Going nowhere.
I’ve tried getting into running and strength training many times over the years. I could see people doing these things for fun and knew there had to be something behind it. Not just motivation, but something they’d figured out that I hadn’t.
Going Nowhere is the honest word for those years. Different gyms, different plans, different excuses. I’d start, lose momentum, stop. No path, no reason, no progress.
Then my son was born.
After my son was born, I decided to stop half-committing. That was it. No revelation. Just a decision.
I wanted to be a role model. That meant doing the thing, not meaning to do it.
What actually worked.
The Couch to 5K program was the turning point for running. But the market was full of apps with custom playlists, heart rate zones, leaderboards, comparisons to other runners. All the things I’d get lost in instead of just doing the program. I found a simple audio version with nothing else attached and committed to it properly. No skipping ahead because a week felt easy. Just the program, week by week.
That process gave me a love for running I’d never had before. Running became the thing I did for myself. Just to clear my head and feel like I was doing something that mattered. Finishing something you actually trusted was different to anything I’d tried previously.
I decided to apply the same logic to strength training. Tried everything: bodyweight, kettlebells, dumbbells, machines, barbells. Read a lot. Tried a lot of programs and training methods to find what I’d actually commit to and keep doing. The bodyweight to dumbbell to barbell progression made the most sense for building real strength without spending hours in the gym every day.
Nutrition followed. Not a diet, just learning to eat in a way that complemented the training and looked after my body and mind. Better sleep, more energy, clearer head. That’s what self-care actually means to me. Not a face mask. Showing up, doing the work, eating well, finding your people.
Community.
Running also gave me something I didn’t expect: the local run club. People to show up for, goals to share, someone to push you when you’d rather stay home.
There’s something about training with people that does more for your head than any session alone. You stop going for yourself and start going for them too. That’s when it really sticks.
Steady Training encourages you to find that wherever you are. A run club, a training partner, a group that meets on Saturday mornings. It doesn’t have to be organised or official. It just has to be real.
Why I built this.
I did a lot of reading. Rippetoe, Wendler, Jack Daniels, the coaches who’d spent careers figuring out what actually works. The conclusion was always the same: simple, consistent, progressive.
I found the programs, learned them properly, and built this so the next person doesn’t have to figure it out alone.