Interview: Henry Croft Editor In Chief Of GymTalk: The Bodybuilding Blog

by: Brandon Richey–Get Free Updates And Training Guides Here

Interview: Henry Croft Editor In Chief Of GymTalk: The Bodybuilding Blog

Today I’m glad to have on my friend and colleague Henry Croft for an interview. If you guys have been following me for a while you know I’ve contributed to Henry’s site GymTalk. Check out this interview I just did with Henry to learn more about him and what he’s doing to impact the fitness community!

BRF: Who is Henry Croft?

I’m a blogger from the UK with a background in sport and fitness.

 

Growing up my life was dedicated to swimming – I competed at national level and would train up to 20 hours a week, which also incorporated some land training work.

 

It was in these sessions I got my first taste of weight training and strength and conditioning work, which I immediately loved and continued with after I stopped swimming.

 

Outside of the gym, I play piano in a rock band and am partial to the odd boozy night out!

BRF: What got you into blogging and how did you get Gym Talk started up?

 

After reading English at university I worked as a journalist and later a copywriter.

 

In these jobs I was exposed to a great many bloggers, many of whom were making a living from their own websites.

 

This seemed a much more preferable way to earn a living than working 9-5 in order to line someone else’s pocket, which inspired me to set up GymTalk back in March 2013.

 

I love writing and fitness – so this seemed like perfect way to go about it!

 

I go into more detail about my journey to self-employment in this article I wrote for Tom Ewer’s Leaving Work Behind website.

 

BRF: Did you have any athletes/bodybuilders that inspired you growing up?

 

The biggest inspiration for me growing up was Bruce Lee.

 

I wore out the VHS tapes for every one of his films (Fist of Fury was my favorite) and was fascinated with his life story, philosophies and approach to training.

 

His teachings apply not just to the martial arts but to any pursuit in life.

 

BRF: Ok I like to go against the grain a bit when doing interviews. A lot of guys like to ask the typical question “What do you like most about what you do?” However I want to know “What do you hate the most about what you do?”

 

Although working for myself affords me a lot of freedom and opportunity, such as the chance to work anywhere in the world, it does, like any job, have its downsides.

 

The biggest of those being the lack of interaction with other people on a day-to-day basis.

 

I miss the office banter, the chit-chat, the company of other people – no matter humdrum it seemed at the time!

 

BRF: What direction do you see GymTalk going in the coming years?

 

I would like to develop the community aspect of the website a bit more, with a view to creating more user-generated content and interactivity.

 

I feel we have developed a distinctive voice over the last year and a half which will hopefully continue to draw in likeminded people.

 

BRF: What kind of training are you currently doing?

 

Stronglifts 5×5 – this basically comprises three workouts a week, alternating between:

 

Workout A: Squat, Bench Press, Barbell Row

 

Workout B: Squat, Military Press, Deadlift

 

You perform 5×5 on each exercise, except Deadlift where you warm up to 1×5.

 

I’m a huge advocate of the old-school, pre-steroid era approach to building muscle – that is, adopting full body routines and placing a greater emphasis on training for strength over isolation work, split routines, time under tension, etc.

 

Unfortunately this approach to building muscle seems to have been largely forgotten, which is a shame as I’ve found it infinitely more effective than modern training splits which are constantly promoted by muscle magazines and internet gurus.   

 

I wrote a recent article where I expand upon this notion:

 

http://www.gym-talk.com/10-old-school-commandments-for-building-muscle/

 

I also try to get in 2-3 cardio sessions a week – usually 4/5 mile runs with some interval work thrown into the mix.

 

BRF: What is your favorite food for making GAINZZZ?

 

I love a bit of rump steak with potatoes and asparagus.

 

I would eat this three times a day if I could… but then I’d soon have the cholesterol levels of a 40-year-old Italian lumberjack.

 

BRF: What other blogging platforms do you contribute to…besides this one today?

 

I contribute to quite a few health and fitness blogs, as I’ve found this to be the one of the best ways to market GymTalk online.

 

It spreads brand awareness, drives relevant traffic my way, and helps improve search engine rankings.

 

Plus I love writing – so it never really feels like hard work!

 

One of the more recent articles I wrote was this one for The Protein Works (easily the best supplement company operating in the UK right now).

 

BRF: Where do you do most of your training?

 

I train at my local leisure centre which has a decent free weights area and is only a five minute drive from where I live.

 

But, like anything, it’s the people that really make it – and the place is full of wacky characters!

 

BRF: If I come to the U.K. would I be considered a cool yank?

 

Haha, I’m sure we’d welcome you with open arms – provided you come bearing plenty or ribs, steak and meat loaf!

 

BRF: What kind of products do you offer off of your website?

 

We currently sell a range of slogan-based men’s and women’s gym tops, which we’re going to be expanding in 2015 to include tracksuits and other items.

 

Additionally, we promote offers and discount codes with many of the UK’s biggest supplement/fitness food companies, such as MuscleFood, Myprotein and The Protein Works.

We’re also currently working on a range of in-depth GymTalk Training Routines which we’re going to be giving away for free next year, so watch this space!

And there you have it folks. I would like to thank Henry for taking the time to come on and let us have the interview today. Please feel free to post up in the comment section below if you have any questions or something to add! Keep training smart. 

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Interview: Henry Croft Editor In Chief Of GymTalk: The Bodybuilding Blog