NAME Rebecca Lynn

AKA Other Half Kendrick (Kenny) Lynn

TIMES AROUND THE SUN 39

FROM New Zealand

LIVE Lyon, France

ALL ABOUT BEING Open-minded, kind, supportive, resilient and loyal.

JILL OF WHAT TRADE/S Mother first and foremost and currently working on becoming a ‘jill of the nutrition and fitness trade’ via my business, ‘Everyday Santé’

CURRENTLY CRUSHING ON Summer days with my family in France, nutrition and fitness podcasts – I listen to at least one a day!

SUPPORTIVE WIFEY OR INDEPENDENT WOMAN Both. Mostly a supportive wifey and Mama who is beginning to dabble more and more into her independence with the kids now off to school!

KIDDIES 3 kiddies, Sophie (8) and 5 year old twins, Remy and Leo. All born in France but Kiwi’s at heart.

GIVE US THE LOW DOWN I’m a small-town Invercargill girl who never imagined spending her 30’s in France, let alone learning French and having 3 children during my time here!

I met Kenny in Dunedin whilst at uni where I got a BA and BCOM. After uni we remained in Otago/Southland where he played for the Southland Stags, NZ Sevens and the Otago Highlanders.

Before making the move I had a career in business development, first working at the Otago Museum managing their profit-generating units then for a catering company in Tauranga as the General Manager.

I was 30 weeks pregnant when I moved to France so it was a little strange giving birth in a foreign country and not speaking the language at the time! Thankfully it all went well. Two and a half years later I found myself giving birth to identical twin boys in the same room of the same hospital – it was wonderful!

Kenny retired as a player in 2016 and was offered a coaching role with the club he’d been playing for (Le LOU). Nowadays we’re still in Lyon and Kenny has just moved into the Head Coach role of Le LOU and we’re coming up to 10 years in France -time flies!

I developed an enthusiasm for health and fitness during my late 20’s/early 30’s and have always dreamed of making this my career moving forward. I’m currently working to make this passion into a business during my time in France while managing the crazy fun of twin boys and a daughter.

BUSINESS GOALS I want to help people look and feel their best –no matter their age or hectic lifestyle. I use evidence-based strategies that are simple in their execution and take into consideration our current stage of life so that people can achieve the physique results they desire -without slaving away in the gym every day or missing out on the food they love! My goal is for everybody to know that it’s never too late to feel and look great.

BUSINESS HIGHS Starting group fitness/bootcamp classes in Lyon, France, which then grew into regular bookings and nutrition clients and the eventual creation of Everyday Santé.

BUSINESS CHALLENGES Juggling study and clients whilst being a Mum but looking after my own health and wellness goals at the same time.

IDEA – DREAM – REALITY

Idea: Support and coach people in their 30’s ,40’s and beyond to look and feel their best, no matter how hectic their lifestyle, using proven strategies that work –without all the stress, complications, and unnecessary cost.

Dream: Run my own nutrition and fitness business and help as many people as possible to look and feel the way they’ve always wanted.

Reality: My children are still young and we are in a foreign country far away from our families –this means my husband and kids take up most of my time right now.

However, I’m halfway through my 2nd year of nutrition study and have begun working with some clients whilst also developing the business side of things. I can see my nutrition and fitness coaching becoming more of my focus in the years ahead.

WHAT’S YA SECRET/S I’m not sure I’ve mastered that –it’s still a major work in progress! I think letting go and not putting so much pressure on yourself is important and remembering that there is only so much one person can do. Prioritise and then go from there… one step at a time.

WHY IS BELONGING TO A COMMUNITY IMPORTANT AS AN ENTREPRENEUR Support is crucial to success in any field and having a community which rallies around you and has your best interests in mind is a wonderful feeling and can be very motivating.

YOUR INSPIRATION Kenny and his work ethic over the years, especially as he transitioned to a coach which has been incredible to watch and aspire too. He somehow manages to excel at his job but also stays on top of our ‘family life’.

Other inspirations would be my friends in NZ who are ‘nailing it’ career wise –their desire to succeed and prioritise their work whilst managing their family life is no mean feat and something I definitely look up too.

RUGBY LIFE MISCONCEPTION That the lifestyle is easy and without its own stresses. The reality is that our husbands/partners are often under a lot of pressure and are on the road a bit which means most of the ‘home life’ responsibilities fall on the wives and mums.

This is a blessing but at times it can be lonely and a little stressful! Being so far from home and your own culture is always hard too –I value my family so much and miss not being able to be with them in person.

RUGBY HIGHS The opportunity to live overseas and bring our children up to learn another language and experience another culture –I’m grateful for rugby giving us this opportunity.

RUGBY LOWS Living in France means time away from close family and friends which has been difficult -especially during the pandemic. Weekends and publics holidays don’t really exist in this industry -this is especially true as a coach, there aren’t many days off during the season which is very long here in France! We overcome this by Facetiming home a lot. I try to get to as many home games as possible with the kids –it’s a way to connect with Kenny at work but also an awesome outing for us as a family.

PROUDEST RUGBY FAN GAL MOMENT Kenny and I weren’t together at this stage but a genuine fangirl moment was at uni when he kicked the goal for his Varsity team to win the semi-final –I had a major crush on him so was swooning!

Other moments were when the Southland Stags won the Ranfurly Shield in 2009 and 2011. This was awesome for me as a Southlander myself, it made it extra special!

As a ‘coach’s wife’, the recent Challenge Cup win in Marseilles (2022) was incredible and a real proud moment for us as a family.

LIFE AFTER THE PITCH The transition from player to coach as a family was pretty seamless to be honest. The major changes were longer hours and what felt like more pressure on him as an individual and the team to win.

Kenny’s situation was unusual in that he played for the same team that he now coaches so there was a lot of crossover (i.e. he was now coaching players that he’d been on the field with the season before).

The reality is that coaching takes up a lot more time than playing does. Some weeks it feels like Kenny never has a day off and if he’s not in at the office he’s often working on his computer at home –he also puts a lot of time into personal and professional development outside of the club.

This has taken some getting used too but I wouldn’t change it for a thing as he’s so passionate and happy with what he’s doing so you can’t help but be supportive of it.

However, I CAN say that his body isn’t near as sore as it was when he was a player which is a good thing! He can jump out of bed a lot quicker these days and I don’t miss the injuries and the anxiety that sometimes came with watching him play.

WHERE TO NOW “Enjoying all the moments that France and the rugby life offer us for the next year as a family. You’ll hopefully see more of me in the nutrition and fitness space too…“

5 YEARS FROM NOW Back in New Zealand running my own nutrition and fitness biz, close to family and friends.

PEARLS OF WISDOM We have a Lynn Family Motto which is “The secret to happiness is to lower your expectations”. To many it might sound somewhat limiting but for us It works, as it reminds us that sometimes the simple things become too complicated when you expect too much and often high expectations can get the best of us. Rather, we prefer to hope but not expect…give it a go and you might be pleasantly surprised.

WHERE CAN WE FIND YOU
Instagram: @everydaysante
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everydaysante
Website: https://www.everydaysante.net/