The Natural Edge – HEALTH | PERFORMANCE

From UK Special Forces to forging a new approach to health, increasing human performance and inspiring adventures

WHAT WE DO

The Natural Edge Academy

Online courses providing a simple blueprint for exceptional health & fitness

HEALTH & PERFORMANCE COACHING

Personalised help for teams & individuals to fast track results

EVENTS & ADVENTURES

Bespoke experiences to learn skills, reset the mind & reboot the body

Get actionable health & performance tips via email. No spam ever.

THE NATURAL EDGE ACADEMY

In-depth courses & training

Access our course library with modules on mindset, sleep, nutrition and training plus access to the weekly Q&A session

Exclusive content & member-only perks

Weekly focus blog, downloads, checklists and more - plus receive special perks & discounts on upcoming adventures

Active, Supportive Community

Feedback, support and motivation from fellow members on the same journey as you to keep you on track and accountable

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EVENTS & ADVENTURES

Health Retreats

Trips at home and abroad allowing people to escape the grind of modern life, meet like-minded people, reset and reboot

Corporate & Group Experience Days

Bespoke high quality training & experience packages to develop teamwork, adaptability, and resilience

Microadventures

Short, simple, local adventures in great locations that are fun, exciting, challenging, refreshing and rewarding

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PERSONAL COACHING

Personalised 1-on-1 Help

Bespoke coaching for your unique goals and circumstances to help you make the most of your time and get the changes you want

No 'Magic' Supplements

Insightful advice to unlock real consistency and give you the tools and habits to maximise every area of your life

Holistic Approach

Tracking and analysis of sleep, nutrition and movement to identify the root cause of problems and provide actionable strategies to fix them

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We are Simon Jeffries &
John Sykes-Popham

Our journey started in 2009 whilst serving with UK Special Forces. Working in a job that placed huge demands on the body and mind, and where second place could result in serious injury or death, sparked a deep interest in human performance. Along the way we became sick and tired of the misinformation and half truths that confuse people and confuse an already complex topic.

Now our passion is sharing the lessons we have learned with as many people as possible, to help everyone achieve the best health they can.

FIND OUT MORE

FOLLOW OUR STORY

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A different future for farming.
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My post on Monday actually reminded me of the trip I took to @englishfarm_ with @piglet2plate. This was the time I was really looking into where the food on my plate was coming from. My experience that day and ones since have led me to believe that English Farm is an example of the kind of thinking we need to revert back to in order for farming to move forward into a sustainable, and socially responsible future.
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Aside from having incredibly high animal welfare they are also moving towards having a closed loop agricultural system. Some people compare this method to moving back in time, at least to a certain extent, to when farming practices were simpler and not nearly as large-scale or industrial.
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This type of farming system addresses soil health and erosion, carbon sequestration, waste production and uses agro-ecological processes within the farm wherever possible to limit inputs and reduce waste. Examples include nutrient cycling (macro and micro), biological nitrogen fixation, predation and symbiosis.
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Basically, by working the land as it should be, English Farm are attempting to recycle all nutrients and organic matter material back to the soil that it grew in. This forms part of an agricultural practice that preserves the nutrient and carbon levels within the soil.
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Unfortunately with a food system so entrenched in large industrial practices, and with so many people to feed on the planet, there are still many problems that need overcoming. This topic in general is incredibly complex, almost overwhelmingly so.
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But food is a bedrock of life and part of the foundation of our physical, spiritual and emotional wellbeing. It is also at the heart of many of the critical environmental and social challenges we face in the 21st century. And so we cannot and must not ignore the power we all have with the choices we make on an individual basis.
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Even small steps, taken when you can, will begin to make a difference.

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Was it a game changer?
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October 13, 2017. One of my earliest posts on Instagram titled ‘My Journey To Here’, giving a summary of my journey from fully fledged meat eater to a majority plant based diet. Since that time I experimented with veganism only to return back roughly in line with my thoughts when I wrote that post.
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With the recent release of the documentary Game Changers I’ve had a lot of questions asked on the topic of veganism and plant based eating. If you haven’t seen it Game Changers promotes veganism by showcasing athletes who have adopted it as a lifestyle. The film also argues that eating any animal products will lead to negative consequences for your health.
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Not so long ago veganism was on the fringes, so the fact this film was produced by James Cameron shows how far it has moved out of the shadows and towards the mainstream.In fact it rides the crest of a huge wave of change in how plant based eating is now viewed.
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In 2015, I finished my career in Special Forces and veganism wasn’t even remotely in my conscience, and I certainly had never considered it as a lifestyle choice. Having grown up on a farm in the country hunting and fishing, eating meat was inexplicably linked with being strong and fit.
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But when I left the military, for many reasons, I started to question the beliefs I held on certain things. This included my diet, which I started to look at not only from a health and performance perspective but also from an ethical one.
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This eventually led to me following a vegan diet for nearly 2 years, before turning away from it in favour of eating mostly, but not exclusively, plant based foods. Consuming far less animal produce and choosing local farms that employ regenerative and sustainable farming methods as the source.
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The full article on veganism, plant based eating and my experiences with both will be the topic of this weeks email. I warn you now it is not short! This stuff is VERY nuanced and even though I’ve tried to keep it as concise as possible and cover the salient points it’s still a bit of a read. But to be honest it still barely scratches the surface.
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(Link in the bio for jumping on our email list).

