Johnny Sexton: 'I didn't hear of mindfulness until I was in my late 20s'

As new research shows children are not exercising as much as they should and many experience anxiety, Johnny Sexton chats about the helpful habits families can form to tackle these issues

Thu, 16 Sep, 2021 - 14:05

Denise O’Donoghue

Rugby legend Johnny Sexton says mindfulness has helped him on and off the pitch and it is a skill he wants to see more children learn. It was former Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt that introduced it to Sexton, as well as the importance of building habits.

“I never heard of mindfulness until I was 27 or 28. It was Joe Schmidt that brought to our attention,” he tells me from St Benedict’s and St Mary’s national school in Raheny, where children received an exclusive screening of a new series he is involved in.

“At the start, I was very flippant about it, I thought it's not for me. But then I delved into it and I found my performances were getting better off the back of it. I found that I was better at getting over mistakes, better on the pitch. I was more in the moment. I've seen the benefit of it first hand but the world's very different now, children are learning it from a young age. You can see why, there's just a lot more going on in the world. There's social media, there's telephones, there's all that stuff that probably wasn't around even when I was young.”

He jokes that he hates talking about when he was young (“I don’t like to feel so old”) and as we’re chatting about stress and anxiety in children, he describes a scene from the schoolyard he can see through the window.

“Kids have different problems, all shapes and sizes, but they're still worries all the same. How to deal with those worries, no matter how big or small, is key for them. As we're talking, I'm looking through a window and Anna Geary is doing meditation practices with 10-year-olds. It's been a good morning seeing what our kids’ culture is.”

'As someone that's coming towards the back end of his career, I've been through a lot of experiences. To be able to show them that stress or making mistakes affects someone like me, in their eyes will help them feel better about themselves.'

Geary and Sexton were in the school for the world premiere of Laya’s Super Troopers TV. The 28-part online series on nutrition, physical activity, and mental wellbeing features the pair alongside well-known personalities, sportspeople and health and wellness experts. They share fun activities, advice, and lots of challenges for children, parents and teachers to try themselves.

The series premiere comes as a national research study by Laya examining the overall health and wellbeing of children aged 9 to 12 found nearly 70% of children experience anxiety, while just 4 in 10 children are getting adequate levels of exercise every day.

Sexton says he is conscious of children’s mental and physical health, particularly as a dad of three, and says living through the pandemic has opened his eyes more.

“Normally I’m at training and I only see the last couple of hours of the day, but during Covid I was home all day, every day. I saw the importance of it first hand. When my kids were active, when we were able to go into parks and go for walks within five kilometers, the days we got them out on their bikes, or scooters or just for a walk, they were just in better form. And the days they were stuck inside if the weather was bad, how things changed. If children are active and healthy, they feel better about themselves and they'll be fitter.”

'I'm looking through a window and Anna Geary is doing meditation practices with 10-year-olds.'

He says the key is habit-building, another trick he picked up from his coach.

“Don't get me wrong, there are times, and I'm guilty of it as well, where you're sitting on the couch and the easiest thing in the world to do is just stay put. When you do get up and go, you never regret it afterwards. That's what I always say to myself, I've never exercised and regretted it after. You just feel better for it.

“Those habits are key. Eventually, if you build a habit, it becomes day-to-day. We used to speak about it even from a professional point of view with Joe Schmidt about building habits daily. All of a sudden you find yourself doing things that are just your routine, they're just part of your life and then they're not anything extraordinary anymore. Going for a run or for a walk, doing one of the challenges or making a healthy meal just become a habit. The hardest part is getting started.”

Sexton says the school kids he met this morning seemed to love the new series and, even more, they loved having the opportunity to quiz their heroes.

“They seem to like it. There wasn't a sound, you could hear a pin drop when they were watching it. It's always tough watching yourself so I think it's been tougher for me and Anna Geary to sit there watching ourselves on TV, but the kids loved it,” he says. I ask about the Q&A afterward, which resulted in our interview being pushed back in his schedule.

“They were grilling me! I didn't get off the hook lightly," he laughs.

"They were asking how did you deal with mistakes? How do you deal with setbacks? How to deal with stress? Kids are so educated these days in all these areas, they are keen to ask questions. That's why it's good for me to be involved with it because as someone that's coming towards the back end of his career, I've been through a lot of experiences. To be able to show them that stress or making mistakes affects someone like me, in their eyes will help them feel better about themselves.”