How the World's Strongest Women Empowers Her Clients
Podcast with Erin Murray

This week, I sat down with Erin Murray, Owner of the online training business Buns and Boulders. Erin primarily offers online coaching, both one-on-one and club-based, but has a larger presence as an athlete. She is a professional strongwoman athlete and 4-time World's Strongest Woman, the only person in the sport to win that title across multiple weight classes.

Unlike many elite athletes, Erin did not grow up playing sports; she was introduced to strength training later in life as part of treatment for an eating disorder. What began as a tool for rebuilding her relationship with her body evolved into a lifelong pursuit of strength and performance. After briefly exploring powerlifting and CrossFit, Erin found her home in strongman, where she has worked her way to the highest level over the past 10 years. Today, she brings lived experience and elite-level insight to her coaching, blending performance-driven training with a nuanced understanding of the physical and psychological aspects of strength.

I had Erin on because while she's built this incredible platform as an elite athlete, she doesn't get the opportunity to talk about coaching as much as she'd like. And that's exactly what I wanted to focus on. What really struck me from the start was that her success as an athlete and her evolution as a coach developed together. She started coaching for free in college while studying exercise science, refusing to charge until she knew she could deliver. That's rare.



Read on to see what we discussed during my interview with Erin.

Key Quote

"It's our job as coaches to fit the program into their life, not the other way around."

5 Core Themes

1. Balancing Elite Performance with Business Ownership- The reality of maintaining world-class athletic performance while running a sustainable coaching practice, and the intentional boundaries required to do both well.

2. Quality Over Quantity in Coaching- Limiting client rosters to 20 people to maintain exceptional service delivery, choosing depth of impact over breadth of income.

3. Human-First Coaching Philosophy- Treating clients as whole people rather than names on spreadsheets, adapting programs to fit their lives, and building genuine relationships through regular FaceTime check-ins and team culture.

4. Empowerment Through Strength- Using strength training as a vehicle for empowerment, helping clients (especially those who don't compete) gain autonomy, confidence, and control through intentional physical challenges.

5. Sustainable Business Through Retention- Building a thriving coaching business through exceptional client retention and referrals rather than constant marketing and acquisition efforts.

Main Take-Home Message

Success in coaching isn't measured by how many clients you can pack onto your roster or how much revenue you generate. It's measured by the depth of impact you have on the people you serve. By treating clients as humans first, adapting to their lives rather than forcing them to adapt to rigid programs, and maintaining boundaries that allow you to deliver exceptional service, you build a sustainable business that doesn't require constant marketing. The coaches who win in the long term are those who keep the clients they already have, not those who constantly chase new ones.

Find Erin

Website -https://www.instagram.com/erinmurray.wsw/

IG - @erinmurray.wsw

Find the Podcast

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