In this episode, Don and Vic sit down with Canadian contest prep coach Jayden Snyder, founder of BTY Fitness. Jayden shares how he went from an 18 year old university student doing his first men’s physique show out of a dorm room, to becoming one of the top coaches in the country with multiple IFBB Pro Cards across men’s physique, wellness, and bikini. The guys talk about how Jayden’s roster grew from a helping out friends for free to a full team of high level athletes, and the breakout seasons that put his name on the map.

The conversation dives into how Jayden thinks about coach and athlete partnerships, why communication and honesty matter, and how he keeps competitors locked in during the long improvement phase after a show. He breaks down his approach to refeeds and peak week, including some very unconventional, but tested protocols that only work because he collects data and treats every refeed like a trial run for show day. They also discuss managing expectations for athletes who want an IFBB Pro Card, handling tough placings in bodybuilding, and how the difficulty of earning a pro card has changed across different shows and eras. Jayden also talks about working with top athletes like Chidi and Bavee, and what goes into bringing them in at their best.

Episode Timestamps

00:00 Intro and who Jayden is
00:54 Jayden’s early competing story and first men’s physique show
05:02 Old Canadian regional and national qualification system
08:50 From personal training to full time online coaching
12:23 Breakout year, Legends Cup story, and first big wins
18:02 Peak week experiments including Chidi’s protocol and Bavee’s carb up
19:19 Handling disappointing placings and using them as fuel
21:11 Athletes who want pro cards and setting real expectations
24:07 Coaching high level pros and dealing with pressure
25:26 Big name coaches versus hungry up and coming coaches
26:41 Keeping athletes motivated in the off season
30:23 How Jayden uses refeeds and mock peak weeks
37:03 How his coaching philosophy has evolved
41:12 Ranking the difficulty of different pro card routes
43:43 Jayden’s own future on stage and closing thoughts