The 121 Effect is not your typical ‘Get Fit Quick’ book, neither does it simply tell you how to live your life. It is more like having a conversation with a friend, simply listening to their crazy stories.

Throughout this memoir, Ryan tells the story of his life; some sad and a little scary, other times inspiring and heart-warming. And through this, he shares the lessons he has learnt. From how to take care of your body, to recognising your self-worth.

With self-help books we often find ourselves flipping through the pages of empty instructions and impersonal tips and tricks. However, this book changes our perception on them entirely. This book isn’t just about ‘losing weight’ or ‘getting fit quick’ but understanding how to accept what you can and can’t change, and how take control of your life. Finding that motivation and willpower to better take care of your body.

In The 121 Effect, Ryan also references being Welsh-speaking as a tool which saved his life. During a particularly harrowing moment, it was his and his family’s ability to speak Welsh, his comforting mother tongue, which ensured his safe passage from Thailand back to Wales. For Ryan, speaking Welsh kept a sense of calm after being locked up in a Thai prison and the aftermath of what was to come. His roots, hiraeth, and a family bond he is blessed to have, got him home to Wales safely.

Ryan confesses he is not a writer. He writes that his ability to present his life on paper may not be up to the standards of ‘professional’ writers. But therein is the magic of Ryan’s writing. The memoirs are written exactly how they should be: raw and real, not dressed up with unnecessary metaphors, which is exactly what Ryan has done so perfectly.

The 121 Effect will drive you to think about how you’re living your life, and will make you ask yourself the important questions: Is this really the path I want to be on? How can I start taking control of my life again? Questions that are hard to find answers to, but this book may just be the help you need to start looking. To break through that barrier of demotivation and start taking care of just mind and body and living your healthiest life.

About Ryan

On his career, Ryan will tell you he’s not a typical personal trainer. Through his freelance company 121 MOTIVATION, he talks to people that the correct mindset and motivation are at the core of everything. And everything he does is done with a dose of empathy. The personal experience he talks about in The 121 Effect led him to develop an interest in obesity, examine its effects on society, and attend the Obesity World Conference in Bangkok in 2010, where he debated with world leaders in gastric band surgery. Ryan is a firm believer that people can change their lives without surgery provided they have the right motivation.

After establishing a successful personal training business in London, he decided to come back home to Wales where he realised his new business needed to be about the whole person. In early 2018, he established 121 MOTIVATION, a programme which combines mindset, training, counselling, motivational speaking, and coaching. This enables Ryan to help people deal with the root causes of their fitness and diet problems. He wants to leave Wales, and the rest of the UK, with a legacy of improved health and wellbeing.

Ryan says: “I understand how fearful people can be when they need to confront the things which are holding them back in life, and I want to be able to help them take that first, vital step on the road to their goals.”

Reader Opinions

“An inspiration! Ryan’s journey, full of twists and turns, has helped make him the man he is today. A motivator and mentor, he continues to use his wealth of experience to help others, and guide them on their journey of self-discovery” – Catrin Heledd

Available for purchase from Griffin Books in Penarth, Amazon and directly from the author. Cost £9.99, with all profits going to charities improving physical and mental health.

Ryan will host a series of book launch events on Saturday, 11 September 2021 in Porthcawl; The Galley, Penarth Marina; and Griffin Books, Penarth.