2015 was a stellar year for fitness.
Thanks to Instagram, the fitness game has changed, and some bright and young fitness professionals have emerged out of the deep blue space we know as the internet.
Each year, I predict the top 40 fitness professionals to follow. This is my list for 2016.
1. Greg O’Gallagher
Greg is the owner of Kinobody Fitness Systems and co-host for the “Road To Ripped” podcast. He kills it with actionable content to get you that Hollywood physique. Greg knows what it takes to look like your heroes from the big screen, from easy dieting to proportional muscle gain. Add the fact that his articles and podcasts are littered with awesome movie quotes, and following this guy is a no-brainer. He recently posted a high-quality American Psycho/Batman-style video outlining his approach on his YouTube channel. It has garnered a huge response.
2. Layne Norton
Layne is a highly accomplished natural bodybuilder, powerlifter, established fitness writer, and Ph.D. in Nutritional Sciences. He runs the “Physique Science Radio” podcast and blogs at his site biolayne.com. As if that weren’t enough, he regularly contributes to the scientific literature on physique optimization. You can expect more of this awesome type of work from him in the coming year.
3. Greg Nuckols
Greg is an elite, drug-free powerlifter, and owner of the website “Strength and Science”. His passion is synthesizing scientific research and in-the-trenches experience. He uses these to stay at the forefront of the strength game, and to become the best coach and athlete possible. With best lifts including a 755 squat, 475 bench press, and 725 deadlift, he knows what it takes to get you strong. Strength, however, isn’t just about time in the gym. To reach your true potential, you need to stay ahead of setbacks, dial in your nutrition, and cultivate the proper mental approach to training. Greg knows how to integrate under-the-bar application with principles derived from scientific research. He’ll help you reach your strength and fitness goals.
4. Jen Sinkler
Jen takes a realist’s approach to fitness. She’s not going to offer a plan to melt 10 pounds from your frame in 10 days. She won’t offer a “Get Ripped Quick” scheme. But she will show you what it takes to get in awesome shape and look your best – whatever that may be for your individual body type and lifestyle. She’ll help you lose fat, shape your body, and find the joy that comes in training for the pure sake of training.
5. Mike Samuels
Mike Samuels is a personal trainer and diet coach from a funny little island somewhere in the middle of the ocean known as England. He trains clients for fat loss, strength, performance and generally being awesome. He loves picking things up and putting them down (the heavier the better), running really fast (preferably up hills), and romantic walks along the beach. When he’s not training, you’ll probably find him writing. And when he’s not writing, you’ll probably find him in Starbucks – writing.
6. Mike Vacanti
Owner of “On The Regimen”, Mike believes that fitness will change you for the better, in every way you can imagine. For the last 12 years, he’s been studying nutrition and training for fat loss and muscle gain. He has trained hundreds of clients in the gym and thousands on the internet. He helped a woman lose 150 pounds of bodyfat. He has helped countless men overcome bedroom issues. He has helped teenagers use the barbell to find their way. He’s helped doctors, teachers, students, lawyers, hair stylists, entrepreneurs, and millionaire hedge fund analysts lose fat, gain muscle, and change their lives forever. He’s passionate about helping people through fitness. Every client he coaches, every post he writes: He’s here to serve you and make your life better.
7. Brandon Carter
Brandon Carter has been a certified personal trainer and nutritionist for over 10 years. He has worked as a fitness model for Nike, Puma, Adidas, Men’s Health, and many other reputable brands. Brandon has trained a number of well-known professional athletes and models. Brandon is the author of the best-selling book Ultimate Cuts: 7 Secrets To Burn Fat Fast As Hell. This ground-breaking work has been on Amazon’s Bestseller list for over three consecutive months and counting. The success of this book has further cemented Brandon’s reputation as an authority figure in the fitness industry.
8. Brad Schoenfeld
Brad is the “Hypertrophy Specialist”. In other words, he knows a thing or two about muscle growth. Having an entire alphabet listed after his name, Brad is the writer of several best-selling fitness books. He is internationally recognized, and has won many natural bodybuilding titles. He’s known as a leader in the field of training for body composition.
