Matt Roberts

Hey, I’m Matt. Spartan Pro band, UK National Series Champion 2021 and podium winner in the USA & Europe at Spartan Race UK.

Here is a bit about me and my journey, so far…

When you have passion for what you do hard work becomes effortless!

Growing up

I was always the wild child in nature. I’d get lost in the fields and tree’s for hours. I come from a broken home and growing up I lacked a sturdy father figure to teach me how to be a man.

I hated school and ran away all I could. I dropped out of high school as I disagreed with the teachers and the pointless subjects they taught. I wanted real lessons and experiences.

In 2001, the world changed and war in the Middle East erupted. I watched the Armed Forces of the world deploy and it gave me the hunger to join the cause. Yet I was too young to fight due to only being 12 years old.

Like most in my earlier life, I fell into the wrong crowd, but I was ambitious enough to not want to settle for average and I broke free from the crowd.

Military career - “Becoming a warrior”

I joined the British Army in 2008 and did my basic training the same year. In 2009, as a 19-year-old, I deployed to Afghanistan and did some other cool stuff.

Overall, I spent 12 years in 1 Royal Anglian which is a Frontline combat operation Infantry unit. In these 12 years, I completed 2 operational tours of Afghanistan where we fought over the ground. I led soldiers of all ages and gained a huge amount of life experience and I also had a lot of fun in the process.

Early in my career, I was awarded the best soldier and the best Lance corporal of my company for proving myself as one of the best in the unit.

I was selected, trained then promoted to Corporal (commander of 8 men) after a pretty grueling battle course. After that I spent a few years in the Reconnaissance Platoon working on striking and close target surveillance.

After this, I was assigned as an Instructor at the Infantry Training Centre (ITC) for 2 years – as a Section Commander. This was by far the best job I had in the Army, I found my love for coaching and training people there! A truly fulfilling experience.

Towards the end of my time I was selected for promotion again, this time it was to become a Sargeant. I had to attend a three-month-long battle course in the Welsh valleys where we lived and slept in mud holes and fought over critical terrain. I finished the course with a highly regarded instructor recommendation, finishing 8th in my course of 180 men ( I was disappointed with this haha!). Believe it or not, fitness was my downfall I fell short by 1 mark on a 5-mile loaded carry (30kg) which lost me some places.

In 2018, I got promoted to Sergeant - the rank I held when I left in 2020.

I chose to leave this life behind as I felt that there is so much more to life and I wanted to live it my way, by launching my own fitness business to create the freedom and live the adventure life I wanted to live on my terms all whilst helping and empowering people to do the same.

Into the real world… working on my freedom!

Now? Times have changed.

I launched Primal Fitness right at the start of the Pandemic (just to give you a heads-up on my mentality). I didn’t hesitate. If you want to succeed, then burn the boats! Place yourself in a position in which success is the only option, then you’ll win!

I became a personal trainer after a few years of study and training during my military career.

I then realised that there is so much more to give. Many people believe that all they need is a fancy training program, or a PT to get more out of them in a training session to succeed but the actual fact is there is so much more to health.

To be honest with you, personal training in the gym is a waste of time. I soon realised this when I witnessed so many people place so much of their time, effort, and energy into training, yet get little, to no results, because when they go home they simply neglect a healthy lifestyle.

For me, this is when I pivoted and started to focus on educating my clients on nutrition, sleep, movement, stress management and aligning with nature for optimal health.

A gym is a great place but there is so much more to fitness than barbells, ab training, and biceps curls (believe it, or not).

What we need is an all-encompassing approach that includes nutrition, physical training, lifestyle, and mindset along with the structure, support, and guidance needed to go the distance (and beyond).

We’ll take you back to your ancestral roots and build on your success from there with our health-focused, performance-based programs.

My OCR journey

Let me start by saying this… “I’m not gifted, I worked for it!”

A few years back I couldn’t even do monkey bars!

I broke my foot in a race.

I’ve fallen short and failed more than you’ll ever know!

In 2019, I took on the Spartan UK national series. I was a novice at the time. I stumbled and bumbled and fell short of the podium a number of times that season.

I bagged my first podium in Ireland taking home the Bronze!

From there I’d like to say that it was all plain sailing, but it wasn’t!

I battled many experienced athletes all whilst going through a divorce, fighting to see my daughter, selling my house, leaving the Army, and starting my business. Easy, hey haha!

I finished the season with 5 Golds, 1 silver and 6 Bronze medals.

I finished 3rd in the UK series! What an incredible feeling that was!

Fast forward to the present day. I’ve come leaps and bounds with my training and performance.

