Fitness Expert, Carl: Creative Brand Manager & PT

We’re firm believers at MuscleSquad that it’s essential to be a domain expert in your field to develop the best products. It’s those small changes we make to a squat rack or functional trainer that come from years of training and embedding ourselves in the fitness industry — not to mention being able to help our customers with exercising safely, proper form and avoiding the risk of injury.

In our fitness expert series, we’re introducing some of the people that embody this part of our company.

Carl — Creative Brand Manager

Carl is the Creative Brand Manager at MuscleSquad as well as a home gym guru with PT qualifications. Whether it’s video content, static visuals or product development, his 20+ years of fitness training can be felt in every facet of our business.

What’s your role at MuscleSquad?

“I’m in charge of anything creative we do from photography to video to branding, and I also play a large role in developing our products alongside our Head of Product Chris. I also manage the MuscleSquad showroom in Preston, which is there for people to come and trial our equipment themselves, and having fitness qualifications allow me to help with our training-based content, too!”

What got you into training?

“I was teased by a girl when I was younger. She embarrassed me in front of my peers when I was 13. I went home that same day and made a set of weights in my bedroom out of wood and concrete. I told myself it wouldn’t happen again and the rest is history.”

What’s something you wish you knew when you started?

“That it’s super important to rest! When I first started training, I did 100 push ups and 100 sit ups every night, thinking that the more I pushed my muscles the more they’d grow. Obviously looking back, I probably wasn't giving my body the chance to recover, but it definitely taught me a lot about discipline and consistency!”

Home gyms or commercial gyms?

“It’s home gyms for me… it’s how I started 21 years ago and I’ve never looked back. I love the fact that I’m in complete control of my own space.”

What’s your favourite exercise?

“It’s a mixture between any type of bicep curl or a single-arm cross-body tricep extension. Either way, it’s arms!”

What’s an underrated exercise that more people should do?

“Anything unilateral. Most people only train bilaterally—so exercises where they use both legs or both arms at a time—whereas I’ve always trained various exercises in a single-arm or single-leg variant and seen amazing progress from it. Not only do you increase mind-muscle connection, but you’re also able to fix any muscle imbalances you have.”

What’s your favourite thing about training?

“Training is therapy for me. Whether I’m up or down, training always makes me feel good and takes away any stress or anxiety. I get to be in my own zone, in my own world and, since I’m able to train at home, I’m in my own space, too.”

Who’s your fitness idol?

“I’d say my biggest fitness inspiration is Simeon Panda. We both have a similar training style and ethos. He trains hard and his workouts are very intense. You can see the passion he has for fitness every time he speaks and through his brand. I’ve also had the privilege of shooting some content for his brand via Instagram, so that was a nice moment for me.”

What do you enjoy doing outside of training?

“Outside of the gym I enjoy photography. I used to enter competitions and managed to get shortlisted in the top 10 of the Sony World Photo Awards back in 2017. I’m also big on family, so that rightly takes up most of my time.”

If you could only use one piece of fitness equipment for the rest of your life, what would it be?

“This one is easy: our Phase 4 Cable Rack. It has everything you need! Heavy weight stacks at 2:1 and 1:1 ratios, which in itself would be enough, but it has so much extra functionality in a small footprint that it’s just a beast to train with!”

Catch Carl on Instagram or get to know our other fitness experts, Elliot and Steph.