I have been writing this weekly blog for the past nine months. The intention to provide education and thought provoking discussion to my members firstly, and then to all that may enjoy following along beyond my four walls. I believe I have done so and I enjoy the weekly discussions I have with people in the gym, in my emails and on my socials following the release of each article.

These articles are pure raw me. They are a collective of my thoughts and feelings about the current state of our fitness, nutrition and minds in today’s world. They are thoughts that have developed over my 12 years within the fitness industry. What I like, what I don’t like, where we can be better, how we can be better.

For me, putting my thoughts into words each week has been a massively rewarding process. It has lead me to think more critically about everything I do. It has inspired me to read and read and read this year (I have clocked up about 20 books since January and I have never enjoyed learning so much!). It is helping me become a better gym owner, a better coach, a better husband and a better father. It has helped me to seek out challenges and look forward to the uncertain outcome.

These articles, reading, my podcast and my beliefs about the world of fitness have helped me think very critically about my place in the fitness industry, my ability to contribute to health and fitness in the way I believe is right and what control I have to do so.

If you have read my articles you will know how I feel about the fitness industry, how misguided it is, how all reality and perspective of what is important has been lost or skewed, how poor a job we are doing to reverse chronic disease. How the fitness industry may occasionally be building stronger bodies and improving some cardiovascular endurance, but how it is completely misguiding nutritional information and f’ing up the mental health of the people it is promising to help because of financial greed. How we are obsessed with body image and comparing ourselves to others looks, performances, strength or whatever the heck we don’t have that they do have, and how ridiculous all of that is in the overall scheme of things.

Most of us come to the gym looking to lose some weight, build some muscle, get a bit fitter and look a bit better. We do this because we think this will be the answer to all of our problems. In my first blog I wrote, “It isn’t as cut and dry as… do fitness, eat good, get results = happy.”

But that’s what we all do and that’s what the industry tells us will happen.

But does it?

From my experience, no. Not often. It certainly helps that’s for sure. Exercise should certainly be one of our first ports of call to help improve our overall well being. But there is so much more to it.

The reasons we really join a gym, whether we realise it or not, are for reasons like… overcoming self esteem issues, feeling apart of something, being able to play and run around with our kids, feeling sexy to our partner, overcoming anxiety…

As I said when I started these weekly emails… I want to make a change in that space. In order to achieve that, both within our walls and to those looking in from the outside, rebranding my gym is a pivotal move that must happen in order to achieve my vision.

Over months and months of discussing, planning, deciding and developing with my staff… I am ready to unveil the next step for CrossFit Cranbourne. Make welcome to Valor.

The definition of Valor is ‘Great courage shown on the battlefield’. In today’s world we don’t tend to cross so many battlefields anymore. But we do face many personal battlefields. The battlefields of our physical fitness, of our nutrition and of our mind. To us, to this gym, Valor is about showing courage in these three battlefields in order to achieve our true goals.

Just like an elite athlete cannot just exercise and practice their sport in order to be a successful athlete, we cannot just go to the gym and work out without addressing our nutrition and mindset just as equally.

At Valor we value Integrity, Community and Wholeheartedness.

Integrity – We do what we believe is morally and ethically right for the health and fitness of our members and we follow through on our words with action.

Community – We provide a place of support, positive social growth and belonging. Where it is okay to be open and vulnerable and where people can feel safe and confident to be completely and wholeheartedly themselves with zero fear of judgement.

Wholeheartedness – Engaging in your lives from a place of worthiness. We cultivate the courage, compassion and connection in our members so that they know that no matter what you achieve today, no matter what you failed to achieve today, or no matter what you are still working towards, you are enough.

I am incredibly excited to bring this vision to life. To me, this gym and everything we plan to add along with it, is 12 years of thought and experience all coming together. It is the answer to the failures of the industry, it is the step needed to regain our perspective on what the actual point of a gym is, it is what every single person deserves as a service when signing up to a gym.

There is so much more to come. Today it is just a name.

To nurture it into fruition over the next couple of months is the single most exciting step I have ever looked forward to in my career in fitness. Because with this model, my team and I can make one hell of a difference to our members lives, and if all goes to plan, we will be able to make a difference to the lives outside our 4 walls too.

Stu.