We recently connected with Greg Wootton and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Greg, thanks for joining us today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

I started training in Muay Thai at 15 years old at a local community center in my hometown of London, UK. I progressed from the community center to a full time gym, eventually moving to Thailand to live in a gym and compete for seven months when I was 19. I have a degree in sports science which gifted me a deeper understanding of various training methods, physiology and sports psychology.

Learning martial arts in certain environmental conditions will speed up this process. A gym with a great coach, high level training partners, good equipment, etc. will also speed up this process. I will say too, that if your passion is deep enough you can learn a lot wherever you are. Between dedicated practice and the amount of knowledge and resources available online, the accessibility to techniques and training methods is much wider than in previous generations.

Being open minded and coachable, having the resilience to keep showing up regardless of the setbacks and enjoying the process are essential to developing the skills needed in Muay Thai.

For me, the main obstacles were the practicalities of life. Having to travel across the city to train was very time consuming and working unrelated jobs took my energy away from the learning process. It was difficult to fit everything in but I remained focused on my goals– being the best I could, becoming a World Champion, and fighting the most decorated out there.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is Greg Wootton. I’m a 2X World Champion, former Muay Thai fighter and I now coach the art form to continue its teachings and share its philosophical tools.
I coach all levels– beginners, actors training for a role, fighters & stunt people. In addition to this, I teach seminars worldwide and co-founded High Realities, a corporate coaching company with the mission to transfer high performance techniques from sports into the workspace.

The resilience, discipline, honor and self belief Muay Thai and martial arts develops in people are incredibly transformative and provide a framework that helps people cope and thrive with life’s challenges.

I am most proud of following my passion whilst living with integrity and honor along the way. I walked into a community center at 15 years old and it took me on a journey to fighting in major stadiums in Thailand, winning world titles, and competing against and beating some of Thailand’s most decorated fighters. It’s now led me to moving across the world to Los Angeles, where I continue to share the gift I stumbled upon around the US.

A big part of what sets me apart from others is my deep care and desire for people. I want to see them grow. I come from a family of teachers, midwives, and counselors whose lives are dedicated to helping others. This is who I am. I am also a proud Londoner– the multicultural environment that I grew up in provided a wide perspective on life through the richness of the people. I cherish those lessons and carry them with me.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The impact we leave on people by showing them they are more capable than they thought, that they are stronger than they thought, that they can achieve more than thought is what I find most rewarding.

I find the task of creatively tuning my skillset to the needs of each individual person especially fun. You never know who or how much you will inspire or impact people, so turning up and doing my best to be a light is the goal.

When I see people progress through winning fights, being more confident, and excelling in their careers or life, it’s awesome– knowing that I have contributed to that is priceless.

I hope to leave a positive mark on individuals’ lives that they will carry with them.

I was taught early on by one of my coaches, David Paquette, that our mind is the most powerful tool we have. For that I’m eternally grateful. It’s these kinds of lessons and blessings I strive to repeat.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

Sometimes what brings you success at one time in life, no longer serves you at another time.

I learnt to focus on one thing and go for that goal as fully as I could. It brought me success within my fighting career and I’m still unlearning that that method is the only way.

Extreme focus, dedication and discipline can get you to your dream but ultimately emotional and physical burn out are not sustainable. Being adaptable and flexible coupled with adopting a humble beginner’s mind is much more healthy. My style is focused on achieving big things in ways that are sustainable and balanced.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @greg_wootton

Image Credits

Maya Guice
Han Teh
Edward Lovelace
Michael Howarth