Inside Persevere: April 2026 Update

conormurraygauld
Apr 7
5 min read

'Built at Persevere'

A monthly update for Members

What’s been happening, what’s changing, and what’s coming up in April.

As we come to the end of March, that marks four months of Persevere Fitness operating out of Edinburgh Strength Collective.

Honestly, the time has flown by. Our community continues to grow, and as always, a massive thank you to everyone who shows up week in, week out to work hard, get fitter, and have fun as a community. Classes are absolutely the highlight of my week as both a coach and owner.

I’ve put this monthly blog together as a way to communicate changes, key info, and member wins as we continue to grow. It’ll go out as an email each month, but I also think it’s important that we have a public place to show off everything we’re building here (and, if I’m honest, create a bit of accountability for me too).

First up — the timetable.

Spring Timetable Update

The Persevere timetable launched back in December. At the time, it was based on a mix of: what works well elsewhere, what I thought members would want, and the times people generally like to train. Now that we’ve had three months to road test it, it’s time for the Spring Timetable. There aren’t loads of major changes, but the two key ones are:

Friday’s Strength Workout will remain before the Workout of the Day class — this has proved really popular with members.

Saturday team classes (previously 9:15 and 10:15) will now combine into one class at 9:30am.

These changes will take effect from April 1st (and no, it’s not a bad April Fools joke).We’ll run these changes over the next few months and review things again ahead of a possible Summer Timetable — although nothing may need to change. Right now, this feels like the best balance of busy, well-attended classes while still keeping the timetable practical. As we continue to grow, I’d love to keep adding more classes and opportunities for members.

We Keep Growing 👏

Since opening the doors in December, we’ve had over 30 unique people walk through them. Not bad for a small independent gym.

While a lot of you have come across from my days at that commercial gym we won’t name, it’s also been brilliant to welcome some completely new faces into the community — and even better to see them become real regulars.

A special mention to: Anne, Frankie, Mandy …who have all been consistent new faces and have fit right in.

Some people find us online, but I can’t ignore the fact that so many of you also bring your friends (or enemies?) along to class — and I’m genuinely really grateful that you do.

The truth is: classes don’t run without members. It genuinely fills me with joy every time someone books in.

I can see the numbers climbing across the timetable, and it won’t be long before we hit a real critical mass. The goal has always been slow, organic growth — around 1–2 new members a month — and that’s happening. Also, I absolutely love adding your photos to the member board… which reminds me, I need to buy more.

What’s Happening in April?

Friday Night Strength: Peak & Test Phase

Our Friday Night Strength classes are now moving into their peak and test phases. So what does that actually mean?

Each week, we rotate through a compound lift and its supporting exercises, with the aim of building strength through progressive overload over the course of the block.(That’s “periodisation” if you want the fancy fitness term.)

The idea is simple:

build consistency, increase confidence, improve technique, and gradually raise what you’re capable of lifting.

We’ve already covered the peak phase for 2 of the 4 lifts in this block, and over the next two weeks we’ll complete the remaining lifts — working up to around 90% of your estimated 1RM. Testing Weeks On Friday 17th and Friday 24th April, we’ll be testing those four lifts across two weeks:

Bench Press, Deadlift, Squat Clean

This marks the end of the current strength block, and honestly, these nights should be a proper celebration. No matter how long you’ve been at Persevere, it’s a brilliant way to: see your progress clearly, get some numbers on the board, and be backed by the rest of the room while you do it. After that, we’ll begin a new strength block, based on your updated numbers. And if you don’t already have 1RM numbers — this is a brilliant time to get involved and find out exactly what you’re capable of. I’m buzzing to see what numbers you all put up. I can already see the progress happening week by week.

Member Wins 🏆

A few big shoutouts from this month:

Massive congrats to Tracy for taking on the CrossFit Open and completing all three workouts in the Masters category, including an RX attempt — huge effort. Then, just for good measure, she went and pulled a 100kg deadlift PB. Can you say hybrid athlete!?

Bonus shoutout to everyone else who got stuck into Open workouts too — including Ali, Louise, Katie, Hailey, Cassie and Mandy. Whether it was a repeat, a classic, or your very first Open workout, these are real tests of fitness and you should be proud of the effort.

Make sure you note your scores — because there will be a next time, and if you keep showing up, you will be fitter.

Coach Conor survived a brutal Glasgow HYROX(and Sophie absolutely smashed it in the doubles too).

And just a reminder — this section will be here every month, so if you’ve got big news, a PB, an event, a race, or something worth celebrating… tell me.

What’s Next? 👀

A few things currently on the to-do list:

- A PB board for the website

- A new block focus

- Event planning for the year

- Group events and socials

The first two are tasks for me.

But the rest? That’s for all of us. This is a community — I am not the superior overlord. So I want to hear your ideas:

Group fitness competition? Bowling? Summer social? Gym challenge? Coffee & walk?

The nights are getting lighter, the weather will hopefully improve soon, and it feels like the right time to get some more things in the diary.

So if you’ve got ideas — send them over.

Easter Reminder: Don’t Panic

Holiday weekends can be an absolute nightmare in people’s heads. A lot of people get stressed about: missing sessions, eating more than usual, drinking more than usual, or somehow “ruining their progress. ”So here’s your reminder: Consistency beats perfection. Every single time. You do not need to be perfect to make progress. You are absolutely allowed to enjoy your Easter weekend, eat chocolate, go out, miss a session, have a lie in, and still be completely on track. The world will keep spinning. And when the weekend’s done, you just get back to it.

That’s how real progress works.

One More Thing…

The clocks have gone forward.

Isn’t that exciting?

Let’s get after April, team.

Conor

Head Coach & Owner

Persevere Fitness

'Persevere together'