Stuff I Learned in 2025

Year 14 – what could be new and different compared to the last 13 instalments of this article?

A whole lot.

The amount that’s changing in the fitness world seems to be compounding as time passes. Thinking back to the 20-year-old kid who started at the downtown box gym for 17 an hour while still in school, to the now nearly 40 year old trainer with thousands of hours under his belt – there have been plenty of adjustments. And actually, in an occupation where the average life span is something like 7 years, I’m quite grateful I’ve been able to make it work, both with a company early on, and on my own as a sole proprietor. I’m aware that statistically, the overwhelming majority can’t say the same.

This is another reason why if you’re a coach, I think there’s definite value to remaining a coach, since past a certain point they seem to become a dying breed. In our profession, we’re often sold an idea that that element of our business should be delegated, outsourced, or otherwise graduated from in favor of becoming something more scalable or influential (like a business development guru).

If it wasn’t for becoming skilled at training people, I wouldn’t have gotten any of the noteworthy opportunities or accomplishments I’ve achieved over my career.

None.

It’s ground zero; the grass roots and bread and butter that lays the foundation for plenty more, and is up to us to upkeep. It can mean networking, it can mean staying on your toes with your skills, and it can mean walking the talk.

In 2025, for me, there were some highlights worth talking about:

• I was a speaker for the 4^th straight year at CanFitPro global conference in Toronto.
• I spoke at SWIS 2025 in Montreal. A great opportunity to be part of a very reputable conference brand.
• For the 3^rd straight year, I did the STRIVE fitness conference on home soil. Always a good time.
• I was able to take part in the inaugural year of the Elevate Conference this spring, which really focused on hands-on development of young talent in the industry.
• I had a hand in creating an event out in Alberta called the Strength for Life Summit. This was a project that focused on making fitness seminars more accessible for the general population, rather than other fitness professionals. Along with Matt and Jo from the Armoury, over the two -day event, we held a 3 part symposium, a group training session, and a social to follow. It was a blast. Will this continue in coming years? We’ll soon find out.
• The book Obesity and Weight Management: The Exercise Professional’s Guide to Fitness Programming has been published and officially released by Human Kinetics. It’s edited by PhD Alexios Batrakoulis, and I have a full chapter in it, as do many others I’m friends with. Great honour and nice to see it come to fruition.
• This sounds less important, but it’s the closest-to-home item on this list: As a fitness writer, I’d been sitting on an idea for a fictional short story. It was a great idea, but also an ambitious one that was very meticulous. For that reason, I could never get every piece to fit together in a way that satisfied me. After around 7 years, I finally had a “eureka” moment and was able to figure it out – and I’m proud to say in September of 2025, Arrested was finally able to go live. The story’s tone and construction is right up my alley as far as literature and film go, so I’m pleased with how this turned out and am glad it’s now in the world.

Entering year 19 of the game feels sort of like a new phase in the career, resembling the way entering the years of “middle age” usually comes hand in hand with bona fide grey hair (not just the odd strand here and there). I’m here for both of those things.

I’m especially proud of myself to say that, considering this: Despite the highlights above, 2025 was easily the slowest, most challenging year of my private career.

Didn’t see that coming, did you?

Let me explain, using stuff I learned as the framework.

The Fitness Landscape has Changed. Drastically.

I got paid for my first published article at 23 years old.

That’s really early. And I’ll say it – there was a reason it worked out like that: I had a combination of hustle, innovation (in a way that didn’t pervert the tenets of legit training content), and actual writing talent and ability. Combine that with some great industry timing, catching the wave of the fitness publication being a hot commodity and coveted resource for gathering training info, and you’ve got the perfect storm.

I accumulated so many writing credits by way of byline articles in print magazines, their online equivalents, and more publications, not to mention a quoted expert source in others’ articles in print and online that I couldn’t keep track. I wrote for everyone. I sit on advisory boards for two of those magazines as we speak. It’s not a joke or hyperbole when it’s said I’m the most prolific fitness writer in the game.

