Build muscle, transform your physique

Get exceptional results with the More Than Muscle team.

Looking to build muscle consistently?

More Than Muscle has been at the forefront of the personal training industry for almost a decade. Built on research and verified through hundreds of clients, our proven muscle building formula gets results! Men, women, old & young, we bring elite-level performance to help you finally reach those goals.

Our methods have helped clients achieve exceptional results. Results that have changed their bodies and transformed their lives. You can finally achieve your fitness goals with high-quality training and nutrition.

Why people struggle to build muscle?

Like fat loss, muscle growth can be complex.

The theory is straightforward; but, this can come with many challenges in practice. These challenges can be both physical and mental. Everyone has the potential to build more muscle.

Yes, we are all genetically different.

Yes, we all have different levels of potential growth.

All you need to do is find the right key to unlock yours.

With this in mind, we still see people waste so many hours, workouts and years in the gym, getting nowhere.

We also see muscle size stagnation and plateaus occur for those who see what we refer to as "newbie gains". The process where you see quicker results when you start working out.

That’s where the frustration kicks in, and three leading causes are:

1. Training

Training is the nuts and bolts of your muscle-building program. But, mismanaging and misapplying this process is a common sticking point.
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Either not training hard enough. Or not tracking progressive training variables for a long enough to see growth. A muscle-building program should manage training volume, frequency and intensity through periodic training.
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Many go wrong because of inconsistencies in tracking and either crash and burn at the first hurdle or plateau.

2. Nutrition

Nutrition is essential to your training.
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You need the right amount of calories to fuel your workouts and aid the recovery process to build muscle.
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Managing your macronutrients is just as important. Adequate protein, carbohydrates, and fats help your muscle development. Even meal timings and frequency can support performance in life and within the gym.
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These are crucial elements in making your strength training goals a reality.

3. Sleep & Muscle Recovery

Sleep and recovery are something everyone neglects.

Muscle recovery occurs during the this process, so you need to value it.

These lifestyle factors are where our stressed, overworked bodies fall short. Building good quality sleep into your program allows the muscle cells to recover and stimulate muscle growth. Speeding up the process and building muscle mass.

More Than Physique

Check out our eBook, ‘More than Physique’.


• Create your own plans.
• Learn the science behind muscle growth and changing your body composition.
• Tap in to the knowledge we use to get results on a daily basis for our clients.


The book debunks the myths and provides actionable solutions. So, you can set up the ultimate muscle-building training program.

Common myths

Let’s cut through some of the noise for you and share some of the biggest training myths we tend to hear.

I can’t build muscle because of my genetics. I’m what you call a ‘hard gainer.”

While certain body types find it harder to build or maintain muscle, this doesn’t mean you can’t build tissue. In reality, this mantra is then used as an excuse to avoid the things needed to build muscle tissue. You can still make the muscle you want. But, you need to be a little smarter. Stick to your training/nutrition/recovery plan. If you think of all the requirements as dials, you may need to turn certain ones up higher or for longer to see results. It is possible!

Should I do a ‘bulk’ to see muscle growth?

‍While there is some truth in this theory, for most people, it isn’t necessary. A very experienced trainee may need a ‘bulk’. But, this isn’t an excuse to go away and eat whatever you like. Most people would need to fix up their training variables, train their arses off and eat sufficiently around their training/recovery protocols.

Do I need a lot of protein shakes to help me beef up?

‍NO! Shakes and supplements are the tips of the iceberg. If your calories, macronutrients, meal frequency, food quality, sleep and recovery are priority. The shakes are only a tiny factor in the bigger picture. They can assist in meeting your protein intake requirements. So it’s worth having some protein powder around the house if you need that extra boost. But it’s not necessary, nor is it a magic formula to getting big quick.

As a woman, will I become too bulky if I weight train?

No, in fact, this is quite the opposite. Promote muscle growth in the right areas and it will help you aesthetically with your entire body composition. Not to mention all the health benefits associated with weight training. Women will not produce as much muscle mass as men. But, stimulating muscle growth will help your overall health. Most women that get over this mental hurdle see tremendous benefits from strength training in the long term.

