Nhat Pham in the last 60 seconds of his 55-minute plank challenge. (Screenshot)
To Nhat Pham, pushing yourself physically goes hand in hand with pushing yourself personally and professionally.
It’s that mindset that led the local business coach and strategist to spend 55 minutes of his 55th birthday face-down on his elbows and toes, in a pushup-like position called a plank pose, for a physical challenge that doubled to promote Mental Health Awareness Month.
After all, as Pham learned, his self-imposed “55 at 55” challenge was as much about mental toughness as it was about physical endurance and core strength.
The fitness enthusiast and founder of Midlothian-based business advisory Successwerks said he’d only recently gotten into planking after a relocation left him without his previous core-strengthener of choice: a punching bag.
Nhat Pham
Building up his endurance over about 10 weeks at Midlothian gym F45 Training, Pham set a goal of lasting 55 minutes holding a pose that most athletes can endure only for a few minutes. And he’d do it on his 55th birthday, May 3, three days into Mental Health Awareness Month.
“I wanted to do something not only personally challenging but that got outside of my comfort zone,” Pham said. “What I thought was more of a physical challenge was much more mental, and that mental part – and my birthday being May 3, and the month of May – I thought it would be great to highlight mental health awareness, because I see it do so much in my professional life as well as my personal life.
“The challenges an entrepreneur and executives face on a daily basis, whether it’s employees, staff, family, it’s a lot on a person,” he said. “Sometimes we forget or dismiss that mental health.”
Pham said he found motivation and encouragement by reaching out to others who had set records holding the pose. He said one world record-holder, whose time of 9 hours, 30 minutes was surpassed earlier this year, stressed that the mental part of it outweighed the physical.
“The pose is very challenging. Most people can do a minute and that’s very difficult. A couple minutes, wow, people are already impressed,” Pham said.
Pham completed the feat at F45 Training Midlothian, where he’s also a coach. (Images courtesy Nhat Pham)
By early April, he’d gotten up to 35 minutes, and he made it to 50 minutes twice before the big day. But it was never easy, he said.
“At 30 minutes my body was breaking down, because I was going so fast, and my nervous system shot,” Pham said. “I didn’t realize how much recovery I would need. I was doing cardio therapy at (Restore Hyper Wellness) here in Midlothian. I was using these compression boots, stretching, using Icy Hot. Turning 55, sometimes you forget you’re not 25 anymore.
“People think, oh, it should be easy for you now. Every single time, at the 20-minute mark, it starts to really hurt,” he said. “The 30-minute mark, you’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, why am I doing this? Maybe I should just quit.’ How do you get past that? At moments, you feel like Mel Gibson at the end of ‘Braveheart’ getting your guts ripped out.”
Despite the pain, and with encouragement and support from the F45 community and others during his challenge, Pham pulled it off. Others involved in the event included local physical therapy clinic The Royal Treatment, National Alliance on Mental Illness, and Mental Health America.
Pham said the support helped get him through it, while also amping up the pressure he needed to achieve the challenge.
Supporters encouraged Pham through the challenge.
“I didn’t know how much energy that took, and how much people were in some ways counting on me. All those people were there to witness this, and I didn’t want to let them down,” he said. “I wanted to show people (what’s possible) if you put your mind to it.
“There’s self-doubt that crept in. That last three or four minutes was ungodly,” he added. “Luckily the people around me, they were yelling, ‘You can do it!’ And I had these phrases in front of me to coach me through it: ‘fix the form,’ ‘relax,’ ‘shift.’ That support helped me get over the finish line.”
A J.R. Tucker High School grad and Virginia Tech alum, Pham has been a business coach and strategist for 25 years, launching Successwerks in 2001 and co-founding local networking group Two Twelve Referral Network, which he has since stepped away from.
Successwerks works with local and national clients on leadership training, business strategy and execution, and coaching and advising. Clients have ranged from Bon Secours and AT&T to Disco Sports and Mekong restaurant.
Pham said his “55 at 55” challenge and other fitness goals he’s pursued over the years have had positive effects on his day job and daily routine.
“I think a big part of being strong in your professional life is being strong with your fitness,” he said. “Sometimes, reflecting, I get frustrated with a client and how they deal with me, and I just have to remember, hey, just relax, breathe – all the things that I had on my little sheet of paper: ‘breathe,’ ‘focus on the process, maybe not the form,’ ‘ask the right questions.’ How do you relax, stay calm and press through the hard moments.”
This is the latest installment in our Downtime series, which focuses on businesspeople’s pursuits outside of the office. If you, a co-worker or someone you know around town has a unique way of passing time off the clock, submit suggestions to Jonathan@RichmondBizSense.com. For previous installments of Downtime, click here.
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