In 2021 I have crowned the Spartan Race UK series AG Champion 🏆

This is by far my greatest personal/competitive achievement. The best thing is… I’m only just getting started in this great sport.

In 2022, I became a top ten Elite racer competing across Europe and the world.

In 2023, I hit podium multiple times in the USA and placed among the best in UK OCR series.

In 2024, I’ve hit podium in Mallorca taking gold and I’m working on becoming a champion again (all whilst having more fun and not crushing myself in the process).

This year I’ll be racing in the England, Scotland, Spain, The Netherlands, Italy, Costa Rica, USA, Greece and Abu Dhabi.

Primal Fitness: is a global community and the leading ancestral health & performance coaching program that works closely with OCR athletes to improve their quality of life and athletic performance.  Showing them how to accelerate in the short term and go further over the long term. Through our primal-based nutrition, fitness, mindset, and lifestyle habits, you’ll become the very best, among the best!

If you are in need of structure, support, and accountability. Then we will work with you to find the specifics you need with our ancestral approach to life! It’s time to break free from the rut!

It’s amazing, to watch people thrive and feel happy in their own skin. Now, my life’s mission is to help OCR Athlete’s: Hit PBs, gain confidence & win races with our 1-2-1 coaching, programs & support 🏆

“Primal is the way. and It’s been the only way!” As you may also come to find 🙏🏼

My transformation to Primal living

Before I lived Primal (picture on the RIGHT)

We like to think we have the solution to all our problems and we rarely need support. We choose to go it alone or try and find a quick fix (which actually isn't a fix at all).

That’s all lies (as much as we'd like to believe). It leads to a tone of pain down the line…trust me.

When it comes to your Health vs Fitness, you seem to do it all backwards; you actually keep yourself stuck. I know I did.

Was always a skinny lad growing up; I was never confident because of the way I looked and felt. And it showed more and more as I went into my teens.

Life had planned otherwise, however. I took pivotal action. Thought to myself..."you know what, I'll join the army and get the confidence and muscle I want!" (that didn’t happen!)

Clearly, for those of you that know the only thing getting big in the Army is your waistline and inflamation.

Throughout my career’s early stages, I struggled to put on any weight or size (muscle). I used to blame the time away, the inconsistencies of the job, time, poor quality food, my shitty relationship, family, money, blah, blah...

In reality, I was taking the wrong approach. I was following advice from my mates and PTIs. From free online sources. From programs. From Youtube videos…you name it.

And yet, what I thought I needed wasn't actually what I needed. I was taking the wrong approach and that’s why I couldn't put any size on.

Eventually, I packed on 40lbs of pure size (fat mass);

This was me:

• Following short, templated and soul-crushing online programs…

• Listening to my mates and the gym bros’ science they regurgitated from a website (they were equally out of shape)…

• Training abs 7 days a week hoping for a more defined core (I got nowhere)…

• Doing daily cardio sessions (pushing myself to oblivion)…

• Lifting weights (because that’s what the pros do) 6 days a week…

• Eating junk food, a ton of sugar…

• Leading a stressful life and breathing in a toxic relationship…

• Having unhealthy HABITS and routines - long days, late nights, early morning into soul-crushing PT sessions…

• Feeling lethargic, uncomfortable in my tight-fitting (blue in blue in full force).

• Feeling incredibly self-conscious (afraid to take my top off around my partner & the lads), clothed in with terrible skin, and giving myself shin splints (due to the rapid weight gain).

Simply put, I was overweight, undernourished and heading down the road of diabetes... Certainly not an inspirational leader, section commander or near to how they should be.

I was completely misled by the mainstream fitness industry and all the misleading advice you get from non-qualified and poorly-educated influencers out there.

I had to take action.

You know what I did? 

Got a coach to guide me. Then, I decided to go personal-training qualified so I could get correctly educated and apply that knowledge to myself (and later down the line to serve others).

Today, I'm lean, confident and healthy (picture on the LEFT)

That's because:

1. I focused on self-care and healthy living (most importantly);

2. Educated myself in health and fitness (two separate things);

3. Hired multiple coaches (I still have them);

4. Stopped listening to insignificant peer advice and I surrounded myself with people who have what I want to achieve;

5. Listened to my body (not the gym bros);

6. Trained when I felt like it (not because the calendar said so);

7. Lived life to the fullest 7 days a week;

8. Didn’t stress over things that I can’t control;

9. Began eating an abundance of health-promoting food;

10. Slept like a champ.

It’s your go now. Let’s do it…

Matt Roberts

Live Primal. Live Lean. Live free.  It’s the way!