Coach Milligan

We are all absolutely gutted to hear of Allys passing after a short battle with cancer.

He sent me the last picture on this post on the 20th April, looking fit, strong and healthy - it shows you how quick things change.

Even with his diagnosis he was incredibly positive, he kept talking about wanting to keep his training going for as long as he could.

He trained with me for the past 8/9 years and was genuinely one of the good guys and he epitomised everything about the gym and the community.

A huge part of the gym, a good friend and strong example to us all.

The recurring theme everyone has spoke of is how he made everyone feel welcome - from the OGs to newcomers.

The gym will feel a little different without you, mate.

Our thoughts are with Margaret, Liam and all of Ally’s family and friends.

Thank you for everything, Ally.

You were one of our own.

You’ll be missed.

You’ll never be forgotten.

❤️ Rest easy, mate.

The cost of inaction is high when it comes to your health.

The longer you wait, the worse your start point is going to be.

Ask yourself, when did you stop after you started this January?

If you kept going, keep going.

If you stopped, start.

No one is coming to save you 🔨🔨🔨

This memory popped up today - 15 years ago.

The beginning.

Back then, I opened the very first BM Fitness while still working full time in the prison service. I had no idea how to run a business. I just wanted a place where I could train the way I believed in.

I realised if I took some clients on, that would cover the cost of having my own space. Many are still with me now.

I started with almost nothing, just a few kettlebells and whatever bits of kit I could get my hands on. My Papa Jimmy helped bring the place to life, making it look like a proper gym - well a garage gym type of feel.

At the time, there was nothing else like it in the area. This was before CrossFit exploded and before “functional fitness” became a buzzword.

That little project has shaped my life for more than a decade.

It’s still a work in progress, but my current gym has the same DNA as that first one: good people, no nonsense training and no chasing fads - just sticking with what works.

That’s what keeps me going today. 15 years later, the mission hasn’t changed - create a place where people can work hard, get stronger and cut through the noise.

The equipment, the buildings, the years may change but the vision remains the same.

"We fight for that inch. Cause we know: When we add up all those inches. That's going to make the fu***ng difference"

Any Given Sunday

Making positive health changes can be difficult.

Many people try and make a big pivot and aim for a 100% improvement.

This is usually far too overwhelming.

People give up with this approach.

What if you tried something different?

What if you tried to improve 100 things by 1%?

Over the course of a week you have 100s of opportunities to do something marginally better.

7 days.

Approximately 21 meals and 14 snacks to make better choices.

7 opportunities to go to bed earlier.

7 opportunities to wake up earlier.

7 opportunities to go a walk instead of Netflix.

7 opportunites to go to the gym.

7 days of drinking water instead of fizzy juice.

100s of opportunities every week to shift the needle 1%

Losing weight, building muscle, getting in shape is hard.

Sticking to a plan.

Pushing through your comfort zone.

Meal prep.

Getting your steps in instead of sitting on the coach.

Lifting more weight than last week.

Delaying gratification.

Getting up early, rather than hitting snooze.

All Hard stuff.

But Hard isn't impossible.

Hard is just Hard.

Most humans can do Hard stuff.

That includes you.

Ask yourself:

"Am I the type of person that can do Hard things?"

I bet you'll believe you can.

That's all Getting in shape is - consistently doing Hard things.

That's it.

If you're trying to get in shape, drop fat or build muscle - avoid stepping over pounds to pick up pennies.

Stop worrying about thing like:

Will an ice bath impede my muscle gain?

Do I need to hold a stretch for 20s or 40s?

Is kale better than broccoli?

Do I need to wear blue light blocking sunglasses 39 minutes before bed witha room temperature of exactly 18.499 degrees?

If I eat over 48.79g of protein in one go will it turn straight to fat?

Do I need to meditate, cold shower, fill out a gratitude journal all before the sunrises?

Look, I'm not against optimising human performance. There's things on the list above I'll do.

But.........

Most people are avoiding the big rocks that work, that have stood the test of time in order to f**k about with the little things that may have marginal benefits.

Focus on these things:

Lift weights.

Do cardio.

Eat your protein.

Drink your water.

Move throughout the day.

Eat your fruit and veg.

Get a decent amount of sleep.

Eat like an adult.

I've yet to find a single person in my 20 years of training people that hasn't got themselves in shape by consistently doing what's on this list.

There's a time and place for the other stuff.

But most people need to dial in the basics.

Do them consistently and with savage intention.

The reality is most people probably know this information to he true.

Some will implement it.

Some will keep procrastinate - looking for the stuff that doesn't matter too much.

Some will get results.

Some won't.