Welcome to the dynamic pursuit podcast, this is the follow up Playbook Episode after we had the awesome Phil Learney on the show.

Karen and I discuss our reflections and share some actionable takeaways from that episode. We also get a little more personal with some of the challenges we have faced around identity and having to drastically change direction out of necessity rather than choice.

If you’re ready to take some action after listening we have got a 10% discount code from HMN24 to offer to listeners of the podcast.

You can start optimising your sleep wake cycle by heading to HMN24.com and use code ‘DYNAMIC’ at the checkout to get 10% off.

In this episode of The Dynamic Pursuit, renowned coach and HMN24 co-founder Phil Learney joins us for a wide-ranging conversation on career evolution, the art of strategic decision-making, and navigating the identity shifts that come with growth.

Before diving into the science, we stay true to the essence of living a dynamic pursuit by getting to know the person behind the expertise. Phil shares insights from his coaching journey, having worked with elite athletes, CEOs, and high performers, and opens up about the lessons learned through career transitions and business leadership.

We explore the parallels between coaching and entrepreneurship, the mental health challenges athletes face after sport, and the importance of small wins along the way.

Then, we turn our focus to one of the most overlooked pillars of high performance: circadian biology.

Phil breaks down how modern life is disrupting our sleep-wake cycles, how caffeine and stress contribute to allostatic load, and why building consistent routines is essential for resilience and recovery.

Whether you’re an athlete, coach, or high performer this episode is packed with perspective-shifting insights.

Chapters

00:00 The Journey of a Strength Coach

03:04 Reflections on Success and Personal Growth

05:56 Strategic Decision-Making in Business

08:51 The Transition from Coaching to Business

11:47 Identity and the Athlete's Journey

14:47 The Impact of Transitioning Careers

18:05 Visionaries and Innovators in Business

29:06 Identifying Needs and Solutions

30:17 The Catalyst for Human 24

32:18 Circadian Biology and Modern Challenges

36:33 Managing Caffeine and Stress

40:45 Understanding Allostatic Load

42:34 Sleep Quality and Recovery

48:38 Establishing Healthy Routines

53:16 The Importance of Consistency in Sleep Hygiene

57:43 Enhancing Wellness and Performance

We said in the pilot that this podcast was going to be sensible and playful.

This week is your dose of the latter as Karen and I share our reflections and actionable takeaways from Episode 2 on Bone Health and Bogus Research with Dr Ian Varley.

In most cases podcasts follow the same format. Hosts invite guests on and their job is to extract as much useful and valuable information for the audience as possible.

When we’re dealing with complex subjects or matters of scientific explanation, the episodes can get pretty detailed. As such there isn’t a lot of time for…let’s call it ‘entertainment’.

So to provide a different take, we thought we’d do an unscripted, off the cuff debrief. No collaborative planning and absolutely no sharing of notes prior to hitting record.

We hope it brings a smile to your day.

If you want to get in touch, find us on Instagram at:

@DynamicShoulders

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Format Overview

06:08 Vitamin D and Bone Density Insights

12:10 Sports and Bone Health: A Comparative Analysis

18:14 Gym Training vs. Sports Participation

24:11 Site-Specific Bone Response and Upper Body Training

30:53 Physical Literacy and Generalism in Youth Sports

39:10 The Risks of Returning to Sports After Inactivity

Keywords

bone health, vitamin D, multi-directional movement, sports training, childhood development, gymnastics, bone density, athleticism, health insights, personal experiences, bone density, mobility, physical literacy, generalism, youth sports, adult health, progressive overload, athleticism, aging, critical thinking

A chat about bones might not sound that sexy but I’m going to challenge that misconception, and it will land when you find out that around one third of elderly people who go into hospital with a fractured femur don’t come out.

Bone health is not something you only worry about when you're old.

It's something you need to develop in your early years and maintain throughout life so you don't need to worry about it when you reach your latter years.

To bring some expert insight and opinion on this subject Tim is joined by Dr Ian Varley who is a leading researcher in injury and illness surveillance, the impact of exercise and physical activity on stress related bone injury, bone structure and bone metabolism.

Ian is an Associate Professor of Exercise Physiology at Nottingham Trent University. He is also the injury and illness consultant to the Football Association and Premier League and women’s super league.

He has authored over 50 peer-reviewed publications in prestigious journals such as Nature Communications and Sports Medicine.

Outside of his professional life, Ian is a husband, father and in his own words, a winter runner and a summer cyclist.

We close out the episode with a discussion about how to identify legitimate sources of research. With so much information circulating and so many claims being made, discerning what information carries weight and what you should be more skeptical about is a key skill in this day and age.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Dynamic Pursuit Podcast

01:31 Meet Dr. Ian Varley: Expert in Bone Health

04:10 The Importance of Bone Health

11:23 Childhood Activity and Bone Development

15:09 The David and Goliath Story: Gymnasts and Bone Density

17:45 Building and Maintaining Bone Density

22:20 The Role of Nutrition in Bone Health

32:47 Optimizing Bone Health and Nutrition

41:14 Understanding Stress Fractures

43:40 The Importance of Loading and Activity

46:51 Navigating Research and Information Quality

01:01:37 Practical Applications of Research Findings

Keywords

Dynamic Pursuit, athletic performance, personal growth, bone health, injury prevention, exercise physiology, Dr. Ian Varley, osteoporosis, childhood activity, nutrition, bone health, nutrition, stress fractures, exercise, research quality, athletic training, injury prevention, bone remodeling, physical activity, health education

Welcome to the pilot episode of the Dynamic Pursuit.

What was intended to be nothing more than a soundcheck turned into a pilot for our the new podcast brought to you by Tim and Karen Stevenson from Dynamic Shoulders.

A central pillar to the concept of a Dynamic Pursuit is progress over perfection.

For Karen and I who are both recovering perfectionists, we have learnt that half the battle is won by simply getting started.

Trying to be the finished article from day one only brings procrastination and heightens the negative voices in your head. What we believe the world needs is more courage, impetus and action.

So to honour that, this pilot episode is a super rough cut. As you’ll hear, Karen wasn’t prepared to record so it’s off the cuff, unscripted and we hadn’t even crystallised the exact vision for what this thing is going to be about.

So to honour our commitment to the adventure of the Dynamic Pursuit, we're publishing it.

Take it as evidence that we're living the message we want to share with the world. We hop you'll join us on the journey.