The Raw Iron Club

You can’t outwork a lifestyle you don’t enjoy.

If you hate every workout and your nutrition feels miserable, eventually consistency becomes harder and harder.

That doesn’t mean everything needs to be easy or that you should never push yourself.

It means your plan needs to be realistic, enjoyable, and sustainable.

Find training you enjoy.
Eat foods you actually like.
Build habits that fit your life.

Because results don’t come from the perfect plan you follow for 6 weeks.

They come from a good enough plan you can follow for years.

Sustainability beats perfection.

Should you change your workout all the time?

Or should you stick with the exact same exercises forever?

The answer depends.

If you’re a beginner, you probably don’t need a ton of variety.

You need time to practice the movements, improve your technique, and get stronger.

But as you become a more experienced lifter, there are times when you may need to pivot.

Maybe you’ve hit a plateau.

Maybe fatigue has built up.

Maybe an exercise isn’t feeling great anymore.

Or maybe changing a variation can help you continue progressing.

That doesn’t mean throwing your entire program away every few weeks.

And it doesn’t mean doing the exact same thing forever.

Change your training when there’s a reason to not just because you’re bored.

Consistency builds progress.

Smart adjustments keep it going.

7 MONTHS. 🔒

This is my client Fallon after staying locked in with his training for the past seven months.

And no, there wasn’t a secret.

He showed up.

He trained hard.

He focused on getting stronger.

He improved his technique.

He stayed consistent.

That’s what happens when you stack good workouts together over time.

A lot of people want results quickly, but they underestimate what can happen when you give yourself enough time to actually work.

Seven months might sound like a long time…

But those seven months were going to pass anyway.

The question is: what are you going to do with them?

Proud of the work you’ve put in, Fallon. 💪

Keep going. We’re not done yet.

Most times your muscles aren’t the first thing telling you to stop.

Your brain is.

As a set gets harder, the discomfort builds.

Your breathing gets heavier.

The weight starts feeling heavier.

And your brain starts telling you:

“That’s enough.”

But there’s an important difference between discomfort and pain.

I’m not saying you should ignore pain, train through an injury, or sacrifice good technique just to get another rep.

But learning to tolerate the discomfort that comes with hard training is part of getting stronger.

With experience, you get better at recognizing:

“This is hard.”

versus

“I genuinely can’t perform another quality rep.”

Sometimes you are capable of more than you think.

You just have to learn where your actual limit is.

Push past discomfort.

Don’t push through pain.

💪

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If I could give every lifter two pieces of advice, it would be this:

Stop comparing yourself to everyone else.

Stop looking for shortcuts.

Someone will always be stronger.

Someone will always have a better physique.

Someone will always be further along.

And there will always be someone trying to sell you the “fastest” way to get there.

Neither of those things will help you.

Focus on what you can control:

✔️ Showing up consistently

✔️ Training with intent and effort

✔️ Improving your technique

✔️ Eating well most of the time

✔️ Being patient enough to let the process work

Real progress doesn’t come from comparing yourself to others or chasing the next shortcut.

It comes from doing the basics well, over and over again.

That’s how lasting results are built.

One of the biggest mistakes I see is people treating compound lifts and isolation exercises like they have to choose one or the other.

The truth?

You need both.

Compound lifts should be the foundation of most strength training programs because they train multiple muscle groups at once, allow you to use more weight, and give you a lot of return for your time.

But that doesn’t mean isolation exercises aren’t important.

They help fill in the gaps.

They allow you to bring up weak muscle groups, add training volume where it’s needed, and create a more balanced physique.

Think of it this way:

🏋️ Compound lifts build the foundation.

💪 Isolation exercises add the finishing touches.

Don’t skip the basics because they’re hard.

And don’t rely only on isolation work because it’s easier.

The best results usually come from combining both.

💬 Which compound lift has helped you the most?

People often ask where I learn the things I teach my clients.

The truth is, coaching isn’t just about spending time in the gymit’s also about continuing to learn.

These are five books that have had a big impact on how I coach:

📖 Starting Strength

📖 Jailhouse Strong: Tactical Shield Training

📖 The Max Muscle Plan 2.0

📖 Strength Training Anatomy

📖 Thick As Frick: The Mindset Manual

I don’t agree with every single thing in every book I’ve ever read and you shouldn’t expect to.

But every book has taught me something valuable that’s helped me become a better coach, better serve my clients and train myself

The more I learn, the more I can help others reach their goals.

Never stop being a student.

💬 What’s one fitness book that’s had an impact on you?

Stop overcomplicating your workouts.

The majority of your physique isn’t built from flashy, complicated exercises.

It’s built from consistently mastering the basics.

✅ Squats

✅ Presses

✅ Rows

✅ Pull-ups or pulldowns

✅ Deadlift variations

✅ Basic isolation work

The people who get the best results aren’t constantly changing exercises.

They’re getting stronger.

Improving their technique.

Training with intent.

And showing up consistently.

Simple doesn’t mean easy.

Simple works.

Master the fundamentals, trust the process, and let consistency do the heavy lifting.

💬 What’s one basic exercise you’ll never stop doing?