Me, Ant and Sky Hill are back with a full listener Q&A, after a jingle debate and Ant's theory that he's peaking for alcohol and tapering off the running. He also drops a Liam Gallagher quote that splits the room: you have to care a lot to not give a f***.

We talk about the fifth annual PTMA Coaches Conference, why this one has practical sessions in it, and why CPD courses have gone so quiet in your feed. Then it's the questions. What should a brand new PT prioritise first (me and Sky don't fully agree), what to do when your online offer keeps pulling in-person enquiries, what to write in your emails, how to handle another coach disagreeing with you in public, how to manage clients when you take time off, and how anyone finds time to run a business.

We finish with a big one from a coach going through an ADHD assessment, and Ant shares the one thing he sees holding back nearly every coach he's worked with. There's also an action hero debate that goes absolutely nowhere.

Timestamps

• 00:01 – Intro: the jingle debate and meeting the hosts
• 00:54 – Ant's training plan: peaking for alcohol, tapering off the running
• 01:29 – Liam Gallagher's quote: "you have to care a lot to not give a f***"
• 03:22 – Coming up: the fifth annual PTMA Coaches Conference
• 03:57 – Every venue we've done so far, from the Double Tree to the Malmaison to Ashton
• 05:56 – Why this year is different: practical sessions and a split two days
• 06:29 – Last week's CPD post, and why nobody sees CPD courses advertised anymore
• 09:10 – The perfect pathway for a new PT: business, behaviour change or programming first?
• 15:00 – Q&A begins: selling online coaching but getting in-person enquiries
• 21:31 – What to write in your mailing list: does it always have to be educational?
• 23:12 – Getting hate from another coach: take the bait or rise above it?
• 29:35 – Top tips for managing clients when you take time off
• 33:13 – What do we use to record the podcast?
• 33:59 – How do people have time for everything when they run a business?
• 37:08 – Action hero debate: time travel, John McClane and Scarface
• 40:36 – Coaching with ADHD: staying on track, workflows and why weekly reflection matters
• 47:31 – Final thoughts and outro

I'm walking round sore as hell after doing German volume training for the first time in fifteen years, which kicks off a proper trip down memory lane through every training fad me and Ant have lived through, GVT, the 300 workout, Tabata, TRX, Vipers, animal flow, all of it. That rolls into gym horror stories, including Ant's new favourite: a bloke who did two sets on the Smith machine, took a selfie under the downlights, and left.

Then we get into listener questions: following up when a lead goes quiet after you've sent pricing, the top priorities and pitfalls moving from PT to running your own gym space, knowing when to be direct versus empathetic with a client, finding the balance between working in and on the business versus taking proper downtime, and where the line sits between being real on social media and still being inspirational.

We close out with a teaser, the full lineup for the coaches conference goes live Friday, 20+ tickets across two days (one gym-based, one in the usual event space), plus a surprise we're not giving up yet.

• 00:00 – Intro
• 00:12 – Nik's sore from GVT, DUP debate
• 01:14 – The 300 workout, GVT taking over the squat rack, insanity, 75 Hard
• 02:04 – Tabata's big moment
• 02:52 – TRX and Vipers, £600 of kit gathering dust
• 03:34 – Animal flow / zoo warm-up era, trends cycling back
• 05:06 – Most annoying thing seen in a gym
• 05:16 – The Smith machine selfie guy story
• 06:28 – Shadow boxing between sets
• 07:13 – Why commercial gyms bring out the worst
• 07:28 – The macho ice bath corner
• 08:00 – Q&A: following up when someone's gone quiet after pricing
• 11:09 – Top priorities/pitfalls moving from PT to your own gym space
• 14:13 – Direct vs empathetic coaching
• 16:59 – Balancing working in/on the business with downtime
• 22:34 – Being real vs inspirational on social media
• 26:36 – Final thoughts: conference lineup drops Friday
• 28:19 – Outro

Timestamps

• 00:01 – Intro: checking we're actually live
• 00:46 – Welcome back: Sky Hill filling in for Nick this week
• 01:19 – My week off: track sessions, spoiled kids, and a lecture about buses
• 02:34 – Lexi's exam results and the CV pub crawl round Uppermill
• 04:10 – Running recap: a brutal new hilly route and 9k of intervals on the canal
• 05:26 – Sky's week: the Affex competition and what it actually involves
• 07:49 – Plan to clip Sky's Affex review for extra reach
• 08:02 – Q&A begins
• 08:14 – Going live with an online offer in a month, leads but no one obvious to ask for 1:1 first
• 10:09 – Should we run an SGPT panel at the conference (and maybe a podcast episode on it)?
• 11:57 – A prospect pushing for a month's free trial after already getting seven days
• 14:00 – Building the confidence to open a gym or small group setup in a new area
• 20:22 – The three most important skills a coach needs — Sky's answer
• 23:38 – The three most important skills a coach needs — my answer
• 27:02 – What's coming up: Connected Coach, the next Accelerator push, and the November conference
• 28:44 – Outro: no episode next week, bank holiday

Welcome back, it's been a rough week without me. I've been off with the kids for the week, Sky Hill's stepped in for Nick who's on his annual leave, and we open with the usual state of play before getting into a full listener Q&A.

