Our Story

Hi, I’m Sean. I’m the owner and founder of Next Level Fitness

Before starting with us I’d like to introduce myself and tell you a little about why I believe we’re the best team to help you unlock the potential you didn't know you had!

It's because I started in similar shoes to you.. As a beginner, unsure of where to start with exercise.

In fact, my starting point… was at 18 stone and I had been overweight all the way up until my 20's... 

I didn't exercise, I hated the person I saw in the mirror and I thought I would be that way all my life.

I had to battle with crash dieting, eating disorders and lots of ups and downs before getting to the point where I had control of my weight.

It took me 2 years to lose 8 stone but another 6 years to develop a healthy relationship with food, fitness, my body and confidence in myself.

It was only at the end of that journey I realised that there was a better way. 

Along my way, I became a Personal Trainer and Next Level Fitness is an extension of my experience and a vision to help people who struggled with their weight like I had. 

Our mission is to help men and women alike find their love for exercise and to take on physical, mental and emotional challenges that may initially seem impossible to achieve extraordinary lasting change.

Provided you’re open to being coached by people who have walked your path and have your best interests at heart then Next Level is for you. 

Here, anyone can achieve lasting results because we (team and members) guide you through the correct, results proven process. 

Whatever your shape, size or ability level, you’re welcome here. 

MY HISTORY AND WHERE I WENT WRONG

At the start of my journey all I wanted was to lose weight and tone up…

I didn’t care about getting fit…

I only started doing more exercise when my weight loss plateaued and it was another way to burn more calories. 

And it is this journey of: Lose Weight > Tone Up > Get Fit that is the problem. 

Exercise to me was only about what I looked like in the mirror and so I missed out on anything else exercise could do for me… it was a chore. 

I prioritised getting ONE result fast before changing the behaviours necessary to get me there and by doing so never gave myself a chance to form a healthy relationship with exercise. 

Instead:

- I felt like training was a chore and I found it hard to motivate myself.

- I felt like a failure every time I stood on the scales and they hadn’t moved. 

- I struggled with negative self-talk and asked myself why I even bothered.

- I was always in a cycle of stopping and starting again.

The only way I could be happy would be if the scales had moved and even if they had, I would look in the mirror and tell myself that I needed to tone up… aka ‘I wasn’t good enough’

Just wanting to lose weight and look better is not a strong goal for long term motivation. 

That was my experience and I’ve seen it play out in others many times throughout my personal training career.

If all that exercise means to you is weight loss then it will not get you to where you want to be (at least not for the long term… you will rebound) and you will never feel good enough. 

If you’re telling yourself ‘I will be happy when…’ then it prevents you from having any self-confidence now!

With hindsight and experience I realise it would have only taken a shift of mindset to change all that…

THE BIG AH-AH MOMENT

The big lesson for me was to put my HEALTH FIRST and LOOKS SECOND!

I believe this is the secret for everyone who wants to lose weight, tone up, build muscle, get fit or make any physical change to their body and keep their result for life.. especially if that goal is linked to confidence or feeling good about yourself.

Let me explain.

When I trained to lose weight, exercise was always a chore..

However… there was a point where I changed my focus to getting fitter to do more of the activities I wanted and I found training became less of a chore.

I noticed I had more energy, felt better in myself and motivation came much easier.

AND, the big ah-ah, I notice results still came because I didn't think about it.

Not just how I looked but the things I'd not though about like like strength, confidence, fitness and friends around me.

That’s because:

An active lifestyle gives you more energy! Which then burns more calories, which improves your metabolism and naturally helps keep weight off.

Yes, weights are essential for building shape and what I learned through my career as a Personal Trainer and joining other groups is that there are lot fun ways to use weights that AREN’T just counting sets and reps in a muggy weight room.

Focusing on my HEALTH FIRST, improving my physical ability; getting fitter, stronger and building good habits, I’ve found my shape naturally changes overtime…

It’s a subtle shift of perspective but it’s an important one which I've seen play out through myself AND the hundred clients I've trained over the years.

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A NEW WAY OF THINKING

What I wish I'd done at the start was change my focus. To shift the focus from a far away outcome to daily self improvement like:

- Feeling better in myself.

- Feeling fitter, faster, stronger.

- Having more energy.

- Feeling more confident.

- Meeting new people.

- Hitting a new personal best.

- An achievement you couldn't have done 3 weeks before.

This new focus would still have led to that big long term goal of losing weight, changing my shape and (the goal underneath that I didn't realise) having more confidence in myself and allowed me to enjoy the journey, not just the destination.

What I realise not is that results are the by-product of the journey, not the focus.

The focus should be having fun because long term, no-one sticks to a program they don't enjoy.

BUT when exercise means something positive....

There is a lot of fun to be found in the process of getting fit and healthy, which will ultimately change the way you look and feel.

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NEXT LEVEL FITNESS

Not everyone has 10 years a fuck ups and failures to get it right and they shouldn't have to.

I started Next Level to give you the tools I didn't have when I started:

- To put you with professional coaches who can teach you all the fun ways to get fit that require more time than a 1 hour induction.

- To guide you through proved exercise programs so you don't have to program hop and guess what works

- To help you with nutrition and mindset coaching, the elements of lifestyle change that either get pushed to one side or others charge extra to shouw you.

- To teach you to focus in on little wins and non scale victories that you can easily achieve each week and build towards a bigger goal

- To put you inside a community that is focused on individual progression, not perfection

- And finally, surround you with amazing people who are on the same path as you.

Learning all this has completely changed not only my view of fitness but my life for the better and my desire is to help you, like me, succeed where you haven’t before. 

At Next Level we know that fitness is not ‘one size fits all,’ – here it’s really about enjoying the fitness atmosphere and guiding you down your own unique path.

Our team is a collaboration of passionate people who are all here to deliver a great experience and our community are warm friendly people who are all here for the same reason as you. 

I've created this process because I know it works and it can work for you too.

Thank you for taking the time to read our story and understand why I feel we are the best team to get you to where you want to be.

Myself and all the trainers in the gym are looking forward to working with you in the gym!