Sabrina Muysken
He filled our screens with red roses and romantic picnic dates in Network Ten’s third instalment of ratings magnet The Bachelor Australia. A year later, after the whirlwind televised romance that saw him find love, Sam Wood is back in front of the camera. Yet this time around it is his health and fitness expertise rather than his relationship status that are garnering the attention.
The latest TV gig sees Sam co-hosting Channel 10’s hotly anticipated daily program, Everyday Health, that sets out to discuss, dissect and debunk all things health and wellbeing. Rounding out the panel of four is sports broadcaster Tiffany Cherry, health journalist Casey Beros and Dr Bridie O’Donnell. Sam says the healthsome foursome along with various specialists who advise on each episode look to cover a multitude of issues across the health spectrum, from disease to sleep and appropriate physical training for your age.
“We want to educate people, create some conversation and dispel some myths. It’s really about pulling out the key three or four messages in each episode and providing the audience with a better understanding of sometimes complex health issues, but in layman’s terms,” enthuses Sam.
Currently, there seems to be a genuine market for shows like Everyday Health, as recent years have witnessed the health and fitness industry experience a substantial boom. When asked on
the increasing popularity of the concept of ‘wellbeing’ Sam predicts the publics interest is unlikely to waiver anytime soon.
“Things work in cycles and we tend to as a society not just in Australia but worldwide be quite reactive. Unfortunately, or fortunately depending on how you look at it, the fact that the health of Australians is in such a dire state means we’re all starting to wake up, pay more attention and want to be more educated on health issues.”
Having experienced his own personal tragedy, Sam’s mother passed away from cancer when he was just 15 years of age, Sam is genuinely understanding of the significant role health plays in our lives and the various ways it can affect us.
“These days it’s only one degree of separation. We all know someone or have a loved one who has been deeply affected by an illness or condition. That obviously hits home hard and we’re finally starting to be more preventative in health rather than reactive.”
Despite welcoming this new chance to share his passion for health and fitness, Sam still speaks fondly of his time on The Bachelor Australia and attributes the show to his current ease in front of the lens.
“It was not only an incredible life experience but also a steep learning curve when it came to television. Even though Everyday Health is the polar opposite, it has helped my communication skills and I definitely don’t get the same nerves in front of the camera.
“My dad says ‘if you can handle The Bachelor then you can handle anything’. There is a little bit in me that probably thinks there is some truth to that!” laughs Sam.
Before his days of handing out long stemmed roses Sam had already become a pioneer of children’s sport and fitness after opening Australia’s first kids’ gym and launching his widely successful company Gecko Kids. Even though the former bachelor has since extended his area of work to adults, his ultimate passion still remains instilling the value of an active lifestyle within youngsters and watching the tailing positive outcomes.
“The great thing about working with children is you can have a positive impact on their lives so early. You can really make a huge difference and create lifelong healthy habits.
“There is something incredibly rewarding about working with children. They tend to not have any preconceived ideas and they really trust your lead. Also, it’s genuinely fun and that’s the most important thing. If it’s fun for them it’s fun for me and that’s a pretty good way to make a living.”
Beyond his work with children Sam has expanded his expertise to adult fitness through his personal fitness, health and performance facility, The Woodshed. More recently, the budding entrepreneur has channeled these expertise into his very own fitness app ‘28:28 by Sam Wood’. Via an online platform the program has been designed to educate, motivate and support clients in achieving their desired results and implement healthier lifestyle choices.
“Being a personal trainer for 16 years I know that motivation will go up and down. I know that unless you have that personal support network around you it won’t be easy. We’ve got nearly 10,000 people in our facebook community now and it’s this beautiful safe place where people can ask questions, share success stories and talk about the challenges they’re facing.
“I don’t have an extreme view on health and wellness. I think everything needs
to be in moderation, everything needs to be enjoyable and everything needs to be sustainable…That’s what the program is all about.”
With an amounting health and fitness empire, Sam is content with how his career has progressed so far.
“I’m loving what I’m doing right now. I don’t want to be on TV for TV sake. I really only love this opportunity because it’s doing what I love. Anything in the media that I can do to help people on their wellness journey is a privilege.”
And when it comes to offering advice on how to finally implement those healthy resolutions, the fitness expert says starting is always the most challenging part but once you do momentum will build.
“Take that first step, have the courage and the commitment to do it. You get one life and you really do just have to look after it.”
Everyday Health airs on TEN at 2.30pm Monday to Friday.
