Q&A with LDN Muscle

Check out this Q&A with LDN Muscle – AKA ‘the boy band of fitness. LDN Muscle, a fitness company selling guides, sportswear and supplements, and its co-founders are certainly making their mark on the health and fitness scene. The two sets of brothers, James and Tom Exton and Max and Lloyd Bridger, are currently the leading provider of downloadable fitness guides having had over 100,000 downloads since launching just three years ago. Priding themselves on offering honest, realistic and achievable advice, it’s no surprise that more and more people are becoming part of the LDNM community. We caught up with co-founder Max Bridger to find out more… 

Have you always held an interest in health & fitness?

We all completed degrees at university – chemistry, law and geography respectively – and we all used to work together as lifeguards at a large outdoor pool just outside south west London for years, and trained together too at the on-site gym. We also did triathlon in our younger years at the same club, as well as football, tennis and skiing. We all had differing career paths in mind, but have managed to turn a hobby into a career now and are loving it!

What inspired you to set up LDN Muscle?

We were inspired to set up LDN Muscle because we were fed up with enhanced stars, photo-shop and fitness companies duping young people like ourselves, into parting with our wages for ineffective products and training/nutrition guides that simply will not work for normal gym goers. We were approached by the fifth member of LDNM who encouraged us to set up a platform to answer all the questions we were regularly asked by guys and girls in the area regarding our training and nutrition, and from there it just took off!

How do the LDNM guides differ from other guides currently on the market?

Our guides are affordable and accessible to everyone. We lead normal lives and show people how to build fitness successfully into their lives and adopt a sustainable approach. Our guides don’t ban foods, enforce strict meal plans that cost a bomb and force people to train round the clock, but rather educate people, prioritise long term results and come with our full support throughout.

Why do you think there’s such a demand for these types of guides?

Since LDNM launched, we’ve had over 100,000 downloads of guides through the Bikini Guide, Home Bikini Guide, Cutting Guide and the Bulking Guide and we have helped transform tens of thousands of people’s physiques and fitness worldwide. We have enabled thousands of people to build fitness into their lives, and aim to make fitness fun and accessible for the average person who can only dedicate a small percentage of their stretched time to training and nutrition per week.

What do you love most about the LDNM community?

The community is so strong and we are amazed at the amounts of relationships that have stemmed from online support and comradery. The Bikini Guide girls – the #LDNMLadies – are especially amazing at helping one another! The #LDNMFamily is also massively welcoming and encouraging to one another, and the support and motivation we get from all the guys and girls is unreal. We wouldn’t be half the force we are without the LDNM Family.

Tell us more about your personal training academy.

The LDNM Level 2 and Level 3 Personal Training Academy is under six months old and with over 150 students through the doors and every course being sold out, it is one of the fastest growing in the UK. We have branched into both Nutrition Coaching Courses and Social Media Seminars, both adding value and an improved skill set to any girl or guy working in the health and fitness industry. The quality of teaching and expanded content on our courses is superior to other providers, and the reputation and aftercare that comes from having qualified through LDNM is invaluable for the employment prospects of all our students.

What can fans of LDNM expect with your new app?

The LDNM app is a one-stop tool for your daily fitness routine and includes easy to follow workout videos, a workout training diary to help you properly log your workouts, as well as offering nutritional advice and recipes, a visible progress tracker feature, and even a HIIT timer too. VIP offers for clothing and LDNM products are also regularly updated within the app.

What do you love most about your job?

The fact we are making a difference in an industry, and the feedback we get about our service makes all our hard work worthwhile. Our mission to show people that fitness doesn’t have to be expensive, seasonal and unsustainable, but rather a beneficial aspect of your life year-round still holds strong, and the desire to keep making a positive difference to people’s lives is burning brighter than ever!

What’s in your fridge right now?

Bacon, chicken, eggs, vegetables, milk, nut-based milks, sauces, hummus, beer, diet coke, cheeses – everything you’d expect to be in stock! Our cupboards include wraps, cereals, tinned beans, tuna, chocolate, biscuits, and so on – it’s about including foods you crave in everyday life within your diet daily NOT about banning them, existing on ‘clean foods’ and bland meals you don’t like, and then binging periodically. We don’t think banning and then binging creates a healthy relationship with food.

What’s your favourite workout?

We love legs and back due to the benefits it has for posture, cross-over to other exercises and activities, glute work and avoiding injury. Deadlifting is great for burning calories, and combining muscle groups is ideal for lean muscle gain vs doing an hour or more on one muscle group, as well as making sessions so much less boring!

What’s your best cheat-day meal?

We are big fans of Five Guys – a bacon and cheeseburger with large chips and a peanut butter shake! However, like we said earlier we encourage people to include so-called ‘bad foods’ or less stereotypically healthy foods in their diet daily to prevent going mad on weekends and gorging on the foods they banned and thus craved!

Max Bridger is the one of the co-founders of LDN Muscle. Follow @ldn_muscle on Instagram or @LDN_Muscle on Twitter.