For the entire 2010’s and into the 2020’s, my template as a prolific fitness writer was what comprised a very large part of my professional identity, and a significant reason behind whatever notoriety I’d built. It was also a major income earner for me.

Today, that component of the industry has basically been pulled out from under everyone’s feet.  Writing is still there, and being published is still a thing (I do both). But it is no longer lucrative, nor as ubiquitous as it was before.

In 2015, every magazine had a hard copy and an online equivalent. Big pieces in print would earn big money and would often bylined by a freelance contributor, usually who had some clout and good expertise. Online pieces could be written in higher volume, since it’s daily content and not monthly content. Those earned smaller pay cheques, but they could add up, especially across various platforms. It was a very common occurrence for me to have at least a major feature in two print issues at the same time for a given month, and have 1 to 2 articles get released online every week.

By 2025, things had changed.

Some magazines merged with others.  Others went down altogether.

Most magazines stopped paying contributors. The ones who didn’t, drastically reduced pay rates, which billed out people who were used to earning more.

Many magazines went in-house with all their writing, meaning no freelancers and only contributing editors who were salaried.

Online magazines started switching to video content as the dominant medium.

Other sites went incredibly formulaic – no more original presentation to develop the topic.

Writing is no longer a lucrative endeavor. At least not the lucrative endeavor it was.

And it can’t be, because social media is where everyone’s attention has wandered to. That includes fitness content. And it’s all free.

It’s something I saw coming, but thought I was immune to at the same time.

Stupid.

Like I said, I still sit on those advisory boards. I still write. I still get published. But I do those things much less than before. Because that side of the space is dying. And the industry is moving on. It’s easy to feel lost when faced with this reality, all things considered.  And for a while this year, I did. But then I realized embracing this reality meant leaning into some realizations.

I’m a Trainer.

You know, in a world where so much of the space has become occupied by digital mastery and AI, it’s easy to get sucked into the vortex of the interwebs. I’ve had to come to terms with the fact that at my core, I actually don’t like much to do with that world. If I didn’t have social media for my work, I probably wouldn’t have it or use it at all.

In turn, there’s a lot of pressure on trainers who have social media to develop that into an email list, a product, several products, calls to action, a scalable online business model, support groups, and more.

All this time I thought I’d come a long way by upgrading to an iPhone 16 for my videos.

Maybe it bleeds money to not take advantage of these things. Especially with an audience the size of mine.

But me getting ensconced to the “subscription” world makes me the square peg to a round hole.

That doesn’t mean I won’t have any digital footprint whatsoever or sell any products online. I’m already an online coach who offers program design for remote clients. And I have a book out. And a hypertrophy plan for tall lifters.

And I’ll honestly probably have a growing mailing list and create other products. But none of this will be the bread-and-butter.

Because by comparison, I don’t enjoy that stuff.

I enjoy hands-on teaching and education. That means working with personal training clients 1 on 1.  I’d been avoiding that reality, and not leaning into it to the extent I could – and that includes promoting and marketing that exact thing.

It means being an educator at an academic institution.

It means giving talks to industry professionals.

In an industry where so many trainers are fighting to train clients less and “graduate” to the online space, I’m almost trying to do the opposite. There will always be a market for it, and with fewer professionals involved, it only means the demand for it will increase.

It sucks trying to force something that isn’t you. And where that world is concerned, I’m treating it like a side dish, while working with clients is the entrée.

What can I say? I like to eat my vegetables.

Coaching (and life) Comes down to the Cues.

If you’re not a great communicator, you’re probably not going to be a great trainer.

I’ve said this before, and stand behind it.

In the fitness world, finding the language that actually speaks to the client to help them understand a movement pattern, to motivate them to make changes or stay the path, or to help them generate the right outlook for this all to land, is of paramount importance.  The amount of reasons a client can even be in the gym (let alone hire you as their coach) can be endless. And we need to be adaptable.

It isn’t about what you say. It’s more often about how you say it.

Addressing an issue with a client about some problem, or correcting faulty thinking patterns that may be part and parcel with being a newcomer to the gym, fitness life, and goals, takes a nuanced approach that may vary from person to person. There are definitely smart times and not-so-smart times to intervene with your own thoughts or expertise.