I run through my week off, track sessions with the kids at Sports City, Lexi's exam results, and the now-legendary CV pub crawl round Uppermill where she handed her CV into half the bars in the village while I had a beer in every one of them. Sky's just come back from the Affex competition and gives a full breakdown of what it actually involves for anyone thinking about entering.

Then it's straight into questions from the coaches. We cover what to do when you've got a list of leads for a new online offer but no one obvious to approach for 1:1 first, whether an SGPT panel would work at the conference, how to handle a prospect trying to push a seven day free trial into a month, and how to build the confidence to open a gym or small group setup in a completely new area (which happens to be relevant to us right now too). We close out with the big one, the three most important skills a coach needs, and Sky and I both give our answers.

Quick look ahead: Sky and Nick's Connected Coach, the next marketing push for the Accelerator ahead of October, and the coaches conference on the 27th and 28th of November in Manchester.

In this episode I sit down with Sky to unpack what actually separates confident, in-demand coaches from everyone else — and it's not more qualifications. We open up about The Connected Coach mentorship (cohort 2 is live now, only 10 spots), why "the client is the expert on the client," and why pretending to have all the answers is the thing that's actually killing your coaching. From there it's a rapid-fire Q&A covering the biggest influences on our careers, how I actually plan Instagram Stories that build trust (not just noise), how I deal with imposter syndrome, and — because no episode is complete without it — a fully committed debate on whether cheesecake counts as a cake.

Applications for The Connected Coach — Cohort 2 are open. Only 10 spots, ~40–50% already gone. Cohort starts 7th September. To apply you need to book a discovery call — not just buy online — by Friday 28th August. Booking a call unlocks up to £800 off, plus access to all live Connected Coach days and our November conference at Gritstone Fitness.

🔗 [BOOK YOUR FREE DISCOVERY CALL HERE →]

Timestamps

• 00:01 – Intro: the podcast is getting a new name and format
• 02:12 – Topic: The Connected Coach cohort 2 is officially open
• 02:24 – Origin story: from "Coaches' Corner" sessions to an 18-month build
• 05:14 – Sky's 60-second (ish) challenge: summarising the whole mentorship
• 08:10 – Combined coaching experience behind the program; staying evidence-informed, not rigid
• 09:37 – Why the program starts with you — personality facets, blind spots, MBTI-based assessment
• 11:07 – Industry critique: outdated practices vs. a psychology-informed approach
• 12:05 – Sky's client story: seeing the person, not the sport or the goal
• 13:35 – You don't need to be the subject expert to coach — the builder/brother story
• 15:58 – Why assuming you have "the right answer" can hurt you — "the client is the expert on the client"
• 17:59 – The confidence boost of admitting what you don't know
• 18:57 – Case study: coach Sam's journey with nutrition confidence and pricing
• 20:25 – Program length now 7 months (was 8), live nutrition days added
• 21:05 – Cohort details: only 10 spots, ~40–50% already gone, starts 7th September
• 21:28 – How to apply: book a call, save up to £800, bonus access (live days + November conference)
• 22:35 – Deadline to book a call: Friday 28th August
• 22:46 – Break weeks, program value, why nothing else like this exists
• 23:14 – On the myth of a "gold standard" behaviour change qualification
• 24:03 – Where behaviour change research actually comes from (and its limits for fitness)
• 25:11 – Q&A: Who had the biggest impact on your coaching career?
• 25:22 – Sky's answer: Pure Gym, Body Power expos, and her MNU nutrition course (2018)
• 27:42 – Nik's answer: Darren, a Sydney gym owner who introduced him to CrossFit
• 30:02 – Q&A: What's the best way to plan story content?
• 31:26 – Sky's take: Stories as the biggest missed opportunity — her daily content formula
• 35:01 – Q&A: How do you deal with imposter syndrome / self-doubt?
• 36:40 – Nik's reframe: "Am I actually an imposter here?"
• 38:22 – Feeling "triggered" by content = a growth signal, not an insult
• 39:31 – Q&A: Did you block off coaching time in the gym?
• 40:12 – Final question: Is cheesecake a cake?
• 42:37 – Outro: next week's episode and a teaser for the new podcast name