9. Jordan Syatt
5X World Record Powerlifter. Westside Barbell Certified coach. Precision Nutrition Certified coach. These are just some of the things that describe Jordan. As a strength training and nutritional consultant, Jordan has helped hundreds of clients get both lean and strong.
10. Menno Henselmans
A former business consultant in the field of statistics, we can all be thankful Menno switched his career to fitness. He is now an online physique coach, fitness model, and scientific author. He uses his background to help people with what he’s truly passionate about: attaining their ideal physique. With an evidence-based approach and scientific wherewithal, Menno is definitely someone to follow this year.
11. Lyle McDonald
Whether your goals are fat loss, muscle gain, or improved performance, Lyle is the guy to go to for scientific, fact-based information. He’s helped thousands to change their bodies for the better. On his site, Bodyrecomposition.com, you will find a wealth of information on fat loss, general nutrition, muscle mass gain, and training. You’ll also find his regular research reviews.
12. Tony Gentilcore
As one of the founders of Cressey Sports Performance, Tony has had his share of experience training athletes and beginners alike. As a former baseball player in college, he has his share of experience as an athlete as well. As a writer, he includes an inordinate number of references to Star Wars while teaching you everything you’d ever need to know to get into incredible shape. Do you need any other reasons to follow him in 2016? I think not.
13. Eric Bach
Eric is a certified strength and conditioning coach (CSCS), fitness author, former athlete, and former college strength coach from Denver, Colorado. He helps pros improve their game and Joe’s look better naked with high performance coaching. Real world athleticism is his goal. His approach is based on science and backed by experience. He loves Wisconsin football, #GAINZ, and mixing his creatine with espresso.
14. Dean Somerset
Dean knows how to make you stronger, fitter, and in his words “Kanye-er” (whatever that means) faster. But what makes Dean special is his focus on injury rehab and prevention. Many of his clients are on some form of physical rehabilitation. He uses many different assessments to find out where you’re starting from and what imbalances you might have. He’ll take that knowledge and build a plan that’s not only effective, but safe as well. Definitely someone to follow in the coming year.
15. John Rusin
Dr. John Rusin is not your run of the mill physical therapist. After mastering his craft as a traditional hardcore strength and conditioning coach, he transitioned his practice into the field of sports performance physical therapy. He now lives and breathes all aspects of human performance. He creates life-altering programs for an impressive and diverse clientele. His single-minded goal is to bridge the ever-growing gap between high-performance strength and conditioning and cutting-edge rehabilitation methodology for both elite strength athletes and amateur fitness fanatics.
16. John Berardi
John Berardi and the folks over at Precision Nutrition have been putting out some seriously solid content for the past few years now. With a unique approach to nutrition, they preach building up the habits necessary for reaching your goals. They’re constantly on top of the latest research and break everything down to make it incredibly easy to understand.
17. Christopher Walker
Diagnosed with a brain tumor that suppressed his Testosterone to the low levels of 11 ng/dl, Christopher decided not to undergo surgery. He instead worked to raise his T naturally. The end result? He got his levels all the way up to 1192 ng/dl in just 18 months. Owner of TestShock, Christopher is proof that you can naturally increase T levels through proper diet, exercise, lifestyle, and supplementation.
18. Anthony Dexmier
As a self-proclaimed geek, meathead, and up-and-coming trainer in the fitness scene, Anthony knows a thing or two about keeping clients lean year round. He is Precision Nutrition certified, a former cyclist and tennis player, and a Biosignature practitioner. Anthony will remove your set of limiting factors through a uniquely tailored program.
19. Bryan Krahn
Living in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, Bryan has worked in the business of helping people look better for over 20 years. He’s a freelance writer for dozens of magazines. His goal is to create a small army of lean, healthy, muscular men that hit the gym with ferocious intensity, but still do what they need to do to keep their personal and professional lives rolling. What he can help you achieve won’t just transform your body. It will transform your life.
