About George Bartlett · The Fitness Margin

The story

Image · racing days

Chapter I

The jockey.

I rode as a professional national-hunt jockey from 18 to 20, a weight-demanding sport where I worked with strength-and-conditioning coaches and nutritionists for the first time. Two broken legs and the demands of riding weight closed that door, but the fascination with training and physiology had already started.

From there I was spotted on a bike. Inside three years I was ranked top-200 in UK national-level racing, coached by two former Olympians, Liam Killeen among them, whose mentorship still shapes how I coach today.

Image · Royal Marines

Chapter II

The Marines.

I joined the Royal Marines in 2017 and served as a Mountain Leader. One of the most demanding selection routes in the British military. I trained and operated in every environment: jungle, desert, arctic, mountain. I learned what it means to push the body and the mind right to the margin, and to come back from the dark places that sport doesn't always teach you.

I also led a CPD exercise in Snowdonia for the British Rowing Paralympic coaching team. The head coach later wrote that the experience was "second to none."

Image · coaching today

Chapter III

The Fitness Margin.

Since the Marines, I've taken every personal goal I've set and hit it. Sub-3 marathon on the first attempt, sub-1:20 half, sub-22hr Bob Graham, all self-coached. Along the way I realised I'd been doing what a coach does (research, periodisation, mentorship, nutrition) for years.

A café-stop conversation with my former cycling coach pushed me to start coaching seriously. Every athlete I've worked with so far has hit their goal. TFM is the platform for doing that at scale.

Selected credentials

Royal Marine Mountain Leader · jungle, desert, arctic operations

National-B podiums & wins · road cycling

Sub-22 hour Bob Graham Round · self-coached

Sub-3 hour marathon · first attempt

Sub-1:20 half marathon

Coached by 2× Olympians

Professional national-hunt jockey, 18–20

CPD lead for British Rowing Paralympic coaching team, Snowdonia 2024

Trail-event podiums, half marathon to ultra

Philosophy

Know the athlete.

Strengths, weaknesses, physiology, training history, personality. Everything I plan starts with knowing who you are first.

Adapt the plan.

Programmes flex around illness, work, weather and life. An algorithm hits a wall the moment something goes wrong; a coach doesn't.

Educate as you train.

I want my athletes to understand why each session matters: strategy, nutrition, sleep, head game. Coaching is mentorship, not just workouts.

“I know exactly what it's like to have a dark moment and come through it. That's what I bring to every athlete I work with.”

Train with George.

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