It isn’t about what you say. It’s more often about when you say it.

The coaching world intersects with the real world on this topic. The reason someone might be going to the gym at all varies from individual to individual. The reason a person might have gained or lost weight, or may be avoiding snacks at that party, or may be looking to you for some feedback or reinforcement (even if the habits in need of feedback or reinforcement aren’t the greatest) are all variable and case-by-case. It behooves us to listen.

It isn’t about what you say. It’s more often about whether you say anything at all.

The wrong words, the wrong delivery, or things said at the wrong time can turn someone off, or possibly even stumble them from future success. Being a better listener can help with every choice made when speaking.

Interlude: The Top 12 Movies of 2025

This year kind of snuck up on me, and only later revealed itself to be a pretty good year in film. Minus the fact that (to my dissent) streaming services seem to be taking over – the second half of 2025 brought some good work to the screen.

I’m very traditionalist when it comes to films, and believe and support the idea of getting to a physical theatre to see them the way they were intended to – on the largest screen possible. There’s also something novel about the ambience of a movie theatre, complete with the wafts of buttered popcorn siphoned in through the vents. I probably got to the theatre for around 30 movies, which is right on track, with the addition of Netflix and other platforms rounding things out. Despite this, there were still a couple of films I missed and probably won’t get to until the new year that might have found their way into the conversation based on hype: The Secret Agent, Thunderbolts, Hamnet, Train Dreams, and The Long Walk were all films I meant to hit up but just couldn’t squeeze them in in time. Regardless, I had a great batch of movies to navigate among to arrange this list. I’ll start with a few honorable mentions:

Eddington – Joaquin Phoenix, Pedro Pascal and Emma Stone all delivered killer performances. This was a COVID, social media, cancel culture, outrage culture focused film that did well taking no sides. I found the final act to be weaker than the first 1.5 hours of this film, which were worthy of a top 5 placement had it kept that momentum. This is probably the closest near-miss to the official list for 2025.

The Smashing Machine – I’m a fan of The Rock, and was pleased he nailed his performance and got some recognition for doing so. Emily Blunt also killed it. People were let down by this, expecting a blockbuster all about the MMA fights. The way I saw it, this was never about that, and the actual fights had the least to do with this character study. Solid work.

The Running Man – This was a ton of fun for me. If Glenn Powell is the new “it” guy for this generation’s action films, I can see it. I like the John Wick-esque simplicity of the plot, lacing in the themes of classism and enslavement to devices (and the power of social media and AI tech).

Magazine Dreams – I’m really sad to place this in the honorable mentions and not the true list, because Jonathan Majors’ intense lead performance was an easy top 3 male lead of the year. Due to drama in Majors’ personal life, this film was sandbagged from its original 2024 intended release. It makes you wonder how it would have been received during that time.  An interesting character study explored the good, bad, and ugly sides of bodybuilding culture (with a clear focus on the bad and ugly sides), complete with linkages to mental wellness.

Sinners – This, like Eddington, was so close to making the list. I enjoyed this spin on a vampire popcorn flick, mainly for its first half, and for its usage of music as the primary vehicle to tell its story. This had buy-the-soundtrack level tunes, and some awesome sequences. Sometimes this film punched outside its weight class thematically, but it was still a fun watch. Michael B Jordan was great, but I really have my eye on Miles Caton as both a singer and an actor.

That was hard.

Writing that list of HM’s just told me how sneakily strong a year 2025 was in film. Ordering these next 12 has proven to be even more difficult, but with no further ado, here are my top movies of the year.

