Curious Conversations

Curious Conversations

By Alex ConnorEducation
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Curious Conversations episodes

  • Just Have A Go! - Jamie Wattam #139

    In this episode of Curious Conversations, Alex Connor sits down with Jamie Wattam for an honest conversation about motorsport, work ethic, resilience, mental health, and making the most of life.Jamie’s journey started in Huddersfield, leaving school at 16 and offering to work at a local garage for free.

    That opportunity eventually took him into professional motorsport, working around the world in rallying and even facing the decision between continuing in rally or pursuing an opportunity in Formula One.But this conversation goes far beyond motorsport.

    Jamie opens up about leaving the industry, moving to Australia, experiencing a severe period of poor mental health, and rebuilding himself through movement, nutrition, learning, and self-reflection.

    From rally cars and Formula One to family, discipline, inner peace, and why failure is simply experience, this is ultimately a conversation about taking chances, having a go, and making the most of the life you have.

    Conversations worth listening to...

    0:00 Introduction

    3:08 Leaving Schoo

    l4:20 Working for Free

    7:35 Just Have a Go

    9:18 Building Work Ethic

    18:04 Getting Into Motorsport

    20:39 Starting in Rallying

    30:05 Taking Rallying Further

    33:40 Going Professional

    35:32 Work, Passion & Purpose

    38:05 Play to Win

    40:27 Life Is Short

    41:27 Finding Inner Peace

    47:45 Professional Rallying

    52:29 Turning Down Formula One

    59:17 Leaving Motorsport

    1:02:57 Moving to Australia

    1:11:29 Surround Yourself With Better

    1:17:19 Mental Health Struggles

    1:21:25 Rebuilding Himself

    1:31:12 Mental & Physical Health

    1:34:00 Live Life to the Fullest

    1:36:14 Be Proud of Who You Are


    Find Jamie Wattam:

    Pennine Fabrication www.penninefabrication.com.au


    Follow Alex Connor:

    Instagram: @physiquesby_alex

    Instagram: @_alexconnor_


    If you enjoyed the conversation, feel free to subscribe, leave a rating, or share it with someone who’d genuinely enjoy sitting in on it too.

    1 hr 39 min
  • Cherish You Memories, Change Your Life - Krystal Parsons #138

    In this episode of Curious Conversations, Alex Connor sits down with online coach and transformation specialist Krystal Parsons for an honest conversation about resilience, mental health, coaching, entrepreneurship, and creating a life with intention.Krystal shares her journey from leaving the fitness industry, battling severe depression, rebuilding her confidence, and ultimately returning to coaching with a renewed sense of purpose. Together, Alex and Krystal explore what separates great coaches from personal trainers, why systems create freedom, and how lasting change often begins with the smallest possible step.This is a conversation about resilience, perspective, and building a life you're genuinely proud of.Conversations worth listening to..._0:00 Introduction1:07 What Does a Coach Really Do?3:29 Where the Fitness Obsession Began5:00 Walking Away From Her Passion8:18 Trust Your Gut13:19 The Darkest Year of Her Life15:15 The "12 Good Memories" Challenge18:51 Small Wins Create Momentum21:08 Managing Depression Instead of Fighting It23:20 Why Life Experience Makes Better Coaches27:09 Japanese Cars, Drifting & Unexpected Passions33:13 Creating Better Memories Every Year39:10 Building a Business That Doesn't Burn You Out45:23 Why Fitness Always Comes Back to the Basics50:05 The Future of Online Coaching_Follow Krystal Parsons:Instagram: @builtbykrystalWebsite: https://builtbykrystal.info_Follow Alex Connor:Instagram: @physiquesby_alexInstagram: @_alexconnor_If you enjoyed the conversation, feel free to subscribe, leave a rating, or share it with someone who'd genuinely enjoy sitting in on it too.

    1 hr 26 min
  • Go All In On Your Dreams - Matt West - #137

    In this episode of Curious Conversations, Alex Connor sits down with online coach, entrepreneur, and content creator Matt West for an honest conversation about discipline, consistency, content creation, business growth, and what it really takes to build something meaningful over time.

