AWAREWAYS sponsorship: the power of movement

13 July 2022

ON THE MOVE: ANN SCHOOT UITERKAMP, ATHLETE AND PERFORMANCE COACH

AWAREWAYS update! We figured it would be cool to take our security awareness ‘movement‘ literally and sponsor someone that is moving forward in her sport and is very result driven in reaching her goals – one of our brand values. That’s why we have entered into a sponsorship deal with duathlete Ann Schoot Uiterkamp.

Ann is a controller at the University of Applied Sciences Utrecht, has a coaching business under the name Move to Focus and – oh yes! – she will be representing the Netherlands and AWAREWAYS at the World Games in Birmingham, Alabama, July 16th and 17th.

WORLD GAMES 2022

“The World Games is a major sporting event held every four years, just like the Olympics,” says Ann, “but for disciplines outside the OS, like bocce, korfball, canoeing – and of course my event, the duathlon.”

Her duathlon adventure began right after her studies with a course in triathlon, but she gradually dropped that third part – swimming. “I’m much more in my element just running and cycling!”

Duathlon & sponsorship

The duathlon consists of 5 km of running, 20 km of cycling and another 5 km of running, although the distances vary from tournament to tournament. At the World Games that started on July 7, the program calls for 10-40-10 for a total of 60 km. Fortunately, those distances suit her very well; Ann won a bronze medal at the European Championships in Romania last year and thus automatically qualified for the current tournament in the USA.

The sponsorship deal with AWAREWAYS obviously goes beyond a logo on a t-shirt. We have found each other in our mutual interest in moving forward, which we will be putting into practice – with workshops on mental resilience and perseverance in the office, for instance, as well as training in behavorial change.

Sustained sport performance

“As an athlete I invest a lot in the mental aspects that improve my performance. Each time I discover how inspiring and applicable this is in my work – and indeed all other aspects of life, as you find parallels everywhere. That’s why I translated the performance plans that help me in my training and preparations into my work, and that’s how Move To Focus was born.”

“Sports for me is more than just maximum performance. It makes me happy, relaxed and fit. It clears my head so I can focus better. It forms the basis for all my achievements. Look, exercise makes you progress, that’s obvious. But that is both literally and figuratively. Moving makes you move, sets things in motion. It gives you a goal to work towards, a result on the horizon. Are you stuck on something? Get moving. The mental switch you get from movement, and what it does to your body and your head, time and time again, that’s the key!”

“What really appealed to me in the AWAREWAYS approach is the result-driven and sustainable behavioral change, regardless of the overlap with movement. I find the creativity and the way in which subject matter is approached and learning processes are organized all very inspiring. That in combination with the enthusiastic team made me want to join!”

Move to Focus

The Move to Focus program includes workshops, inspirational sessions and individual coaching, designed to offer insight into the mental techniques behind professional sports. “For me, that’s about top performance and especially sustainable performance, and then paying attention to how you can apply those techniques in your work and your everyday life.”

“Those techniques can be quite simple, even if they then give a big boost to my work performance. That’s why I like to share these insights. So that others can also use their potential in an easy, fun and vital way and achieve all the goals they want to achieve.”

“An example? In sports, you’re constantly working on tasks, always dealing with tasks. That can be anything really – a certain gear on your bike, a certain pace in  your running, or following someone and thus keeping up with someone else’s pace, you name it. While you’re at it, you can get hugely distracted from that task, because you have to deal with a huge number of other factors. The weather, your opponents, the focus on the end result, being busy with qualifying times. But all of this also applies to daily life. So how do you keep returning to that base, that one task? I’d like to help you with that.”

Movement and behavioral change

A second component in Ann’s Move to Focus workshops is sustainable performance. “This involves everything you (structurally) need to perform vitally and happily – so sustainably getting everything out of your work and your life.”

“An interesting hook for AWAREWAYS is routine, especially if you’re working on changing behavior. Routine wins out over discipline, every time. Then it’s not about mandating actions, but about teaching new patterns – addressing behavior in a way that sticks.”

“Make it simple, link it to tiny habits to integrate it into your daily processes, things you do anyway. ‘When I brush my teeth, I’m going to do X push-ups,’ that’s a familiar routine for an athlete. But you can also apply that in your work. ‘When I start up my computer I check for updates’. Or: ‘When I get up from my workstation – for coffee, or a meeting – I lock my screen’. There’s much practical use for routine in your worklife when it comes to nudging behavior.”

Welcome to the security awareness movement, Ann. We’re looking forward to our sessions!

World Games 2022: Ann’s schedule

The World Games take place in Birmingham, Alabama, July 7-17. Held the year following the Summer Olympic Games, the event will showcase a ‘New Generation of Global Sports’.

On Saturday, July 16, Ann will appear at the start at 8:00 a.m. local time (3:00 p.m. in the Netherlands) for the women’s elite individual duatlon: 10 kilometers run, 40 kilometers bike, 10 kilometers run. One day later, as a conclusion to the 11-day tournament, she’ll do it all over again in the mixed relay, in which she will participate with Thomas Cremers (start 13.00 local time, 20.00 Dutch time).

*UPDATE: on the final day of the World Games, Ann and Thomas took 5th place for TeamNL!

For more information about Move to Focus
and of course Ann herself, go to movetofocus.nl.

Are you interested in working with AWAREWAYS? Would you like to know more about our security awareness movement?