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Seize life!
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The picture above was taken at the base of a climb during a long weekend trip to Slovakia. Hiking into the High Tatras to climb 500m of rock and snow, before heading back to our lodge under a clear and starry sky, having summited the peak as the sun set was an incredible experience.
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The following is one of my favourite quotes from the book Climbing Everest by George Mallory:
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“People ask me, 'What is the use of climbing Mount Everest?' and my answer must at once be, 'It is of no use.'There is not the slightest prospect of any gain whatsoever. Oh, we may learn a little about the behaviour of the human body at high altitudes, and possibly medical men may turn our observation to some account for the purposes of aviation. But otherwise nothing will come of it. We shall not bring back a single bit of gold or silver, not a gem, nor any coal or iron... If you cannot understand that there is something in man which responds to the challenge of this mountain and goes out to meet it, that the struggle is the struggle of life itself upward and forever upward, then you won't see why we go. What we get from this adventure is just sheer joy. And joy is, after all, the end of life. We do not live to eat and make money. We eat and make money to be able to live. That is what life means and what life is for.”
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The key point I take from this is that Everest can mean anything to each of us. Adventure is not always about going away to some exotic destination, but about finding excitement in both the new and the old. It is about going out of your comfort zone to open yourself up to the experiences and beauty that life gives you, no matter what path you choose to go on.
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It’s about seizing opportunities and taking on life with nothing but passion, enthusiasm and excitement.

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Stronger through sleep!
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A lot of the time when someone asks me a question about getting better results from training, it usually involves something around a certain exercise or supplement. But before I even tackle those points I ask what their sleep is like, because it is the single most powerful natural performance enhancer we all possess.
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If you want to reach your potential in the gym, at work, or any other area of your life you simply cannot get away with paying lip service to sleep. What makes sleep so essential for our wellbeing comes down to three main things: to save our energy, to help our cells recover, and to help us process and understand our environment.
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Sleep and exercise are inextricably linked with each other, thanks to human growth hormone. HGH is released by the brain into the bloodstream during sleep, and its release is part of the repair and restoration function of sleep as well as promoting a healthy metabolism and enhancing your physical performance.
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75 percent of human growth hormone is released during sleep, so if you’re not getting enough you are missing out on huge gains. There is also a strong link between a lack of HGH and disorders associated with aging, e.g. lower HGH levels correspond with higher risk of heart disease, obesity, and diabetes. Other side effects include weight gain, lowered cognitive and physical performance, and reduced muscle mass.
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And yet we still see less sleep as some kind of badge of honour! It’s crazy! We are the only animal on the planet which purposely deprive ourselves of sleep. Catching up on the weekend is also a myth since you will still be accumulating a chronic sleep debt.
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If you want to perform better get the following in place ASAP: Blackout your room, get exposure to bright daylight when you wake, avoid stimulants and alcohol late in the day, no devices before bed, have a regular sleep/wake cycle, create a sleep haven, wake with a sunlight alarm.
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You will get a bigger return on your investment with sleep than anything you can do in the gym or drink in a shake!

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Never Out Of The Fight!
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“No matter how much it hurts, how dark it gets or no matter how far you fall, you are never out of the fight.” Marcus Luttrel.
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When it comes to our health, even at the best of times when our sleep, food and fitness are on point, it can be easy to get knocked off track. We all know the feeling. Work suddenly gets busy and you miss a couple of training sessions. You have a couple of late nights and cooking is swapped for convenience. The weather gets colder and darker and hitting snooze becomes much more appealing.
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And before you know it your momentum is stalling and the good habits you’ve built are starting to slip away. BUT, no matter how grim your situation seems to be, you are never out of the game. You can always make a come back.
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Having stumbles along the road don’t make you a failure, they make you human. The most successful people in the world slip up on their habits too. What separates them is their ability to get back on track quickly.
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Habits are behaviours that we repeat consistently. However, they are not behaviours that we repeat perfectly. This small idea—that consistency does not require perfection—is important.
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The following 5 tactics can be used to help you regain your momentum when things are looking bleak:
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Avoid The Second Mistake: Errors are part of the process, but they shouldn't become part of the pattern. One mistake is just an outlier. Two mistakes is the beginning of a pattern.
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Eliminate Distractions: Improve by subtracting. It is much easier to make the right decision if you are surrounded by better choices.
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Focus On What You Have: Shift your focus from what is withheld from you to what is available to you.
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Do Something Over Nothing: Just because you can’t stick to the optimal schedule, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t stick to it at all. Good habits are built gradually. Start slow, live your life, and get better along the way.
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Care More: You only have so much energy to put towards the next 24 hours. Pick a habit that you care about. If it really matters to you, then you’ll find a way to make it work.
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(Full article + tactics can be read by joining our email list - link in bio).

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT US

“Since following TNE my health and lifestyle has improved a great deal. In the beginning my diet wasn’t great, so I decided to start off small. I can honestly say I feel so much better for it, my performance in the gym has improved, as well as my body shape and how much energy I have.”

SOPHIE TYAS

“After struggling with my weight for years I really think I have found a place where I can not only improve my weight but also myself as a person. I feel part of a growing community of like minded people who want to not only improve themselves but help you improve yourself.”

STUART MARSH

“The changes around my nutrition have led to me being generally being happier, my training has come on amazingly and I have again learnt to listen and respect my body. The team are so supportive, informative and above all passionate. I am so grateful to have found this!”

PETRINA GLASS

From UK Special Forces to forging a new approach to health, increasing human performance and inspiring adventures

WHAT WE DO

The Natural Edge Academy

HEALTH & PERFORMANCE COACHING

EVENTS & ADVENTURES

Get actionable health & performance tips via email. No spam ever.

THE NATURAL EDGE ACADEMY

In-depth courses & training

Exclusive content & member-only perks

Active, Supportive Community

EVENTS & ADVENTURES

Health Retreats

Corporate & Group Experience Days

Microadventures

PERSONAL COACHING

Personalised 1-on-1 Help

No 'Magic' Supplements

Holistic Approach

We are Simon Jeffries &John Sykes-Popham

FOLLOW OUR STORY

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT US

We are Simon Jeffries &
John Sykes-Popham