1. One Battle After Another – This film had a tremendous ensemble performance, my choice for Best Supporting Actor winner (Sean Penn), and a plot that couldn’t be predicted. Covering about 3 plots, it blends the intensity and smarts of films like Fargo and No Country for Old Men, with cinematography of North by Northwest, and a strong dose of unintentional humor. To me, this covered every base.
2. Weapons – For a long time, I had this in the top spot. The eerie premise of an entire classroom of children going missing, and the use of surveillance footage to see them all leave their homes at the same time, set a wonderfully chilly tone for this thriller/horror. This film tells its story in chapters, using 5 different vantage points to go over the same time period. This was effective in everything it was ambitiously going for.
3. F1: The Movie – How do you make the ultimate crowd pleaser? Make it a Cinderella story, featuring an A list actor playing a washed up veteran, feature incredibly filmed action scenes, cool writing, and a happily-ever-after ending. This racing film follows other great productions of the genre like Gran Turismo and Ford v. Ferrari in a high octane sports flick with characters you can’t help but love. This is one to own. Are DVD’s still a thing?
4. Bugonia – Yorgos Lanthimos is quite possibly the ONLY director I can see pulling the concept of this film off. A cooky, contained conspiracy theory thriller, featuring my favourite female lead performance of the year (Emma Stone). This film uses music in the most unorthodox way, in a film that forces you to take its insane concepts seriously. Darkly funny with the most Lanthimos ending a Lanthimos movie can come up with.
5. Black Bag – This flew under the radar for many. Michael Fassbender and Cate Blanchett impress in this neat little spy drama/suspense film. A nearly Guy Ritchie – level twist-and-turn plot that makes you question the loyalty of literally the entire cast, due to smart dialogue and stylishwriting. It demands more than one watch to catch all the plot points.
6. Marty Supreme – Timothee Chalamet earns the prize for the most attention-getting lead performance of the year (I suspect he wins his first Oscar here), playing one of the most unscrupulous leads of my recent memory… one that the audience still finds a way to like. This was directed by the man behind Uncut Gems – so if you’re cool with an anxious, never-stopping, stressful tone, complete with an abundance of funny writing, this will work for you. I’d recommend watching it just for the lead performance. Table tennis never got so chaotic.
7. A House of Dynamite – What do you do when your nation’s defense notices a missile hurtling toward a metropolis of 10 million people? This film smartly told this story from multiple government locations around the USA, and it didn’t make repeating the same 18-minute span redundant in the least. This was an anxious, well written thriller with a killer ensemble performance – and an ending you’ll either hate or love. I loved it.
8. Nuremberg – I’m shocked this film didn’t get any awards consideration for the Golden Globes. Maybe it was trying too hard. This was an excellent ensemble performance with Russell Crowe as a standout in a supporting role. A psychological chess match that builds to a courtroom drama payoff.
9. Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning – What more can I say that hasn’t already been said? This film is a solid conclusion to three decades of franchise. It puts its money where its mouth is when it comes to visceral action and stunt work. You’re in for a treat when it comes to the visuals. The other popcorn flick of the year beside F1. Watch it on the biggest screen you can.
10. The Accountant 2 – Nine years after filming the first Accountant, Ben Affleck and Jon Bernthal don’t miss a beat. Their chemistry is top shelf, the story is solid, and the action is great. Few sequels can accomplish this.
11. Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery – Speaking of sequels, this franchise seems to know how to make a good movie. As the third instalment of this series, it may arguably be the best mystery – complete with a massive cast of actors. Lots laced in here regarding faith, fulfillment, personal demons, and forgiveness. And a mystery that is possibly the most difficult to solve so far. Hercule Poirot, make room for Benoit Blanc. He’s not going anywhere.
12. Jay Kelly – This featured George Clooney playing a version of himself, quite literally – a veteran actor who’s seen it all, and done it all, but in need of fulfillment. If you remember 2014’s Birdman, there are similarities while bringing question to the notions of admiration and friendship; Being a nice person and being a good person are not the same. A standout and show stealer was Adam Sandler, who delivers what might be the best performance of his career.

That was difficult, and fun. Surprised where some of those landed. Good year.

Now, back to business.  

I no longer have time for bad quality clients.

This isn’t the subheading it sounds like.

I’m not talking about a client who cancels late or doesn’t follow their solo program.

I’m talking about the human component of this work, which is just as important, if not more.

