Ipswich Town legend Luke Chambers on his Harmonious Society, why former players often struggle and how getting outdoors and moving is key.
Watch a PREVIEW of the chat with Luke Chambers below:
Watch or listen to the FULL CHAT with Luke Chambers below:
After a pro football career came the quietness
Luke Chambers enjoyed an epic career. He played professional football for twenty years and played just shy of 900 competitive games (more than 1000 if you factor in friendlies).
But when he retired life went quiet and he felt it was hard to get going.
So he decided to expand the Harmonious Society – then solely a clothing brand – to become a running club.
“Twenty people turned up in November when it was minus four. We ran five K.
“Three years ago I finished my playing career in May. It gets to June and you say ‘I’ll go for a run in the morning,” Chambers told Sport and Life.
“Doesn’t happen. So I thought I’ll put it on my Instagram… ‘Harmonious is going to start this thing on a Wednesday morning, seven am.’
“Twenty people turned up in November when it was minus four. We ran five K.
“And now we’ve done it three or four times a week for the last three years. And it’s grown and grown with over a thousand people in a WhatsApp community, with a paid membership.”
You’re likely to feel bad if you’re stuck indoors alone
Harmonius’ impact on participants is multi-layered. The exercise gets people fitter in body and mind and helps focus Chambers’ big battle to reduce loneliness.
Often when a footballer struggles in retirement it’s put down to a seismic change of identity.
“But if you aren’t outside and you’re not not moving I don’t know how people do it.”
But while Chambers doesn’t disagree that adjustment is huge, he says the loss of daily outdoor exercise alongside friends is a big part of the picture too.
“Listen, everyone talks about structure and what you do in the day and how you plan things.
“But if you aren’t outside and you’re not not moving I don’t know how people do it.
“I’ve been outside with my mates for twenty years and we’ve tried to recreate that.”
The Triple Tonic
Chambers and his partner, former teammate Emyr Huws, plan to grow Harmonious from its Ipswich base. But in the meantime if you’re in Gloucestershire and looking to get moving and talking in the great outdoors, check out the Triple Tonic sessions that I run in Cheltenham:
For more on Harmonious Society and their sensational sportswear:
