The 121 Effect is not your typical ‘Get Fit Quick’ book, neither does it simply tell you how to live your life. It is more like having a conversation with a friend, simply listening to their crazy stories.
Throughout this memoir, Ryan tells the story of his life; some sad and a little scary, other times inspiring and heart-warming. And through this, he shares the lessons he has learnt. From how to take care of your body, to recognising your self-worth.
With self-help books we often find ourselves flipping through the pages of empty instructions and impersonal tips and tricks. However, this book changes our perception on them entirely. This book isn’t just about ‘losing weight’ or ‘getting fit quick’ but understanding how to accept what you can and can’t change, and how take control of your life. Finding that motivation and willpower to better take care of your body.
In The 121 Effect, Ryan also references being Welsh-speaking as a tool which saved his life. During a particularly harrowing moment, it was his and his family’s ability to speak Welsh, his comforting mother tongue, which ensured his safe passage from Thailand back to Wales. For Ryan, speaking Welsh kept a sense of calm after being locked up in a Thai prison and the aftermath of what was to come. His roots, hiraeth, and a family bond he is blessed to have, got him home to Wales safely.
Ryan confesses he is not a writer. He writes that his ability to present his life on paper may not be up to the standards of ‘professional’ writers. But therein is the magic of Ryan’s writing. The memoirs are written exactly how they should be: raw and real, not dressed up with unnecessary metaphors, which is exactly what Ryan has done so perfectly.
The 121 Effect will drive you to think about how you’re living your life, and will make you ask yourself the important questions: Is this really the path I want to be on? How can I start taking control of my life again? Questions that are hard to find answers to, but this book may just be the help you need to start looking. To break through that barrier of demotivation and start taking care of just mind and body and living your healthiest life.
