Blog post:  September 20th, 2025
https://round1fitness.com.au

This Sunday, East Perth plays in our second consecutive WAFL Grand Final.

Now, I know some of you already know that I work with the footy club — but a lot of people probably don’t. Most days, I leave the gym in the afternoon and head straight to training, team meetings, or match reviews. In fact, coaching at this level is a solid 20-hour per week commitment — and that’s on top of running the gym.

Some weeks, it honestly feels like a lot.

But when you’re surrounded by a group of players and coaches who are all chasing something together — and doing it the right way — you find a way to keep showing up.

According to the training plan, this week marks Week 39 of the season.  There were actually 2-weeks BEFORE that with just the first-third year players…but, I mean…whose counting!

Thirty-nine weeks of effort.
Thirty-nine weeks of sacrifice.
Thirty-nine weeks of training, meetings, gym sessions, match reviews, game days, and Sunday morning recoveries.

Back in February, we were running time trials in 40-degree heat. It was rough. But that’s what laid the foundation for now. There were no cameras, no banners, no finals excitement — just early mornings, heavy legs, and a whole lot of belief that what we were doing would matter later.

And now it does.

What You Do in the Dark Shows Up in the Light

There’s a quote from NFL coach Urban Meyer that says, “The greatest motivator is a sense of improvement.”  

But the hard part?

You have to “keep going” before you feel that improvement. You have to trust that it’s coming.

And that’s not just football.

That’s every member who walked into Round 1 today and did another session. Boxing. Strength. HYROX. Doesn’t matter. They weren’t training for today. They’re training for 6 months from now. 9 years from now.

• When they’re lifting furniture and not blowing their back out.

• When they’re keeping up with their kids instead of sitting on the sidelines.

• When they’re 60 and still playing — still active, strong, mobile.

You don’t rise to the occasion. You fall to your level of preparation.

From the Gym Floor to Real Life

We talk a lot about transference in strength and conditioning. But let’s keep it simple.

Everything you’re doing at the gym matters somewhere else.

• Core work isn’t just about abs — it’s about lifting a couch or pushing a mower.

• Deadlifts aren’t just for ego — they protect your back when the real world calls.

• Conditioning isn’t just about calories burned — it’s about having the energy to say yes to life.

Just like our players’ gym work shows up in the last five minutes of the fourth quarter… your gym work shows up when life needs you to be strong, resilient, and ready.

The Real Champions Are the Ones Who Keep Showing Up

Footy is full of milestones — games played, goals kicked, premierships won.
But the real magic is in the mundane. In the commitment to showing up when it’s inconvenient. When no one’s watching. When it’s 5am and your body’s telling you to hit snooze.

That’s why I’ve got so much respect not just for the athletes I coach — but for the members I see in the gym every day. You might not be aiming for a Grand Final, but you’re building something just as meaningful: a strong, capable, confident version of yourself.

So whether you’re training for footy glory or just to live better — the lesson is the same:

👉 Train like you play.
👉 Play like it matters.
👉 Because it does.