The More Than Muscle approach to gaining muscle

When it comes to producing results, our Guildford-based trainers are unrivalled. Our coaches know what to address and how to apply an effective muscle-building program.

One of the critical areas here is managing the data. That’s why every customer begins their training journey with an hour of assessments. Our assessments give our coaches a clear picture. We know what needs improving and what protocol will help you succeed.

The assessments provide data for our coaches on every aspect of your training journey. How you move. What training volume you can tolerate, and your current nutrition & lifestyle status. From here, we can build you a bespoke, focused training & nutrition program that fits your lifestyle.

The whole process is set up for you to win.

The right way to progressive overload

One of the most significant parts of resistance training is progressive overload. This 'progressively overloads' the mechanical tension a muscle or body part can tolerate.

Your personal trainer will measure your progress, help you with motivation and fine-tune your programme. With monthly body composition measurements, our coaches can ensure the whole process is successful. Taking the guesswork out of the situation for you, whilst delivering the results you want.

With our coaches measuring your biomechanics, leverage, and the way you move, we ensure that the exercises are precise to your needs. Enabling you to grow muscle and get stronger. This is super important because it also reduces the risk of any injuries occurring.

It is important to remember that an injured individual cannot train as much, which will certainly affect your outcomes.

The best training programmes are bespoke

We know that there are many avenues to reach the same outcome. So, we set up our whole process to work around your work-life balance. We can write the best program in the world, but it’s pointless if it doesn’t fit your life or you hate it!

There is no one size fits all approach with us, your training program is custom to you.

Benefits of gaining muscle

Most people see weight training as looking like a bodybuilder. This couldn’t be further from the truth and the reality is quite the opposite.

Building muscle and losing fat will transform your body shape. But it also improves many other aspects of your health. Below are only a small selection of the benefits it brings:

  • Muscle can reduce age-related diseases and increase life expectancy.

  • One of the safest ways to increase your strength is to build muscle. This, in turn, improves life quality as you can do more things.

  • Reduce osteoporosis and the impact of falls with increased bone density.

  • Brain health. Research is clear that muscle mass correlates to better cognitive function.

  • You can reduce the pain you experience on an everyday basis by building muscles in the areas that need rehabilitation. We’ve had many clients eradicate the pain that they’ve had for many years.

  • Blood sugar management is something people can improve, so building muscle can also help control this.

  • Building muscle can also provide a better environment for your hormones to regulate.

Why the MTM approach to gaining muscle works

Our practical application towards the science has worked for many years now. We have simplified complex methodologies for the ‘ordinary' person to achieve world-class results. We make the basics clear, and we help you to apply them well.

Our coaches favour attention to detail. We carefully walk you through the coaching process and manage all you need to build muscle.

Five reasons we continue to produce incredible results

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1. We work together

We spend time with you to map out your goals. Within this process, we set realistic milestones and set achievable targets. What happens here makes the whole coaching process results-driven. The roadmap uses performance markers and body composition readings to keep your goals on track.

2. Results-driven

The training process and the coaching of your training sessions is geared to gain maximum results in the minimum time. This means we train you hard, smart and economically. When you enrol to build muscle, you cut the endless hours wasted in the gym trying to lift heavier weights or pumping out biceps curls to failure.

Clients typically spend between 2-3 hours training per week and see fantastic results because of this. We're on hand to assist with proper form, controlled movement and generally ensuring the right exercises are being performed to help your muscles grow.

3. Nutrition

Nutrition management is vital to promote muscle growth. Our formula for helping you achieve your goals is quite precise. Although our nutritional advice is tailored towards you, we clarify what healthy habits and principles you need to maintain. On top of this, we make sure your nutrition correlates with your training (a mistake many make with too many extra calories). Lastly, we make sure that your nutrition plan fits your lifestyle, work and family life.

4. Accountability

Habitual and accountability tracking is something your coach will take you through. We are confident that this is a pivotal part of the jigsaw.

Your coach will factor in accountability metrics. These help keep you on track toward your goals. Habits need to be made, and new rituals introduced to help you drive toward your muscle-building goals.

Stick to the plan, reap the rewards!

