About Byron Cox

If you are taking the time out to read this and get to know me I would like to say thank you.

My passion for sports began at a very young age. It started with football, a sport I loved almost immediately. From the age of four I had a football glued to my feet, and my passion for it only grew as I grew older. I worked my way up from ground roots football to border-line professional scholar at the age of 12, but my career was short-lived due to personal reasons.

Three years later I was introduced to a new sport called Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. It was the hardest thing I had ever done but that only spurred me on, and much of my teenage years were spent at the Carlson Gracie mixed martial arts club in Hammersmith. I trained three hours a day, six days a week, and before long my training and hard work started to pay off. Frustratingly, my competitiveness and love for the sport regularly conflicted with my limited finances, but despite this I started to compete in matches once a month. However, this wasn’t enough. I’d had a taste and I was thirsty for more, so I started to help out at the club. I trained the younger children there and soon found that the hours I’d spent helping out with my siblings and cousins at home had built a natural affinity with younger people. I loved every second of it. Soon I realised that my passion for coaching and mentoring could become my job. I travelled across the country attending courses (many of which you will find on this website) and gathered all the information I could. During this time, I thought back to my childhood dream. I had wanted what most children want, to become an icon. However, I soon realised there was more to it than that. I wanted to be a role model, and an influencer. I wanted to train the next generation. Before I could do this, however, I needed to make sure I had the experience.

I remember walking up to my coach and professor Simon Hayes and saying “I want to become a professional athlete and I want to start making a living from the sport so this can become my primary focus in life. How can I make this possible?”

His response wasn’t what I’d hoped for, but it would shape the next part of my life. He put it bluntly. “At the moment Brazilian Jiu Jitsu doesn’t have the traction and popularity required to make a living from it, unless you have sponsors. What you need to do is learn how to box. Find a boxing gym and expand your skillset. Spend half your time here and half your time boxing. With enough training and dedication you’ll be able to transition to MMA.”

That evening I looked up every jiu jitsu company I could find. I emailed all of them and asked whether they would sponsor my dream of competing at a professional level. None of them replied. Undeterred, I followed my coach’s advice. I found a boxing gym in Finchley, three hours away from where I was living at the time. I had to sacrifice my jiu jitsu training as I couldn’t afford the travelling and competitions, but my love for boxing grew and grew. I met Anthony Joshua, and I had the privilege of being invited down to the gym of an Irish boxing legend, Barry McGuigan. I spent two years there sparring and learning off his fighters and was lucky enough to build a friendship with the man himself. To this day he remains one of my greatest mentors and idols.

During this time I was also getting started in the fitness industry. I worked at a PureGym for a year as a fitness instructor and, for the first time, worked as a self-employed personal trainer. From PureGym I moved to a Virgin Active in Dukes Meadows, and continued working as a self-employed personal trainer, fitness instructor and tennis coach.

I’ve worked as a trainer for 7 years now. I have experience in boxing, MMA, jiu jitsu and tennis, and I strive to keep improving myself as a person and coach.