Commando Temple was founded by former Royal Marines Commando, Rob Blair, who left the military in 2008 and  started the business in 2013, building it from a one-to-one personal training service in the parks of London to a world-class training centre. The gym is stacked to the brim with specialist strength and conditioning equipment and staffed by an expert team of personal trainers, some of whom are also world-record holding athletes, strongman competitors and acrobats.

The team works to deliver a training experience that is unrivalled in any commercial gym. Rob said: “Our coaches are athletes who compete to be the best and we translate that into programs that help our clients thrive. We’re the kind of place you go to for genuine hard work. We’re not like your high street commercial gyms – as an independent business, we offer a much more personalised service and we don’t have any other agenda than to make sure everyone who comes to us becomes stronger, nimbler, and more agile.”

Another key element of what Rob and the team offer is a combined focus on developing strength within the mind and the body. While physical strength and powerful movement are at the core of Commando Temple’s training programmes, equally important is to support clients to build mental toughness and resilience. The training they offer combines calisthenics, powerlifting, movement flow, gymnastics and martial arts to bring balance and both physical and mental wellbeing.

Rob’s own personal experience means he’s also able to offer expert injury rehabilitation and movement symmetry sessions to help clients recover stronger. In 2006 Rob suffered two prolapsed discs in his spine and at the age of just 24 underwent spinal surgery. The lessons he learned from his own recovery inform the methods he has used to help hundreds of clients recover from acute and chronic injuries over the last 12 years. Rob said: “It’s really nice to have people come in and see them transform over the course of our programs. There’s nothing more rewarding than someone telling you that you’ve made a difference to their life. That personal service and connection with our clients is what sets us apart from high street gyms. We really get to know the individuals that come to us, work with them to develop their personal strengths and in return, they support the business and have helped us through some challenging times. Smaller, independent gyms offer better environments and better experiences that are much more focused on giving each person a really good service.”

In the years since launching Commando Temple, Rob has seen some gradual change to the area of Deptford in which the business is based. He said: “The types of business that are moving into the arches in this area has definitely changed. We were one of the first of the new type to move in and we’ve been followed by some really exciting businesses that are attracting more people to the area. There’s a core of really successful businesses forming here, like Moma Oats next door (the UK’s number one Bircher Muesli brand) and the Villages Brewery a few arches down, which is bringing a different buzz to the area.” The combination of an increasingly vibrant local business environment, a commitment to offering the best gym experience for its clientele and Rob’s own personal determination to succeed against the odds is making Commando Temple a force to be reckoned with in the personal fitness world.

For more information about Commando Temple, who are based at Units 14, 15, 16 Resolution Way, visit bestronger.co.uk Follow them on Instagram @commandotemple Facebook The Commando Temple or Twitter @commandotemple