5. Tracking

Live tracking and technology are at the heart of each programme. Our coaches use apps, instant messaging and live sheets to help track your training and progress. This, for us, keeps you close to your regime and your coach. We help you live and breathe your goal in real-time and not only for training.

Body transformation case studies

Here's a few of our awesome clients who all achieved their muscle building goals through our tailored training programmes.

Nick Deakin

Nick completed his transformation (featured in the daily mail) and continued his training to increase his muscle mass.

Firstly, we targeted fat loss. The process stripped away body fat and uncovered his athletic strengths. It hooked him and he wanted a new challenge.

He changed gears to take his body to the next level. Building more muscle mass, particularly around his arms and shoulders. As you can see in the photo, he certainly achieved this! Nick put on a further 1kg of body weight and increased his arm size by 2 inches.

Alex Duval

Alex came to us to build more muscle mass, and that’s precisely what he did. Alex had never done resistance training before. He'd only done the traditional gym cardio routine (use all the CV machines then leave).

So, he sat down with the More Than Muscle team and built a structured plan together. The focus was to help him achieve his muscle-building goals and start lifting weights.

The outcome, Alex put on a significant amount of lean tissue and dropped his body fat percentage down 3%. It's very common for 'newbies' to see these rapid gains through our methods. This was definitely the case for Alex! As a result, we achieved more than he had ever dreamed of with his physique.

Ben Forrest

Ben came to us with a clear goal. "Get as big as I can".
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The results speak for themselves.
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Ben is a long-standing client and has dedicated time to his training. We aren’t here to bullshit you and say these results come quickly. He has trained hard for a few years now and has reaped the rewards.
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His before & after shots show exactly what you can achieve. With the right training team and the right mindset, anything is possible!

FAQ’s

  • For many people, you can do this simultaneously. As a beginner, your rate of change is quicker, and we can do things together. For the experienced trainee, we advise cutting some body fat first before switching to more of a strength training focus.

  • No, this is a huge misconception. One that has come from those using a muscle-building phase as an excuse to eat lots of anything they fancy.

    If done strategically, you'll be fine.

    A systematic approach is also a much healthier way to put on muscle. It'll help you manage your nutrition better than shovelling the calories in. The old school mentality of getting as big as possible with a fat gain is quite silly. Evidence shows that when it comes to cutting body fat, this method also tends to suffer muscle loss that offsets any marginal increase. It’s a pointless process that we don’t recommend.

    Slow & steady always win the long race and are far healthier.

  • Three times would be ideal. But, we have had clients see great results from sessions twice a week.

  • Specific exercises are just movement patterns at the end of the day.

    What determines growth is volume load and volume trained per body part. Volume load is sets x reps x load. So the total tonnage should increase weekly. This is progressive overloading.

    The amount of stress placed on specific body parts over time cause your muscles to grow. There is no one size fits all, just principles to adhere to over time. Building the right resistance training programme for your body is key.

  • Without it, you won’t do much in life in general. Your coach will help motivate you but, you have to own your journey. Nothing is given. Everything is earned.

  • We recommend that you train for at least 12 weeks to give yourself enough time to develop. You can work through three phases of your training programme and see visible results.

    Typically, people feel different within the first month of being physically active with resistance training. This is very common and something you will experience if you’re working hard towards your goal. Of course, everybody responds to things differently. So together, you and your coach will set out timeframes and milestone targets. These will always be bespoke to you.

    Trust the process and have patience.

  • Yes and no! Your calories matter in the volume you need to eat around your muscle-building goal. Your coach will assess you and predetermine the best process for what needed.

    Tracking calories is not always essential. But, they 100% matter.

    If you are a novice, tracking can be a great way to become aware of what’s in the food you consume. Where calories come from. And what you have been consuming in the past. Think of it as a re-education process that will teach you lifelong information for the short term. Our coaches don’t always track their intakes. Yet they’re very aware of their consumption through years of looking into the data.

  • 100%! We work with customers worldwide, not just in Guildford.

    We have an online system that allows us to train customers anywhere. Drop us a message through the contact form here. One of our coaches will be in touch to arrange a free consultation over a video call.

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