The Griphouse is well known for producing the country’s finest combat sports athletes, with many  of our guys competing at an incredibly high level. This weekend we have Robert Whiteford out in Dallas competing in the UFC and we wish him the best of luck. Drop the Hammer son.

What many people often do not realise is that a good 90% of our people have no intention of competing professionally. At the Griphouse everyone’s reason to be there is respected and holds equal validity. Our recreational guys are just as important to us as those striving to be world champions.

With that said I wanted to run a series of articles on some of our people who have done really cool things and benefited from their time with us. The first guy that sprung to mind was Ross Jack.

He probably sprung to mind because I see him almost everyday. He has embraced training and combat sports as a lifestyle and the results he has achieved have been a testament to the hours he has put in.

His transformation has been incredible, as the pictures below can attest to.

On day 1 Ross was living a sedentary lifestyle, was unfit and unhealthy. Now he is a competitive fighter, gym rat and an asset to everyone he trains with. He has also begun personal training at the Griphouse helping other to achieve goals like his own.

Here are Ross’s own words.

I have now been training at The Griphouse gym for over 3 years. On my first session I was 15st and lasted 5mins of a personal training session with Guy before collapsing on my arse. But with Guy’s help, support and approach to training I was able to transform my physical abilities and appearance. 

The Griphouse offers a fantastic support network as all the athletes help to train and encourage each other. The standard of coaching is world class and is proven by the titles the coaches and fighters have won.

The gym has a great work ethic that has taught me the discipline and hard work required to transform from a complete novice to a competitive fighter. I owe the Griphouse a lot and would not be the person i am today without it. Guy Ramsay (the owner) is a fantastic coach/friend and if it were not for his patience and determination throughout the past 3 years I would still be 15st and unfit.

Ross’s story is a common one at the Griphouse. To achieve big changes you must make big changes. Body composition and health related goals are not achieved by simply doing a particular class or adopting a goofy diet. In my experience the most profound changes come when a person finds an activity that they really enjoy doing.

When you really enjoy what you are doing turning up is easy. From there adopting the culture of this activity starts happening by itself. You eat cleaner, because training after a chippy is brutal, you turn up more because team mates are relying on you. All of these things and many more combine to encourage you to transform into a better version of your previous self.