In this episode of PROCAST BY JOSH, I talk about why most people have more body fat to lose than they initially think, and why the number you have in your head often doesn’t match the physique you actually want.

We look at bodyweight, body fat percentage, lean mass, why lighting can change how lean you think you are, and what bodybuilding has taught me about assessing a physique properly.

Key topics include:
• Why losing 5kg often isn’t the finish line
• Body fat percentage vs actual fat mass
• Why lean body mass changes how you look
• Using the scale without becoming attached to a number
• Why your desired look matters more than an arbitrary goal weight

The goal isn’t to get as light as possible. It’s to understand what the numbers mean, use them as tools, and keep assessing your progress based on how you actually look, feel and perform.

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In this episode of PROCAST BY JOSH, I’m back with episode 50 and a solo reflection from the last few weeks.

After judging in India, being involved in shows here in Australia, travelling to Darwin with clients competing, seeing client progress, and having a lot of coaching conversations, one lesson kept coming back to me.

The work shows up. So does the lack of it.

In this episode, I talk through what recent judging, competing, coaching and client progress reminded me about results. From the gratitude and persistence I saw in India, to Levi and Axel competing in Darwin, to client Josh losing nearly 25 kilos and Kim learning how to build consistency around family life, this episode is about the work people don’t always see.

Key topics include
• why the result is never random
• why being close isn’t failing
• how feedback helps you improve
• why honest consistency matters
• the ripple effect of personal goals
• why boring work creates real change
• why panic and punishment don’t usually create lasting results
• what it means to stay with the process long enough for the work to show

At the heart of this episode is a simple reminder.

What you do today matters. What you repeat matters. How you respond after a setback matters.

And if you stay with the process long enough, eventually, what you keep doing becomes hard to hide.

If you enjoyed this episode and want more insights, resources, giveaways, and deeper thoughts around the podcast topics and coaching conversations we discuss here, you can subscribe to the PRO YOU weekly newsletter here:

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You can connect with me on Instagram here
@josh_thefitnesspro
https://www.instagram.com/josh_thefitnesspro/

If this episode resonated with you, please share it with someone in your circle who might need this message right now. And if you are enjoying PROCAST BY JOSH, a quick rating or review on Spotify and Apple Podcasts goes a long way in helping us reach more people and continue building a community of people committed to becoming PRO in their own world.

What happens when the things that shape you most aren’t the wins, but the moments that force you to find out what you’re really capable of?

In this episode, I sit down with Kai Karttunen, a coach, personal trainer, competitor and founder of Sisu Training.

Kai grew up in Finland before moving to Australia, eventually finding her way into fitness, personal training and bodybuilding. What started as simply wanting to change her body became something much bigger.

We talk about her first competition, why she decided to come back and do it again, and the shift in mindset that ultimately led her to win at Nationals and earn her Pro Card. For Kai, the win was never really about the trophy. It became proof to herself that she was capable of much more than she thought.

That idea connects closely to Sisu, a Finnish word with no perfect English translation. Kai describes it as the second engine you find when you think you’ve already run out of strength.

And later in the episode, that meaning becomes incredibly real.

Kai opens up about her relationship with Sammy, his unexpected stage four brain cancer diagnosis, losing him only two months after his first migraine, and what the months since have taught her about grief, the nervous system, love and continuing to live.

This isn’t a conversation about simply “getting over” something difficult.

It’s about learning to live alongside it, allowing life to change you, and finding somewhere new to put the love that remains.

We also talk about coaching, body image, relationships, spirituality, letting go of rigid rules around nutrition and training, and why sometimes the path that makes the most sense on paper isn’t necessarily the path you need.

One of the most open and powerful conversations I’ve had on PROCAST so far.

To follow Kai’s journey, you can connect with her on Instagram here
@sisu_training

If you enjoyed this episode and want more insights, resources, giveaways, and deeper thoughts around the podcast topics and coaching conversations we discuss here, you can subscribe to the PRO YOU weekly newsletter here:

https://proyoucoaching.com.au/sign-up

You can connect with me on Instagram here
@josh_thefitnesspro

If this episode resonated with you, please share it with someone in your circle who might need this message right now. And if you are enjoying PROCAST BY JOSH, a quick rating or review on Spotify and Apple Podcasts goes a long way in helping us reach more people and continue building a community of people committed to becoming PRO in their own world.

In this episode of PROCAST BY JOSH, I continue the training conversation by breaking down the role training actually plays in changing your physique.

Training is where you create the stimulus. It is where you challenge the muscle, create tension, place stress on the body, and give your body a reason to adapt.

But the adaptation happens afterwards, through recovery, nutrition, protein, sleep and consistency over time.

In this episode, I talk about why training intensity and effort matter if you want to develop your physique, but also why the answer is not always just to train harder or do more.

The right stimulus is different for different people.

