what they call in Japan, which is why you see young kids walking by themselves in the train by themselves. And that collective responsibility is all eyes are on these people, okay, you know, to watch out. You know, you have people like older people that are all waiting to walk the kids just to the school, as you know, and they're all together. You don't see that in North America, this disengagement. Everyone sort of for the most part looking out for themselves. And, you know, with the kids, I see them all running around playing games. They're not on their phones, you know, and I see that. I'm like, wow, you know, maybe the kids here are all playing. And so they're just disengaged a bit.

SPEAKER_05 22:03

Yeah. So you're saying it's it's a cultural difference.

SPEAKER_06 22:05

It is a cultural difference. 100%. Yeah. You know, and it's to be honest, I quite like it. I quite like that the fact that, you know, you just don't see homeless people all over. You don't see drug addicts and addictions and garbage all over the place. You know, that collective responsibility comes back the same to the garbage. You don't see garbage cans either. You bring your garbage, you take it home.

SPEAKER_05 22:28

Okay.

SPEAKER_06 22:28

You know, so it's that collectively trying to keep everything clean and respectful to each other. So that everyone, you know, even in lineups in North America, you go to a lineup and people are cutting, they don't care about it. You know, people just systematically waiting, whether it's for a restaurant to get on the train, not trying to budge. Right. Yeah. Respect, right?

SPEAKER_05 22:46

That's why I like that. I I like your answer. I'd like the I I'd like I wanted to ask that question because it's a good idea.

SPEAKER_06 22:53

It's a really good question, Chris.

SPEAKER_05 22:54

Yeah, people are talking about it all the time.

SPEAKER_06 22:56

I find like when I'm safety-wise, you know, you you hear about that if you drop your wallet, if you dropped your phone, you're gonna get it back. Someone's gonna bring it to the station, or someone's gonna say, uh, excuse me, I see what I don't know, what it's going on in the guy she months. Something like you dropped it, right? Right. In here, you know, you drop your wallet and you're pretty much not getting it back. The high likelihood, right?

SPEAKER_05 23:17

And when you do give somebody something back that that you saw that they dropped, or try to give a helping hand, the people seem so appreciative of it when they're here. Yeah, almost like they're expecting it not to happen. Of course. They're in shock that it doesn't happen, or even about it, right? Yeah. What are some small changes one could do that would make a big impact on their quality of life?

SPEAKER_06 23:41

Well, you know, I think again that like I said, that little quote, getting up early, going to you know, going to bed early. Getting that day started. You know, trying to commit to your dream. Maybe, you know, it might be going to bed a little earlier, it might be reading a little bit more, it might be you know going for that walk. Walk, maybe doing some deep breathing. You know, trying to slow things down for yourself, easy on yourself, you know. Get out to the gym. If you don't have a gym, you don't need a gym. You can do push-ups, you can do squats, you can run on the spot, you know. I mean, exercise releases the good things, the endorphins, right? You know, makes you feel better about yourself. Eat healthy food, drink more water, cut back on on the other stuff in your life that may not be that good for you and also not good for your your pocketbook.

SPEAKER_05 24:28

I have definitely been trying to wake up earlier and one small change I've been noticing it's making a big difference on me.

SPEAKER_06 24:37

I think so, right?

SPEAKER_05 24:38

It does. Yeah. It helps achieve that that dream that you're doing because you're maximizing your time, right? Well, as you know, I work in emergency health care for long hours and we deal with chronic stress. Can you walk me through a daily routine I should follow to optimize my health and energy?

SPEAKER_06 24:58

Absolutely. I mean, I always say, for example, you know, I was at the gym the other day with my mother and her sister, and time is valuable. So in between, you know, they sort of use one machine rather than just sort of standing there waiting for the next person. I said, Mom, you could be doing calf raises, you could be doing standing little leg raises, you could just be doing a little just marching on the spot, even between your calls while you're working. There's always an opportunity. Most people just don't even consider it. You could do a couple of squats, you might be at a bar, you're like, Oh wow, look at there's a bunch. I could do a few push-ups. And it's not like you have to do a lot, but small amounts add up. Right. Right. Yeah. I mean, I like that you're already doing that walking at night, and that's something you can easily do. Um, you know, again, just holistically, what can you be doing to be feeling better? I'd say again, be a little more active. And even if it's just short little boats throughout the day, they compound to be a lot. Um I'm not sure how much fruit you eat, but fruits are good, maybe a lot of people don't, you know, they just don't buy you know, making sure you have an apple, you know, with you. But if you don't prepare for it, you've already prepared to fail. Yeah, you know, because you don't have anything with you. So that's important as well.

SPEAKER_05 26:12

I like that you talked about exercise during your shifts.

SPEAKER_06 26:15

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 26:16

Because that's something that I definitely do not do.

