by We tend to assume that professional athletes are the fittest people in the world. But how fit is the man who keeps the fittest people in the world fit?
Dan Lawrence, who has the body and face of Thor’s body double, is that man. At least he is one of a select group of performance coaches who work with professional athletes and high-level CEOs in the business world – basically, people at the top of their game who can afford a special breed of coach.
Lawrence, the founder of Perform365, has worked with more than 30 champions across different sports. His clients include Premier League players, NFL Super Bowl winner Jay Ajayi, W Series driver Jamie Chadwick, and world champion boxers such as Josh Taylor and George Groves. Much of Wales’ boxing work has come from his role as head of performance at the Matchroom gym, the facility linked to Eddie Hearn’s promotions, and Lawrence has even trained the CEOs of Joe & the Juice, Wow Hydrate and many others.
Lawrence’s post covers everything from weight training to plyometric exercises (short, intense bursts of activity that target fast-twitch muscle fibers in the lower body, off the top of my head), and even creating the “optimum sleep environment, so no people” t looking at their phones for two hours in bed, disrupting their melatonin production, exposure to blue light, etc”. He works with athletes to improve their general speed, strength and explosiveness, before increasing the specificity of the exercises as their target date approaches – “sharpening the knife”, as he describes it.
The work can continue until the last minute. “In the dressing room, you’re still working with a boxer,” he says. “You would be so surprised. Even with a playlist, you need the right tunes, so the BPM isn’t too high too soon! It’s also important to know when the next fight is going to be over, so we don’t have to rush into things.”
Last fall, I got to experience Lawrence’s work first-hand, while training with John Ryder and Joe Cordina at the Matchroom gym. I remember Lawrence referring to my body parts through quadrisyllable terms that were so foreign to my ears that I couldn’t tell with my mind that he was speaking English – or a language created on this planet. But his tongue-twisting terminology was so confident that I trusted him implicitly.
This evening, he is speaking to The Independent over Zoom from his new home in Dubai, and our conversation quickly turns to Lawrence’s customers. It is clear that they are an eclectic group, but it is located in a unique way to look at the characteristics that unite the individuals. “Resilience, single-minded focus, individuality,” he says without hesitation.
“Resilience… If you accept that there will be bumps in the road, when you hit them you can recognize what you could have done better, and you keep moving forward.” Single-minded focus? “With social media, there’s a lot of shiny object syndrome, tall poppy syndrome. It’s really important to keep the noise quiet.” What about identity, an interesting aspect of Lawrence’s answer? “A boxer isn’t working with 10 other athletes who might have a bad day at the office. Yes, you have a team, but their only goal must be the athlete. I told John Ryder throughout his career: ‘You’re too nice, it’s a short career, you have to be selfish to be selfless over time’. Earn your money, win your championships, so you can better serve your family and your relationships.”
Lawrence’s role allowed him to identify not only the unifying characteristics of high-level performers but also the biggest misconceptions about elite athletes specifically.
“Boxers are the nicest people you’ll ever meet,” he says. “Many have come from hardships, they have values of hard work and dedication, they are family oriented. If you walk into a boxing gym, everyone is welcome. Footballers are beautiful people too. They are human, they have feelings, and sometimes words on social media can really affect them.”
Lawrence is also keen to tackle the misconceptions surrounding the “everyday athlete”, as he calls the average exerciser.
“The biggest misconception is that you have to train six days a week and eat nothing but chicken and broccoli,” he says. “You don’t have to have a complete mindset or anything. You may have certain food groups that may be aligned with your goal, as long as it is in moderation. You can absolutely get results by training three times a week. You can reduce the amount of X food group and that will be your only nutritional intervention. For example: If you had a sandwich three times a day, every day for a week, but you said, ‘I’m going to reduce that to twice a day,’ that alone could have a huge impact.
“Also, people go from zero to hero too quickly – as a New Year’s resolution, for example – but we know that too much of an acute spike increases the risk of injury. Besides, there’s no way you can make up a habit like that.” The company you keep can also be crucial. “You have to choose the right gym partner, someone who isn’t always in Starbucks, who has donuts and a chin. Maybe someone is ahead of you, saying: ‘Let’s lock in a schedule, let’s set goals together.’”
Such goals will of course be much more humble than those set by many of Lawrence’s clients. A year ago, he was in Mexico, in Ryder’s corner as the heavyweight tried to take the undisputed world titles from Saul “Canelo” Alvarez. Ryder fought valiantly against the great pound-for-pound, but was denied a career-defining victory. However, the now retired boxer and Lawrence left with fond memories.
“Coming out of our hotel, there was a police escort waiting to take us to the stadium,” recalls Lawrence. “Everybody else was in the car, it was just me and John with the bags, and we came out to 200 Mexicans praising John – the man who was fighting against the hometown. It was a tear-jerking moment for both of us, it gives me goosebumps now.
“There was also Las Vegas, when Josh Taylor became the undisputed hero [in 2021]. Afterwards, we went a few drinks deep, walking around the casino where he fought, and he put his arm around me and said: ‘When you told me how much you cost, I thought, Bloody devil, that’s enough… but Dan, you are worth every penny.”
And while Lawrence’s work with pro-athletes is self-explanatory, I wonder why a CEO might seek his advice.
“You don’t have to be a Premier League footballer; ‘high performance’ is in the context of your situation,” he explains. “If a CEO can improve his health by 1, 2 [or] 5 per cent, that can be a multi-million pound difference to their business, or improve their lifespan by three to five years so they can play with their children or grandchildren. Basically, they deserve their money; they’re in this chronic state of stress, and they might get to the age of 45 or so and think: ‘I don’t have time to work with a personal trainer in a regular gym, I need to work with an expert in his field .”
Lawrence’s expertise may be outside of the everyday athlete’s price range, but they’d do well to heed the free tips he’s provided here. Every percent counts.
