Hey! I'm Stuart 👋
Personal Trainer. Nutritionist. Definitely not a fitness influencer.
I help normal people get stronger, feel better and become more confident with training and food, without needing fitness to take over their life.
I’m an MNU Certified Nutritionist, Personal Trainer with qualifications in Sport & Exercise Science, Weightlifting and further training in motivation, communication and mental health to support the behavioural side of coaching too. I'm based at my private gym, Hub Fitness, in Bannockburn, Stirling and also online.
But I didn’t get into this because I’ve always been brilliant at the gym and ate like a saint.
Quite the opposite.
I know what it’s like to feel uncomfortable in your body, have no idea what you’re doing with weights and feeling like nutrition far more complicated than it actually is.
That’s a big part of why I coach the way I do now.
I didn't exactly
have this figured out
from the start...
Fifteen years ago, a career change, knee injury & living off fast food left me stuck in a cycle of low energy, low confidence, and rapid weight gain.
It left me hating my body, feeling sore daily and frustrated at being breathless just kicking a football around with my brother.
The breaking point came when getting ready for a big night out.
I squeezed into my favourite shirt, only to find the buttons nearly popping off! I'd gained much more weight than I'd realised. The stress hit when my mate shouted that the bus was outside, everyone was waiting on me and I had nothing else to wear. I spent the night terrified, trying to play statue so I didn't turn the buttons into bullets.
I Knew I Had To Make a Change...
But I did everything wrong!
I had no clue where to start, which resulted in every mistake you can imagine.
You name it I did it, crazy workout programmes at home because I was scared of the gym, hiding on treadmills the few times I was brave enough to actually go and banning carbs because I thought they made you fat. I even started having carrot sticks instead of chips with a steak dinner - what a psychopath!
I tried to 'stoke my metabolism' by eating a peanut butter sandwich at set times. To make it worse, I had alarms on my phone and hated peanut butter! 🤢
I then became obsessed with Calorie tracking and stressed about starvation mode. By the time I was a qualified Personal Trainer, I understood Calories in vs Calories out and was in great shape.
My relationship with food though? That was in the bin! I couldn't enjoy a meal out without worrying about it and wouldn't eat anything that wasn't "clean".
I couldn't live like this forever,
so I invested in proper nutrition qualifications.
This was my light bulb moment.
Everything clicked, and I realised the importance of an evidence-based approach. I learned it didn't have to be so complicated, it didn't have to be miserable and with the right approach, I could get faster results and keep them without tracking everything I did.
It also…
Changed how I think about coaching!
My own experience taught me that knowing what to do isn't always the problem.
I knew exercise was good for me. I knew vegetables were probably a better idea than living off fast food. And later, I knew more about calories and nutrition than I probably ever needed to.
But knowledge alone didn't give me a healthy relationship with any of it.
That's a big reason I don't believe good coaching is just handing someone a training programme and calorie target and expecting them to get on with it.
Sometimes you need to learn how to train properly and build confidence in the gym.
Sometimes you need a nutrition strategy that actually fits your life.
Sometimes you already know plenty, but need help working out why you keep stopping, restarting or struggling to follow through.
And often, it's a mixture of all three.
That's why my coaching starts with the person and the problem. Not the programme.
The aim isn't to make you perfect at fitness.
It's to help you get stronger, have more energy, feel more capable and build habits that can survive real life.
Because ultimately, I want fitness and nutrition to make your life better, not become your life.
This isn't just what I believe. It's how I coach.
Over the years I've worked with people starting from very different places...
People who were scared to walk into a gym have achieved things they'd never imagined.
Like Rhiannan, who I used to meet outside the gym so she didn't have to walk in alone but now loves training and competing. Winning multiple strongman events.
People who'd spent years losing and regaining weight have learned how to manage food without constantly being on a diet.
Like Sarah who spent 20 years yoyo dieting and has now kept the weight off for years after losing 4 stone. She continues to eat well, exercise regularly and be active.
People who felt stiff, sore and old before their time have become stronger fitter and more capable than they thought possible.
Like Davie who had real health concerns and couldn't walk a couple hundred meters without needing a rest. Now in his 70s he carries twice his bodyweight in the gym and plays golf weekly after losing 7 stone and keeping it off for a over a decade to date.
People who were run down and exhausted looking after everyone and everything to the point they were burnt out.
Like Elaine who was fit and healthy most of her life but was shattered doing her masters whilst working in a very demanding profession and raising her daughter. She dropped 4 dress sizes, ran half-marathons & most importantly is proud of showing her young daughter how to be strong, fit, and healthy.
Many of my clients have gone much further than they ever expected, running ultramarathons, competing in Strongman, lifting weights they once couldn't imagine lifting.
But the impressive numbers aren't really the point.
A 100kg deadlift is brilliant.
So is walking into the weights area without feeling nervous.
Losing 3 stone can completely change someone's life.
So can going on holiday, enjoying themselves and coming home without feeling like they've “ruined everything.”
Progress should make your life bigger, not make fitness take up more of it.
So how can I help you
You don't need to know exactly what type of coaching you need before you get in touch.
Most people start with one of two problems:
1.
“I want to lose weight
& get my eating under control.”
But I did everything wrong!
Fat Loss In A Flash is a focused six-week phase designed to get your weight moving while we work on hunger, food choices and a nutrition strategy that actually fits your life.
First 6 weeks: £199
2.
“I want to feel more
confident in the gym.”
But I did everything wrong!
Lift With Confidence is like driving lessons for the gym.
Over six weeks we'll work together 1:1 to improve your technique, help you understand what you're doing and build the confidence to train without constantly second-guessing yourself.
First 6 weeks: £199
And after the
first six weeks?
That's where Body For Life comes in.
Rather than finishing a six-week programme and being left to figure out what happens next, we keep building from what you've already started.
The focus shifts from getting you moving to making the changes last, adapting your training, nutrition and habits as your life and goals change.
Because the goal was never just to have a good six weeks.
It's to build habits that survive real life.
You don't need to have it all figured out.
Maybe you know exactly what you want help with.
Maybe you just know you're fed up feeling stuck.
Either is fine.
Tell me where you're at, what you're struggling with and what you'd like to change. We can have a chat and work out whether I can help, and what the most useful place to start would be.
No pressure. No hard sell. Just a conversation.
What My Clients Say
"I'm a better mum, wife & friend"
Rachel Henderson