Years ago, when me and Carl first started Transformation HQ, we were sat in a little office above Buxton HQ, the first Transformation HQ.
Trying to figure out how to actually get people to listen to us.
We didn’t have a marketing plan or a clue what we were doing.
Just a drive to help people get in shape properly.
No gimmicks, no quick fixes, no fake “7 day summer shred” rubbish.
So the whiteboard came out and we made a plan.
We decided early on we’d split things up.
Carl would be the face and voice, he’s natural on video, gets people fired up, has that energy you can’t fake.
And I’d be the one who wrote.
I liked getting things down in words, thinking them through properly.
It felt more like me.
We also made a promise to improve ourselves the same way we were asking our clients to.
So, I went and did a few writing courses to sharpen up.
Learn how to get a message across without sounding like every other gym email out there.
But honestly, what really shaped how I write these blogs wasn’t a course.
It was fanzines.
If you don’t know what they are, they’re the homemade football magazines fans used to write themselves.
Scruffy, funny, a little bit rude and full of passion.
No sponsors.
No official club PR rubbish.
Just proper supporters saying what they thought.
Most clubs have ditched them now and moved onto podcasts.
And fair enough, I listen to a few myself.
But my club still prints a couple of old-school paper ones.
And I still love reading them before bed.
There’s something about holding them, flicking through pages that were written by real people who actually care.
No filters.
No polish.
Just truth, humour, and heart.
They often open with a random story and link it to an opinion about our football club.
That’s the vibe I’ve always tried to keep with these blogs.
Not fake motivation.
Not polished social media quotes.
Just me talking straight, the way I would to a member stood in front of me after a session.
And the funny thing is, the same lessons that make those fanzines great are the same ones that get people results in the gym.
Number one, stop waiting for perfect.
Those fanzines were full of typos and dodgy layouts.
But they got printed.
And that’s what mattered.
It’s the same with training.
You don’t need the perfect routine, the perfect diet, or a new pair of leggings before you start.
You just need to start.
Get three sessions done this week.
Get your steps in.
Eat protein with every meal.
Job done.
Number two, your story matters.
These fanzine writers aren’t journalists.
They are normal fans who love what they are doing.
It’s the same with fitness.
You don’t have to be shredded or super-fit to have something worth showing up for.
Your story counts
Whether you’ve lost a stone, stuck to training for a month, or just managed to walk every day this week.
That’s what progress looks like.
Small wins that add up.
When I look back, me and Carl didn’t start with anything fancy.
We just showed up, learned as we went, and kept moving forward.
No perfection.
Just progress.
That’s what I want you to do too.
Don’t overthink it.
Don’t wait for the motivation fairy to turn up.
Don’t restart Monday for the tenth time.
Just do the next thing that moves you forward today … lift, walk, eat better, sleep.
Keep doing that, and you’ll look back in a few months wondering how you ever thought it was complicated.
-Ryan
P.S
If you’re ready to stop waiting for the perfect time and actually start getting results, enquire about our next 6 Week Meltdown intake here 👋