SPEAKER_06 26:19

Well, no, a lot of people they get home from work, they're already exhausted. Yeah. You know, so that could be a real good way. I mean, if you can do it at home, even if you just put in 10 minutes, it doesn't need to be half an hour. Five minutes of just a short, intense thing where you're doing running on the spot, maybe you're doing jumping jacks, you do a set of five squats, five push-ups, you hold a plank, maybe you have a resistance band, maybe you have a few dumbbells, repeat it, and and you're done. But again, that will add up rather than oh, I'm tired, I don't have any time. Usually when you're tired is when you need it the most, and you it actually will give you that spike of energy.

SPEAKER_05 26:52

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 26:53

Uh huh.

SPEAKER_05 26:53

Yeah, I love that. I think I'm gonna bring a resistance kind of to work later and have it in my life.

SPEAKER_06 26:58

Yeah, no, exactly, because they make a big deal. I mean, you can stand on even on your door, because you probably have a door anchor, maybe, you know. Yeah, put it in the door, and all of a sudden you've got your rows, you've got your triceps, you know, you work your chest. Little things add up.

SPEAKER_05 27:11

Man, uh-huh. My last question, I think, is tell me a little bit about turquoise wellness studio. This is your business, this is everything. I mean, that house that you created into your studio is just beautiful. Tell tell everyone about it and and how can they find you and you know online and how can they switch you out?

SPEAKER_06 27:30

We we found this special property. I mean, I'd always envisioned this large piece of land, almost like a commune with fences around it. And sure enough, we found this. It was just sort of an old but really well taken care of samurai style homes. They're all Japanese roofs, yeah, cabin floors, and then another building which looked like a barn, an abandoned barn. There's a lot of homes have several houses on it, and I you know converted that barn with the help of one of my father-in-law's master carpenters into this beautiful gym. I mean, it's it's a two-floor. I've shipped over a lot of equipment, and for the gym, the yoga studio, the garage, it's incredible. I mean, it's clean, it's showers, washroom, all full service gyms. My wife's got a private massage studio, her own entrance there. Um, you know, we put turf down outside so that we teach our yoga classes there. And, you know, I mean, in our gym, or excuse me, in our town of Anjou, but there's no other gym. So there's sort of you know, a bit of a niche area for us to reach and promote, you know, longevity, rest, recovery, health. You know, and you know, the community there has been really nice. It's a bit of a mix. We've got some foreigners that live in the town, quite a few actually, um, as well as the Japanese, and it's a surf town, so people are pretty chilled, pretty happy, pretty healthy, lots of sun tans. Um, and so you know, I mean, our just our passion to continue helping people is still there. Yeah. Uh I mean, website-wise, you can find us at be here now on juku. Um, that's our our website. And then Turkvoice Wellness Studio is on Instagram. On Juku Be Here Now, Instagram, Mr. Exercise on Instagram. Um I'm about an hour 15 minutes direct train right to Tokyo Station. So I'm not far. No. You know, I'm pretty fortunate that I'm farther enough because, you know, I mean, Tokyo is amazing, but it it isn't the city that never sleeps in many ways. Um, you know, it's that concrete jungle as well. Yeah, you know, being by nature is is really special. Sounds like you filled that void. I'm surprised to hear that there wasn't much of a fitness studio in. There was none. There's still, I mean, we're the only one in our town. In in some of the surrounding towns, there's a a few small ones, but it's it's great that we know we can help a lot of the people there. Yeah. I love that. Uh-huh. Thank you for doing that. Oh, and for me as well, my friend. Amazing, Chris.

SPEAKER_05 29:55

Should we uh go for that walk now?

SPEAKER_06 29:57

I think we do it.

SPEAKER_05 29:58

Let's let's uh let's make it happen, my friend. Right on, brother. Appreciate it. Now it's time for the 331 podcast featured artists. Jesse and I once rode in a tuck-tuck together through the streets of Bangkok, Thailand. We've been friends for a long time. Now close your eyes and imagine you're at your favorite beach. Here is Jesse Theodore and Chris Russell with their super chill track, Into the Waves.

SPEAKER_04 30:22

So check this out.

SPEAKER_05 35:00

Jesse sings in two bands right now. Fancy Device plays at the Dublin Irish Crossing in Surrey and at the Beer Shack in White Rock. She also plays in a band called The Suits, and you can see them next Saturday, April 18th at Rogers Arena, where they'll play the main stage for the Vancouver Sun Run. That's going to be a super awesome show. I want to thank you, Darren Shane, for meeting me at Waves Coffee Shop in Steveson and sharing your story with us. Positivity and less for life is just infectious. You can find the links to Darren's studio in Japan and the Human Trainer in the show notes below. Thanks to all of you for listening. I'm loving putting these shows out there for people to listen to. The appreciation and support I'm getting with friends from friends and new listeners is being just amazing. My cup is feeling really full these days, so thank you very much. Alright, that is the show. If you or someone you know would like to be on the podcast, then please reach out to me at standuppodcast at outlook.com. That's gonna be the new show name, is Stand Up. New episodes come out every three weeks. Don't forget to follow me on Spotify or Apple or wherever you get your podcast, so you'll never miss an episode. Till then, be kind to each other. I'll talk to you next time. Bye for now.