    Known for his viral FWTLO ("F*** With The Lights On") movement and millions of followers across social media, Matt shares the lessons, setbacks, mindset shifts, and years of relentless work that shaped his journey from personal trainer to one of the most recognisable figures in the online fitness industry.

    This isn't a conversation about overnight success. It's a deep dive into consistency, purpose, identity, content creation, entrepreneurship, and why the people who succeed are often the ones who simply refuse to quit.

    Conversations worth listening to...

    _

    0:00 Introduction
    1:53 Matt's Mission: Building Confidence Through Fitness
    3:27 How the Viral "Sock Series" Was Created
    7:04 Why Most Creators Build the Wrong Audience
    8:15 Followers Don't Create Fulfilment
    9:35 Success Isn't One Person or One Secret
    17:52 The Truth Behind Overnight Success
    19:30 Growing Beyond Self-Doubt
    30:11 The Bamboo Tree Effect
    31:17 3,048 Posts Later
    34:59 Consistency Beats Every Shortcut
    36:37 The River Through the Rock Analogy
    37:23 Fall in Love with the Process
    41:00 Why People Keep Searching for Magic Pills
    42:22 The Problem with Business Gurus
    43:15 Building Trust Instead of Chasing Sales
    48:57 Creating Content That Educates, Not Manipulates
    1:16:26 The Small Piece of Paper That Changed Everything
    1:18:42 Never Forget Where You Came From
    1:28:40 The Message Matt Wants Everyone to Hear

    _

    Follow Matt West:
    Instagram: @mattwest_roadtoaesthetics

    _

    Follow Alex Connor:
    Instagram: @physiquesby_alex
    Instagram: @_alexconnor

    _

    If you enjoyed the conversation, feel free to subscribe, leave a rating, or share it with someone who'd genuinely enjoy sitting in on it too.

    1 hr 31 min
  • #136 No One Cares. POST IT! - Alex Gamble

    In this episode of Curious Conversations, Alex Connor sits down with online coach and entrepreneur Alex Gamble for an honest conversation about business, coaching, content creation, risk-taking, and the realities behind building something meaningful over time.

    From charging $12.95 a week for personalised coaching to building a multi-coach online business, Alex shares the lessons, mistakes, mindset shifts, and experiences that shaped the journey; including burnout, perfectionism, hiring the right people, and learning when to stop playing it safe.

    This isn’t a “10 steps to success” conversation. It’s two coaches sitting down to unpack the realities of growth, business, and the process of figuring things out as you go.

    Conversations worth listening to... _

    0:00 Introduction

    1:33 How Alex Gamble Defines His Coaching Business

    3:32 The Origin Story — From Football to PT

    5:13 Burning Out Doing 60 PT Sessions a Week

    7:43 Why Getting Results Is Only Half the Job

    11:20 How Coaching Coaches Made Him Better

    13:57 The Hardest Part of Business — Hiring People

    21:14 Why “Done” Beats “Perfect”

    24:13 Getting Comfortable on Camera

    27:22 Why It Took 4–5 Years for Content to Gain Traction

    28:42 You Don’t Need a Big Following to Build a Business

    33:57 The Free Session Strategy That Built His Client Base

    41:16 The $12.95 Coaching Story

    49:26 Advice to His Younger Self

    52:14 Future Plans & Staying Focused

    57:00 Why Business Owners Need Proper Downtime

    _Follow Alex Gamble: Instagram: @alexgamblecoach

    _Follow Alex Connor: Instagram: @physiquesby_alex

    Instagram: @_alexconnor

    _If you enjoyed the conversation, feel free to subscribe, leave a rating, or share it with someone who’d genuinely enjoy sitting in on it too.

    1 hr 4 min
  • #135 The Hard Truth About Losing Fat & Building Muscle In Todays Society - Emily King

    Emily King is an online fitness coach, IFBB Pro Athlete & Mum.


    In this over saturated and ever growing fitness world, losing fat and building muscle whilst managing your life, job, relationships and kids seems to be getting ever more difficult as we become more time poor and distracted & misinformed...


    Emily and their industry leading coaches help busy people get results through sustainable, flexible and evidence based methods!