Some people need to train harder. Some people need more volume. Some people need less. Some need longer rest periods so they can perform better. Some need shorter rest periods in certain phases. And this is where coaching over time becomes powerful, because we develop a better understanding of how your body responds.

Key topics include
• why training creates the stimulus, not the adaptation
• why effort and intensity matter for physique development
• the difference between training hard and training recklessly
• why soreness, sweat and calories burned are not the goal
• how proximity to failure and RPE can help explain effort
• why beginners often need more practice, volume and repetition
• why advanced lifters can often make fewer hard sets count for more
• why the right amount of volume depends on the individual
• how recovery, nutrition and sleep support the training response
• why coaching helps refine the process over time

If your goal is to change your physique, you need to give your body a reason to change, support that process outside the gym, and repeat it long enough for the adaptation to happen.

If you enjoyed this episode and want more insights, resources, and deeper thoughts around the podcast topics and coaching conversations we discuss here, you can subscribe to the PRO YOU weekly newsletter here:

https://proyoucoaching.com.au/sign-up

You can connect with me on Instagram here
@josh_thefitnesspro
https://www.instagram.com/josh_thefitnesspro/

If this episode resonated with you, please share it with someone in your circle who might need this message right now. And if you are enjoying PROCAST BY JOSH, a quick rating or review on Spotify and Apple Podcasts goes a long way in helping us reach more people and continue building a community of people committed to becoming PRO in their own world.

In this episode of PROCAST BY JOSH, I talk about the way we think about training, and why it needs to be viewed as more than just calories burned.

This episode was sparked by my recent conversation with Lawrence, where he spoke about the difference between training and simply exercising. That idea stood out to me, because training is not just something you do. Training is something you build.

A lot of people judge a session by how sweaty they got, how tired they feel, or what their watch says they burned.

But training is a skill.

In this episode, I talk about why training should be viewed as something you learn, practise and improve over time. I also share my own experience of starting as a very light, unconfident beginner, and how even after years of training, injuries or time away can force you to rebuild and earn your way back.

Key topics include
• the difference between exercise and training
• why calories burned is not the only measure of a good session
• how training builds confidence, skill and self belief
• why beginners are meant to feel like beginners
• what to do when you feel anxious walking back into the gym
• why strength can drop after time away
• how to rebuild without letting ego take over
• what it means to show up with intent

At the heart of this episode is a simple reminder.

Exercise asks, “how much did I burn?”

Training asks, “what did I build?”

Training is a skill, and the more you respect that, the better you get at it.

If you enjoyed this episode and want more insights, resources, giveaways, and deeper thoughts around the podcast topics and coaching conversations we discuss here, you can subscribe to the PRO YOU weekly newsletter here:

https://proyoucoaching.com.au/sign-up

You can connect with me on Instagram here
https://www.instagram.com/josh_thefitnesspro/

If this episode resonated with you, please share it with someone in your circle who might need this message right now. And if you are enjoying PROCAST BY JOSH, a quick rating or review on Spotify and Apple Podcasts goes a long way in helping us reach more people and continue building a community of people committed to becoming PRO in their own world.

In this episode of PROCAST BY JOSH, I share a solo episode to finish off the recent sequence around awareness, purpose, alignment and ownership.

We have spoken about the story you tell yourself, why you actually want the goal, and why the goal itself is not the hard part. This episode brings it all together with one important question:

What are you going to do when things are not perfect?

Because life will get busy. Work will get stressful. Routines will get interrupted. Motivation will drop. You will miss sessions, have messy weekends, and go through seasons where progress feels harder than you expected.

That is where ownership matters.

In this episode, I share a piece of advice I received from my business coach years ago that has stayed with me ever since. He told me to write down every problem I was facing, then write down why each one was my fault and not someone else’s.

It sounds harsh at first, but the lesson was not about blame. It was about finding the part I could take responsibility for, because that is where the power to change actually sits.

Key topics include
• why ownership is not the same as blame
• how to take responsibility without beating yourself up
• why reasons explain why something is harder, but ownership decides what happens next
• the difference between acknowledging challenges and handing over responsibility
• what ownership looks like during busy weeks, messy weekends and low motivation
• why competitors need ownership after hard feedback, poor placings or post show struggles
• how to stop waiting for perfect conditions before taking action
• the simple exercise of writing down your problems and asking what part you can own
• what it means to be PRO in your own world

At the heart of this episode is a simple reminder.

Reasons explain why something is harder.

Ownership decides what happens next.

You might not control everything that happens, but you do control how you respond from here.

If you enjoyed this episode and want more insights, resources, giveaways, and deeper thoughts around the podcast topics and coaching conversations we discuss here, you can subscribe to the PRO YOU weekly newsletter here:

https://proyoucoaching.com.au/sign-up

You can connect with me on Instagram here
https://www.instagram.com/josh_thefitnesspro/

If this episode resonated with you, please share it with someone in your circle who might need this message right now. And if you are enjoying PROCAST BY JOSH, a quick rating or review on Spotify and Apple Podcasts goes a long way in helping us reach more people and continue building a community of people committed to becoming PRO in their own world.

