News | Meet Sam
I am really excited to be joining Macclesfield Performance. I am a strength and conditioning coach and a personal trainer. I specialise in strength and conditioning for outdoor athletes – anyone who enjoys the great outdoors, either competitively or purely for fun.
Although there can be some old-school thinking/reluctance around strength training in outdoor athlete communities, the bottom line is that if you’re a cyclist (road or MTB), climber, mountaineer, runner, triathlete, wild swimmer, skier, snowboarder or even paraglider, targeted, individualised strength training can make you faster, stronger and more injury-resistant. All of which mean that you can perform at a higher level, train more consistently and enjoy your sport more. Strength can help you keep you racking up those great adventures for many years to come!
Having spent many years in a busy, stressful, time-poor (non-fitness) job I know how hard it is to keep fit and strong in and around the other pressures of life. Because of this, I also provide personal training for anyone who would simply like to get stronger and fitter, but who might not know where to start or how to fit it into a busy life. There is a lot of confusing information out there and sometimes we all just need someone who knows what they’re talking about to point us in the right direction.
I have a life-long love of sport, exercise and the outdoors. Previously a county- and university-level badminton player and coach, most of my 20s and 30s were focussed on outdoor sports, in particular climbing, cycling and winter sports. I’ve been cycling (including competitively) for 30 years, climbing for 11 years and snowboarding for 20 years, and they’re just my 3 favourite ones!
Although sport and exercise has always been central to my personal life, it hasn’t always been my professional life. After originally starting a sport science degree at Glasgow University, my interests evolved a little, and I eventually gained a PhD in Biochemistry and Cell Biology from The University of Bristol, via a couple of stints living in Japan. I worked for a number of years researching the molecular mechanisms behind cancer and other diseases, and later I moved into medical, scientific and health communications here in Macclesfield.
Multiple injuries over the years led me to explore and become passionate about focussed, science-based strength training, and I came to view strength as the absolute foundation for long-term athletic performance, injury resistance, recovery and health, both physical and mental. Over time I decided to leave my career in science and communications to pursue a new career providing strength coaching and personal fitness training.
It is my mission to provide highly personalised, evidence-driven training and coaching to athletes and non-athletes alike, blending my own athletic-, scientific-, life- and career-experience to help people meet their own sporting, health and life goals as efficiently, effectively and sustainably as possible.
If you’d like to explore getting stronger, whatever your sport or motivation, please come and chat to me on the MP gym floor, or contact me via my website for more information.
I look forward to meeting you!