20. Lee Boyce
As a former nationally-competing sprinter and long jumper in college, Lee is now a self-proclaimed junkie on all things training. By keeping an open mind, exploring new training concepts, and learning from great strength coaches, sports doctors, and therapists, he knows what it takes to take your fitness to the next level.
21. Nia Shanks
Owner of Lift Like A Girl, Nia promotes the idea that women should lift heavy to get the results they want, and that being strong is sexy. Excessive eating habits and revolving your life around the gym won’t fly with Nia. By keeping things sane and simple, she’s helped hundreds of women get strong, lean, and sexy. She works to improve their mindsets and lives for good.
22. Tom Venuto
Tom Venuto is a bodybuilder, gym owner, freelance writer, and success coach. He is the author of Burn the Fat, Feed The Muscle (BFFM): Fat Burning Secrets of the World’s Best Bodybuilders and Fitness Models. Tom has written over 150 articles. He has been featured in IRONMAN Magazine, Natural Bodybuilding, Muscular Development, Muscle-Zine, Exercise for Men, and Men’s Exercise. Tom’s inspiring and informative articles on bodybuilding, weight loss, and motivation are featured regularly on dozens of websites worldwide.
23. Jason Helmes
Jason is a father, husband, middle school teacher, online coach, and fitness fanatic. He is devoted to bringing quality fitness education and coaching to the everyman. Founder of Anyman Fitness, Jason uses his mathematical background to help clients achieve their goals.
24. Sohee Walsh
Growing up with an eating disorder, Sohee learned to overcome it with weightlifting and proper nutrition. From there, she’s made fitness her passion. She learned everything she could, and even interned at Cressey Performance. Now she’s a regular contributor to bodybuilding.com. She is also the co-host of the “Physique Science Radio” podcast and right-hand girl of BioLayne.com.
25. Armi Legge
Armi is the founder and editor of Evidence Magazine. He helps people automate their fitness so they can spend their time on other areas of their lives. Watch out for Armi this year as he’s still young and hasn’t even reached his potential.
26. Bret Contreras
Best known as “The Glute Guy”, Bret’s focus is top-notch training for strong, well-shaped buns of steel. Using his understanding of strength science and the most current research, Bret creates killer programs. He even created a piece of gym equipment called “The Hip Thruster”. He’s also a part of the Strength and Conditioning Research Review with Chris Beardsley. This review takes complex research and makes it easy to understand.
27. Andy Morgan
Andy hates nonsense in the fitness industry. He has made it his mission to change the industry all together. Andy has put out some incredible guides on dieting, macro counting, and intermittent fasting. He has gotten hoards of clients ripped using his version of the LeanGains approach. I expect he’ll put out tons of killer content in the coming year.
28. Alan Aragon
As the slayer of broscience, Alan takes the latest research and applies it to training and nutrition practices. He finds the truth behind what works best and why. Alan runs a monthly research review that is absolutely stellar at dissecting the most recent and notable research.
29. Nick Tumminello
Owner of Performance University International, Nick trains clients for strength and conditioning. He’s also trained fitness professionals all over the world. He’s become known as the “Trainer of Trainers” for his hybrid fitness training concepts and immediately applicable solutions to common problems.
30. Tony Bonvechio
Tony is a strength and conditioning coach at Cressey Sports Performance in Hudson, Massachusetts. He is also a personal trainer in Providence, Rhode Island. Tony is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) through the National Strength and Conditioning Association. He earned his Master’s degree in exercise science from Adelphi University in 2013. He is also an avid writer. His articles have appeared on websites including STACK, Testosterone Nation, and the Personal Training Development Center.
31. Mike Robertson
Mike Robertson is the President of Robertson Training Systems. He is also the co-owner of Indianapolis Fitness and Sports Training (I-FAST) in Indianapolis, Indiana. Mike has made a name for himself as one of the premier performance coaches in the world. He helps clients from all walks of life achieve their physique and sports performance goals. A former powerlifting competitor himself, he has written well over 100 articles for a wide variety of sites and magazines.
