Failure gets treated like a dirty word. Something to avoid. Something to fear. Something that means you’re not cut out for it. I think that’s backwards. Failure is often a sign you’re doing something right. After all, we can all walk now. But none of us got there cleanly. If babies approached failure the way many adults do, they’d never make it past the first wobble. They fall again and again before they ever stand confidently. Not because they’re broken. Because that’s how l

When Research Confirms What You’ve Learned the Hard Way I was reading a large review of resistance training research this week—pulling together over 100+ studies. and it landed harder than I expected. Not because it said something new… But because it confirmed something I’ve learned the hard way—both in my own training and coaching others: 👉 Most programmes work 👉 Very few are meaningfully better than others 👉 The real driver of results is consistency and effort Which rais

Most people worry about losing strength as they get older. But the real issue often shows up somewhere else.... Power . Power is strength expressed quickly. It's the ability to react, catch yourself, or move fast when something unexpected happens. And after 40 it’s one of the physical qualities that declines the fastest. Not because we can’t build it. But because most people simply stop training it. Power declines earlier and faster than strength Research consistently shows

If overhead pressing feels awkward, you’re probably not weak. You’re probably tight. Hours behind a desk. Daily commuting. Old shoulder niggles = tight shoulders and stiff spine. Then you try to press overhead and it turns into a shrug and a grind. That’s not strength. That’s compensation. The kneeling landmine press is often a better place to start. It lets you press upward without demanding perfect mobility. The angled bar path gives your shoulder space. You can load it, co

A few months ago my shoulder started to niggle. Nothing dramatic. Just enough to know something wasn’t quite right. So I did the sensible thing. I reduced training volume, pulled back on heavier work, and added in a few rehab drills. Nothing heroic. No panic. Just small adjustments. And week after week, it improved. Not in big leaps. Just small changes. A little less tenderness. A bit more confidence under load. Strength slowly returning. Quiet progress. Then last week — bang

TL;DR Training hard matters — but it’s only one part of the picture. Results come from how intensity , consistency , and recovery work together over time. If you want a better outcome, the smartest move isn’t always “try harder”, it’s knowing which lever to pull . (This week’s Thursday Three is a little longer than usual — the TL;DR is here if you’re short on time, the full breakdown below if you want the context.) When it comes to training, intensity is usually the first t

Lately I’ve been thinking about change in terms of three circles. Not because it’s clever, but because it explains why so many smart, motivated people feel like they’re doing all the right things and still not getting very far. Circle one: Knowing This is the biggest circle. Everything you know or think you know: books you’ve read, podcasts you’ve listened to, posts you’ve saved, plans you understand really well. This circle is easy to grow. Read a book. Watch a video. Downl

I picked this rule up years ago from a course I attended, and it’s stuck with me ever since: Speed hides need. At the time, it was taught in the context of movement. But the longer I’ve coached, the more I see it show up everywhere . Let me explain. In movement, speed can be a great way to hide things. Picture someone doing a split squat or a Bulgarian split squat—you know, those horrible lunges with your back foot on a bench. They drop down fast. Bounce straight out of the b

Lately, I’ve been starting coaching conversations a little differently. Not with food. Not with training. But by trying to understand their capacity for change. “What does the ground in front of you actually look like right now?” Sometimes it looks open and spacious. Time’s reasonable. Stress is manageable. There’s room to move & play. Other times it feels tight and boxed in. Work is heavy. Family demands are high. And by most evenings, you’re spent. Neither is wrong. The pr

When you start something new, the effort can feel wildly out of proportion to the thing itself. Most people assume that feeling is a preview of how it’ll feel forever. Fortunately, it’s not. It’s more like the entry fee. Here’s how that plays out: Learning to drive… Sounds a little odd, but stick with me. At first, every action demanded full concentration — mirrors, pedals, traffic, staying in your lane. Your brain is running overtime just to keep things on track. But once yo