Are you afraid of building bulky muscle? You're not alone! On this episode of the Talking Up Fitness Podcast, we dive into one of the most common fitness myths: the fear of “bulky muscle.” Spoiler alert—it’s not real!

We unpack the origins of this fear, why it holds so many people back, and the simple truth about building muscle and body fat. From understanding the science behind muscle growth to actionable tips to achieve the look you want, this episode delivers clarity and confidence to anyone starting their fitness journey.

Your Takeaway Challenge:
Pick one exercise you love and lift something heavier than you have in the past few weeks. Try just 1–2 reps and notice how it feels. This could be the start of something amazing.

Links & Resources:

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In this episode of Talking Up Fitness, Tai tackles one of the tougher topics: why people sometimes leave gyms.

From finding the right nutrition balance and personalizing your workout to feeling connected in a community, we’ll explore common roadblocks and how to move past them.

We get real about how F45 Herricks is designed to keep you motivated, supported, and making progress. Tune in to discover what might be holding you back and simple, actionable steps to get more out of your workouts!

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Stay tuned for more episodes where we discuss fitness, wellness routines, and share inspiring stories from our community.

Real Progress Isn’t Always About the Scale!

Join us as we dive into body recomposition and why gaining muscle while losing fat is a huge win—even if the scale doesn’t move. We’ll explore the science behind muscle gain, how it transforms your body, and why shifting your focus to strength, energy, and how you feel can lead to true, lasting results.

Ready to see fitness from a new perspective? Tune in, challenge yourself, and start celebrating the victories that go beyond the scale.

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Stay tuned for more episodes where we discuss fitness, wellness routines, and share inspiring stories from our community.

If you found today’s episode helpful, please share it with someone who might need this perspective. Don’t forget to subscribe and leave us a review.

In this episode of Talking Up Fitness, host Tai Kyon reintroduces the podcast and touches on the common types of people who are members in our fitness studio.

Key Takeaways:

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Joe Zoleta is a Marine Corps Veteran and EMS in NYC. He embodies what most of us strive for in terms of service to our community and country. And he happens to love coffee as well, so it was a no-brainer that I jumped on the opportunity to speak with him.

I had the pleasure of speaking with him about his journey from joining the US Marine Corps, serving multiple tours in Iraq after 9/11; to coming home and continuing to serve our local community by becoming a paramedic; To creating a non-profit organization, Black 6 Project, to honor his unit during deployment with the mission to help those most in need throughout the developing world by humanitarian and disaster relief work.

I was lucky to be introduced to Joe through mutual friends and his work and passion to make the world a better place through action inspires me, and I hope you do as well. Please check out his projects and help fund the good work that his team is doing around the world.

I hope you enjoy our conversation and take something useful out of it.

Contact him via:

Instagram:

@black6project

@black6coffee

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/black6project/

Website:

https://www.black6project.org/

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In today's solo episode, I'll explore how proper rest and recovery can help prevent injury, improve performance, and promote overall wellness. I'll also share tips and strategies for incorporating rest and recovery into your workout routine so you get the most out of the work you're putting in the gym.

If you found this helpful and want to help us spread the word; Please leave us a favorable review. Of course, I'd appreciate it if you can share and like if you've enjoyed the discussion.

Marc is the owner of several F45s in Suffolk county on Long Island, NY. He was the first to bring an F45 to the Long Island area and has grown his studios into some of the most successful in the entire country.

I had the pleasure of speaking with him about his journey into F45 and how he has been able to scale his team and the people he has helped. I learned a lot about how he views fitness and how he turned his passion into a business for himself and his family.

I was lucky to be introduced to Marc early on in my own F45 process and he has been generous with sharing his journey and helping me along the way. I hope you enjoy our conversation and take something useful out of it.

Contact him via:

Follow him @marc_arnberg on Instagram

https://Linktr.ee/mmarnberg

F45 Dix Hills

F45 East Setauket

F45 Nesconset

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This episode is weird. Brought to you after much wrangling by Taqiyya. She is the guest-host and turns the table on me. We start off 2023 with a bit of background about me and how I got into fitness.

Hope you all enjoy the conversation and got something actionable and useful out of this conversation.

Contact me via:

Follow @taiykyon on Instagram

F45 Herricks Private Facebook Group. https://www.facebook.com/groups/643949199519752/

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Tai Hsing is the Client Success Manager at F45 Herricks. The members of the studio know him best for being the one that keeps everyone accountable for their fitness goals at the studio. He sits down with our guest host, Taqiyya, to discuss his own fitness journey and how he has made great progress for himself.

He is the glue that makes things go as expected in the studio and we get to learn about what makes him tick, things he has learned growing as a fitness professional, and even a few fun facts about him growing up. 

Hope you all enjoy the conversation and learn a bunch about him.

Contact him via:

Follow him @krazyphatboi on Instagram

Please leave a favorable review. Of course, I'd appreciate it if you can share and like if you've enjoyed the discussion.

In today's episode, I go solo and dig into the details of how I coach people on body composition changes (weight loss, muscle gain, maintenance, etc). I go over the basic premise of caloric needs and how to figure out exactly how to go about starting this process for yourself. 

Give it a listen and I apologize for showing my face in advance 🤣

Some of the formulas that I used during this podcast are listed below for you to use. Google the appropriate calculators and I promise it'll make sense once you plug in some baseline numbers about yourself.

Basal metablic rate formula (Mifflin St. Jeor)

BMR = 10 x weight(kg) + 6.25 x height(cm) - 5 x age(y) + 5 (man)

BMR = 10 x weight(kg) + 6.25 x height(cm) - 5 x age(y) - 161 (woman)

Activity Level Multiplier (If doing for the first time, err on the side of sedentary vs active)

Sedentary + Training 3-6x/wk -> 1.2-1.5

Light active + Training 3-6x/wk -> 1.5 - 1.8

Moderately active + Training 3-6x/wk -> 1.8 - 2.0

Highly active + Training 3-6x/wk -> 2.0 - 2.2

How much protein?

1.2-1.6g/lb Lean Body Mass -- More lean, more protein. More body fat, less protein needed.

How to set up macros for you?