32. Vince Del Monte
Vince has one of the most popular and publicized “skinny to muscular” transformation stories in the world. He was the poster boy of the “I can’t gain weight or get the girl” story. Vince became known as “Skinny Vinny.” He was 140-150 pounds at 6 feet tall. The nickname didn’t die; it stuck with him all through college. Vince has competed in over a dozen fitness model competitions. He earned his Pro Card with the WBFF in April of 2011. He enjoys the natural bodybuilding and fitness lifestyle, and continues to practice what he preaches. Vince has been featured in Men’s Health, Men’s Fitness, Maximum Fitness, Reps, Inside Fitness, World Physique, Ironman, FitnessX, and dozens of other online and offline publications.
33. John Meadows
A former banker, John is now one of the leading bodybuilding and physique coaches in North America. Over this past year, John has coached some of the top bodybuilding athletes in the country. He also teamed up with Prime Nutrition to develop a fantastic intra workout supplement. John has influenced half of the people included on this list with his “Mountain Dog” training methods.
34. Nick Cheadle
Nick is certified in many styles of training and is a competing fitness model. Having undergone a physical transformation of his own, Nick has experienced firsthand how effective training and nutrition can influence results and lifestyle. He takes a modern approach to Personal Training. He is a firm believer in there being MULTIPLE approaches to getting the results that you are after. He personalizes a full training program including nutrition and exercise. Nick will make sure the program fits in with your schedule, eating patterns, and preferences.
35. Elliott Hulse
Famous for his inspiring YouTube videos, Elliott Hulse CSCS coaches strength and speed athletes. He trains them to get super strong and fast in his ‘bare-bones’ training facility in St. Petersburg FL. As an ex-Division 1AA football MVP and currently a competitive Strongman, Elliott uses his ‘real world’ experience and ‘in the trenches’ knowledge to support you. He’ll help you unleash your true strength, speed, and fitness potential.
36. John Romaniello
John is the owner of Roman Fitness Systems, an entrepreneur, angel investor, and New York Times bestselling author. An advisor to nearly a dozen fitness and tech companies, he has written for a myriad of publications. He’s covered topics ranging from insulin sensitivity to investment strategy. John has been featured in dozens of publications and on a number of TV shows. He loves the NY Jets, unicorns, sarcasm, and writing about himself in the third person.
37. Dan John
Dan is an All-American discus thrower. He has competed in the highest levels of Olympic lifting, Highland Games, and the Weight Pentathlon. He even holds an American record in the latter. In addition to his achievements as an athlete, Dan has spent tons of time in academia and coaching athletes. He runs weekly workshops, lectures, and writes full-time for several big publications. Dan has just had a new book published- Fat Loss Happens on Monday.
38. Nick Shaw
Nick Shaw is the Founder and CEO of Renaissance Periodization, a training and diet services company for world class athletes. Renaissance Periodization has worked with some of the top strength athletes in the world. Their clients include powerlifting, strongman, CrossFit, and physique athletes. Nick is also a competitive bodybuilder and powerlifter. He currently resides in Charlotte, NC with his wife and two young children.
39. Tim Berzins
Tim Berzins, aka “Berzinator”, knows the truth about how to change lives forever. He will bring out the action-taking, goal-slaying, success-achieving version of you. Passionate, challenging, and witty, Berzinator’s #1 mission in life is to unleash the incredible version of you that’s hiding beneath the surface. Then you can live the life of your dreams and get everything you’ve ever wanted – stuff most people waste their lives only dreaming about.
40. Jason Maxwell
Like every year, this list isn’t complete without Jason Maxwell. This past year, Jason has over doubled the size of JMax Fitness, and launched the Max Fit Lab, allowing people of all income statuses to get jacked. Watch out for Jason in 2016, you’re going to be seeing him everywhere.
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