FREE LIVE COACHING SESSION "THE COMPLIANCE TRAP ... BOOK YOUR FREE SEAT HERE

Me and Skye this week, Ant's off on his holidays again. We open with a live coaching session we're running called The Compliance Trap, Tuesday the 18th and Wednesday the 19th of August, built around the framework most coaches don't have for when check-ins go quiet and clients start losing momentum. Then straight into your questions, how to actually manage your workload and your clients properly when you take a holiday, what we're both most proud of from the last few months, what the first thirty to sixty days should look like walking into a new gym, whether time wasters on free trials are normal, how much free advice you can give away before it starts hurting your business, and the common thread behind every marketing campaign that's actually worked for the coaches we've worked with. Also somehow ended up on how I take my coffee.

00:00 — Intro, Ant's on holiday again

00:47 — Live coaching session, The Compliance Trap, Aug 18th and 19th

02:55 — Managing workload and clients when you take a holiday

07:12 — What we're both most proud of from the last few months

12:03 — First 30 to 60 days walking into a new gym

19:02 — How I take my coffee

19:43 — Is it normal to get time wasters on free trials

22:00 — Giving away free advice without it hurting your business

24:14 — What separates a successful marketing campaign from one that flops

30:20 — Outro

Me and Ant again this week, still no Skye. We get straight into your questions, what gets overlooked when you go self-employed, how long it actually takes to get a PT business off the ground (we don't agree on this one, and it's a good listen), the best way to use client stories, our favourite lead generators, what to do with a client who keeps cancelling and rebooking, and how you know when a coaching relationship just isn't working. Plus a date for the next MetaAds Lab intake, an Accelerator and Connected Coach update, and you meet the newest addition, Skye the husky, six days old.

00:00 — Intro, second week without Skye

00:33 — What's most overlooked by coaches going self-employed

04:05 — How long it actually takes to get a PT business off the ground

13:52 — Best way to share client stories and testimonials

17:18 — Favourite lead generators, gym floor and online

22:40 — Dealing with a client who constantly cancels and rebooks

25:04 — Knowing when a coaching relationship isn't working out

27:49 — Next MetaAds Lab intake date

28:13 — Accelerator and Connected Coach updates

29:00 — Meet Skye the husky

Join the Accelerator today - Intake closes Sunday 26th.

This week Sky and I get into the stuff that never makes it into a caption. We open with the goal question — do you always need something exciting pulling you forward, or are there dead patches where you're just going through the motions? I get put on the spot about the three biggest lessons from my first twelve months running a gym, and it's not the answer most people expect. We talk about whether hammering lead magnets on Instagram burns your audience out, the actual best way to follow up a lead, and what to do when your head's full of ten ideas and you can't pick one. Sky gets honest about why she's never once heard a hard "no" on a consult, and I go into the recruitment lesson from my old man that changed how I handle objections for good. We also properly answer two questions straight from this week's client check-ins — how to actually get ahead with content instead of doing it on the fly, and how to stop feeling "oh shit" about going self-employed. Last thing: Accelerator starts a week today. If you've been sat on this for two weeks, sort your shit out — Sunday's your last day to join.

Show Notes

00:00 – Sky's on hosting duty, Ant's out watching the World Cup final with his dad
01:18 – Accelerator starts a week today — last day to join is Sunday
02:14 – Do you always need an exciting goal, or are there times you're just going through the motions?
06:40 – The biggest lesson from year one of gym ownership (it's not what you think)
11:15 – If I keep posting lead magnets, will my audience get sick of being sold to?
15:21 – Following up a lead: phone, email or WhatsApp — what actually works
17:06 – How to manage your head when it's full of ten different ideas and goals
19:11 – The 3 things we'd tell our younger selves to focus on first
23:22 – How Sky's never had a hard "no" on a consult, and what that says about how she runs them
27:10 – Chasing the no's — the recruitment lesson that changed how Nik handles objections
30:19 – The real way to get ahead with content instead of doing it on the fly
35:37 – How to stop feeling "oh shit" about going self-employed
37:11 – Final word: stop thinking about it, get signed up

Join the Accelerator

I'm back after two weeks off, and we get straight into it — why the PT Business Accelerator is priced way below what it's worth (Ant's words, not mine), what actually predicts whether someone gets results from it, and then a run of proper Q&A: separating your work and personal phone, what makes a hook actually stop a scroll, how to raise your prices without losing your members, my honest take on consultation chats, Ant's biggest learnings from years of running them, the one trait every coach who makes it seems to share, and whether you should make a new small group client wait for the next training block. Good one this week.

