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From the Founder | April 2026 (up to speed!)
From the Founder - Building The Garage Gym (& pursuing my 100%)
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***The back to back blog post is to catch you up on this series (and humbly admit we forgot to post them on our blog). Never again !
I started this newsletter to document two journeys:
- the building of The Garage Gym as a business
- my personal journey pursuing 100%
We believe there's a 100% version of you inside of you, desperate to get out… so the goal of this newsletter is to document our journey towards 100% - and to encourage you to pursue yours.
BUILDING THE BRAND 002 - CATCHING YOU UP
We've been documenting The Garage Gym via our 'Building the Brand' series on Instagram for a while now.
In the second edition of From The Founder, we'll cover 002 quickly and get back to today.
-My biggest frustration: not knowing everyone.
-My biggest weakness: having never run a business.
-My biggest strength: having never run a business.
You can watch Episode 002 of Building The Brand on Instagram here.
THE GARAGE GYM | APRIL 2026
What many think building The Garage Gym is:
Community workouts. Meeting new members. Trying to build a sauna in Little Silver.
All of the above is true… but it's actually a smaller part of the story than you might think.
Building The Garage is a tremendous amount of work outside the four walls of the gym.
Most recently we went through a backend migration of our app, member management platform, and CRM.
For those unaware - a CRM is a customer relationship management tool. It's how we manage the people who apply to The Garage: all texts, emails, questions, follow ups, and everything in between.
We started this migration in June 2025 and are still ironing out some kinks in April 2026.
I knew it was going to be a big undertaking… but it was a mess.
Luckily, we can laugh about it now (laughs in pain)
We are officially live on:
-A new website.
-A new app (for members only).
-A new backend and CRM (for TGG internal use).
Now that we're through the woods, I'm really excited to grow with the tools.
A big reason we made this move was clarity.
One example:
I never thought about the total amount of traffic a business gets -
How many people search our business on Google ? Yelp ?
From there - what do they search for? What do they click on? Did they hit the 'Call Now' button?
From there - did they apply? Speak with our Onboarding Officer? Come in for a tour?
None of this is likely important to you unless you own a business… but it has been a really cool project to tackle.
When done, we'll have a clear picture of how The Garage Gym shows up in the world and can make smarter decisions on where to spend our time and resources.
I never in a million years thought I'd be deep in Google Analytics analyzing site traffic… but here we are and it's proven to be a really important project.
If you do own a business and are interested in learning more about what I've learned, email me: kieran@thegaragegym.co.
A couple things to keep on your radar:
TGG Field Day : April 11th at Tamaques Park, 8:30am. A morning to workout together, play some games, take home goodies from Juice House and PROMIX, and leave better because you showed up. 100% free.
P.S. we're sorry if you're just seeing this and the event has passed. it was awesome. see a recap here.
MDW MURPH : Our biggest event of the year. Memorial Day Weekend at both locations. Clear your calendar for May 25th and see the 2025 event recap here.
Little Silver Sauna : We've received Board of Health Approval and are working to finalize building permits. Really, really excited. Follow the journey here.
PURSUING MY 100% | BADWATER 135
Beyond The Garage Gym, fitness has been one of the most powerful catalysts in my life for living into the best version of myself.
Right now, the challenge I'm focused on is Badwater 135.
If you missed the last newsletter, Badwater 135 is widely referred to as the world's toughest foot race. 135 miles non-stop from Badwater Basin in Death Valley, the lowest point in North America, to Whitney Portal at 8,360 feet elevation. It takes place in July when temperatures in Death Valley can reach 130°F.
I've just begun week 8 of training and wanted to share some thoughts.
Since I started running ultras in 2019 I've never used a coach.
If I had to summarize my approach to ultra running over the last few years - multiple 100s, one day and two day events, 50 milers, and everything in between -it would be: dumb and naive.
Which I love. And don't say as a negative.
I never cared about my finishing time and up until January 2026 (my last 100) I began to see how little I could train to get to the start line and finish.
My goal with ultra running has never been to win or hit specific times - it’s been to give myself a challenge so hard I have to dig deep, fight through mental and physical battles, and get to the finish line.
It’s always been about becoming the person I needed to be to get to the finish line, and therefore I gave less priority to proper training and more power to - ‘let’s figure this out’.
Now… while that has worked for me I don’t necessarily recommend it.
Working with a coach (and following a plan) I can confidently say that there is a world you can do both:
1. Give yourself the challenge to fight through and develop yourself personally.
2. AND train properly to get there.
I just never wanted to.
But working with a coach has me running more, faster, at a lower heart rate, and having more fun with it. All while managing a busy schedule.
8 weeks ago I was jogging 3 to 5 miles here and there. This past weekend I ran a 25 mile trail training run and felt excellent.
Why work with a coach now?
Badwater 135 has been a goal of mine for 7 years and I didn't want to half-ass it.
I want to look back proud of my training, my fitness, and the effort I gave on race day.
So I hired 10 time Badwater finisher, 2 time Badwater winner, and Badwater Hall of Famer - Coach Lisa Smith-Batchen.
Lisa's a legend. If you're training for any type of endurance event, reach out to her: lisa@dreamchaserevents.com
Following a plan is something I've never done but am now a big fan of. It keeps me honest, healthy, and able to pursue the best version of myself.
Thanks, coach !
THIS MONTH'S THOUGHT
Get to work.
It can be that simple.
I sat down on the second episode of The Feels Good Show with my good friend Mark, who discusses his journey to entrepreneurship, the value of good work, and how he has navigated life as someone on the pursuit of the best version of himself.
Watch Episode 002 with Mark on YouTube here.
PURSUING YOUR 100%
Our mission with this newsletter is to document our pursuit of 100% and inspire you to do the same.
If we can ever help you on your pursuit of your 100%, email me: kieran@thegaragegym.co
Rooting for you,
Kieran Williams | Co-Founder & CEO, The Garage Gym
The Garage Gym has locations in Westfield, NJ and Little Silver, NJ.