    Expect to learn, how you can navigate a fitter lifestyle as a parent by making small realistic changes, some of the biggest myths about the losing fat, a simplified approach to what it really takes to getting into shape, where people go wrong when thinking about using performance enhancing drugs and much more...


    Links:

    King Bodies Website: https://kingbodies.com/

    Emily's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emily_kingbodies/_


    Get in touch here in the comments below or visit our website here: https://www.fearlesstrainingunited.com

    1 hr 1 min
  • #134 Tempo - Training Fundamentals Series

    TEMPO: THE BREAKDOWN

    Welcome to the final piece of the training puzzle: Tempo. As the least critical factor in your training program, it’s also one of the most misunderstood. Hopefully, by now, you’ve been applying the foundational principles we’ve covered effectively, and if so, I’d love to hear about your progress—the entire FTU team would!
    Let’s dive into tempo. Although it’s not a top priority for most trainees, it often gets blown out of proportion and overly complicated. Like "rest time," it’s an element many see as highly complex, often due to myths perpetuated by social media, underqualified trainers, misled athletes, and even some corrupt organizations. Today, we’re cutting through the noise with facts so you can maximize your approach to tempo without overthinking.
    TIME UNDER TENSION
    When it comes to lifting tempo, many people—especially bodybuilders—claim that greater time under tension (TUT) or slowing down reps (often referred to as “negative training”) will result in more muscle activation, greater damage, and ultimately, more growth.
    If this theory were true, consider this: the pull of gravity constantly exerts tension on us, yet we don’t grow muscle simply by existing. The missing piece in the “more TUT equals more growth” equation is force—specifically, the load you’re resisting during training.
    When you slow down your lifting speed excessively to increase TUT, two things happen:
    You sacrifice load. You won’t be able to lift as heavy, which reduces the overall stimulus on the muscle.
    You lose effective reps. Effective reps—those performed near failure—are essential for progression. If TUT were the only factor needed for muscle growth, we could all build impressive physiques simply by walking around with ankle and wrist weights or curling pencils all day. But common sense (and science) tells us this isn’t how it works.
    The takeaway? Focus on what actually drives progress: the balance of tension, load, and effective reps.
    CONSIDERATIONS
    Just as with rest time, the simple answer to tempo is this: lift weights. However, to provide a more precise recommendation:
    Control the weight. Proper form is critical for muscle activation, progressive overload, and injury prevention.
    Focus on the eccentric phase. Control the negative (lengthening) phase of the movement to ensure that gravity isn’t doing the work for you. Your muscles should be engaged throughout.
    Aim for pristine form. Lift with the correct tempo for your allocated rep range, recruit the targeted muscles effectively, and progress the load when ready.
    By prioritizing control, form, and progression, you’ll handle tempo effectively and see consistent results in and out of the weight room.
    Let go of the over-complication, focus on what matters, and train with intention.Coaching Enquires: https://calendly.com/fearlesstraining/30min?month=2024-10

    19 min
  • #133 Rest Periods - Training Fundamentals Series

    REST: THE BREAKDOWN

    How much rest is best?
    In this module, we’ll tackle the ever-debated topic of rest periods and uncover what’s truly optimal for maximum gains in size and strength. Let’s dive in.
    The Myth of Short Rest Periods
    For years, weightlifting legends, fitness media, and self-proclaimed gurus have promoted the idea that short rest periods, along with chasing the biggest “pump” possible, are the keys to hypertrophy (muscle growth). While the pump feels amazing, let’s clear this up: the pump alone won’t grow big, strong muscles.
    If this were true, we could simply string together endless bodyweight supersets, achieve a massive pump, and end up shredded and jacked. But as we all know—or should know—this doesn’t work.
    Rest & Fatigue: A Logical Look
    From a practical perspective, shorter rest periods mean you’ll fatigue faster, leading to fewer reps and lower overall volume. Since total volume (sets x reps x load) is a major driver of hypertrophy, skimping on rest can hold you back.
    From a scientific standpoint, research consistently shows that longer rest periods—typically 3 to 5 minutes—are superior for building muscle and strength. Why? They allow better recovery between sets, enabling you to lift heavier, complete more reps, and accumulate higher total volume over time.
    Finding the Right Rest Period
    So, how much rest is too much? And what’s too little? It depends on:
    The type of exercise (compound vs. isolation).
    The load you’re using (heavier weights often require longer recovery).
    For example:
    Big lifts (e.g., squats, deadlifts): Rest 3–5 minutes for full recovery.