Timestamps:

• 00:00 — Intro: back after 2 weeks off, monthly review week
• 00:48 — PT Business Accelerator: why it's the best next step for coaches right now
• 01:06 — 3rd intake opens 27 July — dates and context
• 03:24 — What the Accelerator actually delivers: next 5–8 clients in 8 weeks
• 04:16 — Why the price is the biggest differentiator ("it's shit for that price")
• 06:37 — What the weekly call is actually for (accountability, not more info)
• 07:58 — The honest numbers: 12/20 engaged by week 4, 9–10/20 by week 8
• 10:28 — The real peace of mind it gives you day to day
• 13:06 — The 8-week framework, and what you keep forever after
• 13:35 — Link, wrap-up on the Accelerator
• 14:22 — Q: Should I get a separate work phone for client comms?
• 15:06 — Q: What makes a good hook?
• 19:21 — Q: How do I raise membership prices without losing clients?
• 23:19 — Q: Tips for consultation chats — front-end offer vs core offer?
• 26:38 — Q: Ant's biggest learnings from consultations over the years
• 30:22 — Q: The #1 personal quality of coaches who actually make it
• 32:52 — Q: Should a new small group client wait for the next training block?
• 37:55 — Wrap-up and outro banter

Nik, Ant and Sky open with the usual chaos — a thumbnail roast (Claude designed it, Stacey's out of a job), Nik's baby due 22 July, and a "22% down on views" dig before they get to work. Then a full Q&A sweep: how often to chase a lead before they're dead, how to tell someone they're "not ready" without it being a cop-out, the real ceiling on how many 1-1 clients you can coach well (15–25, not 50), how to spot whether your real problem is marketing or coaching (track the six-month retention number), what to actually do with a quiet summer, and when to bring up further training inside a time-bound offer. Ice cream flavours also get a serious amount of airtime.

Timestamps

00:01 Intro — "almost 300," nobody's checked the real number
01:23 Six years of weekly podcasts, congrats banter
01:37 Thumbnail roast — Claude designed it, PT Business Accelerator sale 13th July
03:09 Nik's baby announcement — due 22nd July
03:33 "22% down on normal" viewer numbers
05:01 Q1 — Best/funniest client cancellation excuses (sofa/broken nail, arrested client)
06:16 Q2 — How often should you follow up a lead until they say no?
12:14 Q3 — How do you tell someone they're "not ready" and warm them up for later?
15:22 Sky reframes: "It's not that they're not ready — it's that I don't know them well enough yet"
16:00 Q4 (fun) — Go-to ice cream flavour
18:15 Q5 — Dealing with external stress so it doesn't bleed into the business
21:13 Q6 — Marketing problem or coaching problem — how do you tell?
23:36 Ant — track retention; under ~6 months signals a service problem
26:09 Q7 — Maximum clients you can coach 1-1 and still deliver quality?
28:32 Ant — 20–25 max; past that you start forgetting things about people
31:08 Q8 — What should PTs do with quiet summer months?
33:02 Q9 — Best way to market yourself on LinkedIn?
35:38 Q10 — When do you bring up further training inside a 4-week offer?
37:14 Outro — tease for next week's announcement

Ant and Sky sit down for the weekly debrief and end up covering the real texture of running a coaching business this month: why feeling busy isn't the same as feeling clear, a client testimonial that captures what PTMA actually changes, why coaches need to keep learning in the direction their clients are asking for, the wins rolling in across the membership (a coach cutting 30 paid gym hours in 9 weeks, a 40-person cohort picking up 3–12 new clients each), and the harder stuff — drawing a line around business hours, managing client expectations before they become problems, and forgiving yourself for the week you were too ill to show up. It closes on a story about a client whose dog had just been put down, and what it means to cry with someone in a session instead of performing professionalism.

Timestamps

00:00 — Intro / catch-up banter
03:30 — Feeling unproductive vs. having clarity — the framework
09:00 — PTMA testimonial breakdown
13:00 — Why coaches need ongoing education driven by client need
18:00 — Recent PTMA wins (30 fewer gym hours, Accelerator cohort results)
24:00 — Switching off — protecting business hours
29:00 — Managing client expectations through monthly reviews
33:00 — Guilt after being ill — action over rumination
38:00 — Closing story — crying with a client, sign-off