My Apology to Clients

by Carl Raghavan, SSC | March 18, 2025

a lifter points a finger at a starting strength seminar

I owe you an apology.

I’m sorry you thought this was going to be easy. Strength isn’t easy. If it were, everyone would be strong. But the process – the daily effort, the discipline, the setbacks, and the victories – will shape you into a better version of yourself. That much I can guarantee.

I’m sorry that I have high standards. Some people leave because they can’t handle criticism. They wanted a cheerleader, not a coach. My job is to make you better, not to applaud mediocrity. If you want someone to tell you that everything is fine while you spin your wheels, I’m not your guy.

I’m sorry you thought this journey would be pain-free. Moving well, lifting correctly, and following a solid program will reduce the risk of injury, but nothing is ever 100% safe. The pursuit of excellence always involves risk. You can choose to play it safe and stay weak, or you can accept the reality that pushing limits sometimes hurts. The gamble is worthwhile.

I’m sorry you expected progress to be faster. The numbers you’re chasing won’t come as quickly as you’d like. Strength is a slow burn, not a flash fire. You don’t get to decide how fast it happens – biology does. Your job is to show up and do the work.

I’m sorry you thought training complexity meant your training was more serious and would yield higher strength numbers. It doesn’t.

We classify lifters as novice, intermediate, or advanced based on how quickly they recover from stress, not how much weight they lift.

Novices adapt every session (daily progress).
Intermediates adapt weekly.
Advanced lifters adapt monthly.

It’s a recovery timeline, not a status symbol. If you want to know your one-rep max, go compete at a meet. That’s where you measure ego and ability – not in your training.

I’m sorry you thought strength training was something you should have started 20 years ago. Sure, it would have been nice, but this isn’t about high school sports. It’s about quality of life. Strength isn’t about whether you can run the London Marathon. It’s about whether you can get off the toilet without help and carry your groceries up the stairs. That’s the kind of fitness you’ll actually need as you age.

Strength is for everyone, but it’s non-negotiable as you get older.

I’m sorry you thought strength could be built without eating. I don’t know which self-proclaimed guru on YouTube convinced you that you can build real strength while surviving on morning dew and a handful of berries, but you’ve been lied to. Serious strength requires serious fuel. Dead animals must be consumed if you want real results in the weight room. That’s not a moral judgment – it’s just biology.

I’m sorry you thought you were smarter than the barbell. You want to incorporate cable single-arm exercises, machine isolation work, and “functional” movements because you think they’re better?

The barbell never lies. It exposes weakness. It punishes inconsistency. It rewards effort. And every time I’ve gone off-program, chasing some shortcut, the barbell humbles me all over again. The barbell is smarter than you. Just lift, train hard for a decade, and good things will happen.

I’m sorry you thought you could skip recovery. I’m sorry you thought that what happens inside the gym matters more than what happens outside of it. The best results come to those who have all of their shit together, every time.

Sleep? Part of the program.
Food? Part of the program.
Managing stress? Part of the program.

There are no shortcuts. Strength rewards those who do everything right, not just the parts they like.

And lastly, I’m sorry I wanted your progress more than you did. I can coach, I can guide, and I can push, but I can’t light the fire for you. You have to want this. More than I do. More than anyone else. Because at the end of the day, strength belongs to those who earn it.

Let’s get back to work. See you under the barbell.