    Compound movements (e.g., bench press, pull-ups): Rest around 2–3 minutes.

    Isolation exercises (e.g., curls, lateral raises): Shorter rest periods of 1.5–2 minutes can work well.

    Key Considerations

    Keep it simple: rest until you’re ready to perform at your best for the next set. There’s no need to obsess over losing the pump or worry that chatting with a friend for an extra minute will ruin your gains.
    General Guidelines:
    Smaller muscle groups: 1.5–2 minutes.
    Larger compound lifts: 2.5–3 minutes.
    Full-body movements: up to 5 minutes.
    Conclusion
    Train hard, but train smarter. Prioritise recovery between sets to maximise your performance and results. Rest isn’t wasted time—it’s the foundation for sustainable progress.
    Coaching Enquires:
    https://calendly.com/fearlesstraining/30min?month=2024-10

    16 min
  • #132 Exercise Selection - Training Fundamental Series

    Overview:
    Choosing the right exercises is essential, but there’s no single movement that will instantly transform your physique. Instead, consistent, progressive training with the right exercises can build a strong, impressive body.


    Strength Focus:
    There’s a close link between strength and muscle size, making compound movements (e.g., squats, bench press, deadlifts) critical for strength goals. These exercises allow for greater volume over time and are foundational for developing muscle mass, as seen in powerlifters and strongmen.


    Hypertrophy (Muscle Growth):
    While isolation movements (e.g., triceps extensions, curls) have their place, they shouldn’t overshadow compound lifts that engage multiple muscle groups. Effective hypertrophy training relies on a balance between heavy, compound movements and targeted accessory work.


    Volume Distribution:

    • 50-75% Compound Lifts: Key movements like squats, bench press, and deadlifts should make up the majority of your workout.
    • 25-50% Accessory Lifts: Supplement with isolation exercises like curls and leg extensions.
    • Structure: Aim for 1-2 compound and 1-3 isolation exercises per muscle group for balanced growth.


      • Key Factors in Exercise Selection:

      1. Specificity: Focus on specific movements to build strength for your sport or goals. Avoid changing programs too often, as consistency is crucial for progression.
      2. Progression & Balance: Adjust volume and focus on lagging muscle groups to ensure symmetry and improve performance.
      3. Biomechanics: Individual structural differences matter. If certain exercises don’t feel right, consider alternatives that better suit your build (e.g., high-bar vs. low-bar squats). A skilled coach can help identify suitable modifications.


        4. Conclusion:
        Prioritize simplicity and quality in your training. Stick to foundational, goal-aligned exercises, train smart, and avoid overcomplicating. This approach will lead to steady progress and a well-rounded physique.


        Coaching:

        https://calendly.com/fearlesstraining/30min?month=2024-10

        21 min
      4. #131 Natty To Enhanced - Episode 2

        Welcome back to the second episode of my "Natty to Enhanced" series, where I document my transition from being a natural athlete to an enhanced one. In this vlog, I dive into the key changes I've noticed so far, covering everything from dosage adjustments and blood work to common misconceptions around going enhanced.

        I also share some crucial recommendations and considerations I've learned along the way. Whether you're thinking of making the switch or just curious, this episode is packed with valuable insights from my personal journey.
        Make sure to watch and drop any questions in the comments!
        iMedical:
        https://imedical.com.au/order/blood-tests/sport-hormone-private-blood-tests
        Optimal Health:
        https://optimalhealthclinic.com.au
        Coaching:
        https://calendly.com/fearlesstraining/30min?month=2024-10

        27 min

      About Curious Conversations

      From the publisher's feed

      Curious Conversations is a space for real, unscripted dialogue where ideas are explored, not forced.