HAVE you ever spent so much time talking about doing something that it felt like you did do something?

You plan, brainstorm, and prep. You speak about the steps you’re going to take and the significant changes that will happen because of them.

And it feels like you’re doing something. You must be. You’ve it all mapped out. Surely that’s doing something, right?

Nope. And not just any nope, it’s a big fat nope. To do the do you have to do the do.

That spinning wheels phase of taking action is something we encounter more often than you’d believe when chatting to retired players.

There could be any number of reasons but if I were to hang my hat on one it’s that the majority of them haven’t had to put any work into the planning part of the process before.

A manager or coach has always been responsible for creating their programme, setting out their goals, establishing their training schedule, etc, etc. And when all you’ve ever had to do was show up it’s very easy to get lost in the “What do I need to have in place” part of getting started.

So where do you start?

What is the first thing that a retired player can do to actively seek some physical improvement?

Now I might be biased but I think it’s this – pick up your phone and contact a coach.

You’ve worked with a coach all the way through your playing career so why wouldn’t you do the same in retirement?

In fact, you were an old hand at playing ball. You had a lifetime of experience under your belt. You probably needed a coach less back then than you do now.

What will the coach do? A good one will take all of the details that you were getting lost with off your plate and let you get on with what you’re good at – the work.

You know that you enjoy training. You enjoy the craic, the push, the drive to be better. When you’re in and know what to do, it’s easy.

A good businessman would tell you to delegate the tasks you don’t want to do yourself if you want your business to grow. The same is true of your physical ambitions, by working with a coach you’re delegating the work you’re not really that interested in.

Let the coach design your training programme, step target, calories, meal plans and whatever else you need help with. Then all that’s left for you to do IS the do.

And I’m going to give you a chance to get stuck into the thick of the action by opening up eight spots in our next Reignite Challenge day.

The last one was a massive success. The boys put their shoulder to the wheel and took so much away from the collective effort and experience of teaming up with their peers and testing themselves against each other.

If you like the sound of that then put Saturday, October 22 in your diary and give me a shout to lock in your space.

Time to stop talking about doing something and go do it.