We’re not accountants who meet with their clients twice per year. We see our clients for an hour, two times per week, every week. Not long into that duration, we’ll inevitably surpass any “rapport” stage and soon after probably transcend the “coach-client” relationship and get closer to a friendship. That’s normal, natural, and usual – and it’s something many books will call a no-no, without proper context.

I have a belief in good.

I like to think people are generally more inclined to be good and do good than they are to be the opposite. I’m also willing to play the odds on that. Sometimes it bites me. Most times, it pays off and fosters a good relationship dynamic.

A person who unashamedly presents characteristics that are harmful to the above belief, or worse yet, threaten a good, healthy, friendly dynamic in a working relationship between trainer and client, aren’t people I can work with.

I’m not being exclusionary or rude here. I’m identifying that we aren’t the right fit.  And believe me – it’s taken a lot for me to get here.

In a trainer’s career, granted it’s long enough, he or she will certainly have an experience or three where a client they’re working with treats them less like a “hired expert” or “trained professional”, and more like “the help”. This may reveal itself at the very beginning, or it may be revealed much, much later in the relationship.  To them, you’re expendable, replaceable, and the value you provide (or any supposed bond you’ve created over time) actually means nothing.

The longer you do this, and the better you get with people, the easier it is to pick up on the telltale signs that this is the energy.

It’s one of those things where you kind of have to go through some version of it to be aware it exists.

And it’s good to learn from – not only to streamline your roster, but also to learn key characteristics as a professional, including boundaries (like how you’ll be spoken to and the amount of respect you require), how you’ll respond to things that may lowball your significance, and maybe even your own personal moral compass – and where you’ll draw the line as far as what kind of energy you want to be associated with. Is the money really worth it?  This is up to you to answer.

If you can relate to the things I’ve said above, you’re not alone. If you’re not treated with respect as a personal trainer, step up to the plate for yourself.

And, by the way – the energy doesn’t only have to be directed at you.  If you think toxic behavior – whatever it may be – may rub off on you by association or affect your mentality, make the call. You don’t have to work with them.

What may appear to be an opportunity lost, may be the class act that sets you apart and moves your career forward.

Personally, I don’t think it’s discriminatory to say I only offer my service to good human beings.

If it is, I don’t care.

The Fitness Industry Doesn’t Have your Back. It Profits off of Your Confusion.

Most people aren’t lost because training is complicated. They’re lost because the fitness world benefits from keeping them overwhelmed.

The moment people realize progress comes from the same boring fundamentals that worked 40 years ago, the whole fitness economy collapses. So instead, we get new trends every 3 weeks, influencers selling the illusion of “secrets”, companies playing the capitalism game on confusion, and trainers playing along because using clarity doesn’t “go viral”.

But here’s the uncomfortable truth:

The confusion exists because both sides keep feeding it. Influencers pump out quick fixes because the public clicks it. Trainers overcomplicate things to sound smart. Companies profit from the chaos.  And consumers are stuck trying to decode a puzzle that never should have been this complicated in the first place.

We’ve built a culture where convenience beats consistency, aesthetics beat ability, and marketing beats mentorship.  People say they want results — but they reward the content that distracts them from doing the work.

It’s not that people are lazy.

It’s that they’re overwhelmed – and the industry benefits from keeping it that way.

Now more than ever, it just goes to show that real coaches are critically important. The people shouting the loudest are the ones getting the most attention, rather than ones with skin in the game and the real skills to cut through the clutter.

They’re the ones who are going to restore a legit identity to the fitness world, but they’re fighting a losing battle if coaches keep selling out to go viral.

I know what I have to do.

2026

I won’t lie. I’m happy to put this year to bed.

I do think some of the realizations  have been defining, and present clarity to what I’ll call the “next chapter” of my career. I can genuinely say I’ve been doing this for a long time now, and have been fortunate enough for very little to interrupt my trajectory. Sometimes, years like this might be needed.

They build character, they say. 

The seeds are already planted for 2026, and it’s fixing to be a doozy.  But I don’t talk about things until they’re done.

I’ll be sure to remember this article when I write that one.