045: A Conversation with Lawrence: Is the Sacrifice Worth It?

In this episode of PROCAST BY JOSH, I sit down with Lawrence, a natural bodybuilder, coach, physiotherapist, and podcaster.

Lawrence is the host of The General Muscle Podcast, part of the Bodybuilding Down Under podcast, and someone I have known through competing for a number of years. He is also someone I have a huge amount of respect for, both as an athlete and as someone who contributes a lot to the natural bodybuilding space.

In this conversation, we get to know Lawrence’s journey, from his early love of sport, particularly cricket, to finding the gym, working with a bodybuilding coach, and stepping on stage for his first competition at just 17 years old.

We talk about how bodybuilding became a competitive outlet after sport, why training needs to feel purposeful for him, and the difference between simply exercising and training with direction.

We also discuss what he achieved and learned through competing, the sacrifices involved, the impact on his relationship with his long term partner, and how his perspective has changed over time.

A big theme in this episode is sacrifice. Bodybuilding was once worth the sacrifice for Lawrence, but as his life, goals and priorities evolved, that started to change.

We talk through that transition, including his move from bodybuilding into preparing for an ultra marathon, what drove the change, and what he is excited about as his own journey continues to evolve.

Key topics include
• Lawrence’s early love of sport and cricket
• starting bodybuilding at 17 years old
• why he wanted a competitive purpose behind training
• the difference between training and exercise
• falling into bodybuilding and then falling in love with training
• what competing taught him
• the sacrifices involved in bodybuilding
• the impact of competing on his relationship
• knowing when the sacrifice is worth it, and when it may no longer be
• coaching alongside his work as a physiotherapist
• podcasting through The General Muscle Podcast and Bodybuilding Down Under
• transitioning from bodybuilding into ultra marathon preparation
• finding new challenges and evolving beyond one identity

At the heart of this episode is a conversation about purpose, identity, sacrifice and evolution.

Bodybuilding was a huge part of Lawrence’s journey, and for that season of his life, the sacrifice was worth it. But as he shares, what was once worth it may not always feel worth it forever, and that is part of growing, changing, and finding the next challenge.

Whether you are a bodybuilder, coach, athlete, or someone trying to understand what drives you, there is a lot to take from this conversation.

To follow Lawrence’s journey, you can connect with him on Instagram here
@general.muscle

If you enjoyed this episode and want more insights, resources, giveaways, and deeper thoughts around the podcast topics and coaching conversations we discuss here, you can subscribe to the PRO YOU weekly newsletter here:

You can connect with me on Instagram here
@josh_thefitnesspro

If this episode resonated with you, please share it with someone in your circle who might need this message right now. And if you are enjoying PROCAST BY JOSH, a quick rating or review on Spotify and Apple Podcasts goes a long way in helping us reach more people and continue building a community of people committed to becoming PRO in their own world.

044: The Goal Is Not the Hard Part

In this episode of PROCAST BY JOSH, I share a shorter solo episode around a simple but important idea.

The goal is not the hard part.

Choosing the goal is usually easy. Saying you want to lose weight, build muscle, compete, earn a pro card, feel confident, get stronger or change your body is easy.

The harder part is living in alignment with that goal.

In this episode, I talk about the gap between the result someone wants and the standards they are willing to live by. Whether the goal is fat loss, muscle gain, competing, confidence or becoming PRO in your own world, the real work is understanding what the goal requires and being willing to live the process.

I also share a personal reflection around competing. For me, I do not necessarily love competing because of stepping on stage. What I love most is the process. Having something to work towards, testing my standards, seeing what I can bring out of myself, and finding out who I become through the preparation.

Key topics include
• why choosing the goal is usually the easy part
• why living in alignment with the goal is where people get tested
• the difference between wanting the result and wanting the process
• why different goals require different standards
• the role of intrinsic motivation in staying connected to the process
• why the stage is the result, but the process is what you live
• why you cannot expect serious results from casual standards
• what it means to become PRO in your own world

At the heart of this episode is a simple reminder.

Wanting the result is easy.

Living in alignment with it is where it gets real.

If you enjoyed this episode and want more insights, resources, giveaways, and deeper thoughts around the podcast topics and coaching conversations we discuss here, you can subscribe to the PRO YOU weekly newsletter here:

https://proyoucoaching.com.au/sign-up

You can connect with me on Instagram here
@josh_thefitnesspro

If this episode resonated with you, please share it with someone in your circle who might need this message right now. And if you are enjoying PROCAST BY JOSH, a quick rating or review on Spotify and Apple Podcasts goes a long way in helping us reach more people and continue building a community of people committed to becoming PRO in their own world.