Motivation From Social Media - @nohlsen @davidgoggins @cameronhanes

Motivation from social media is real if you curate for it — following accounts whose daily proof-of-work makes you close the app and go train, instead of feeds built to keep you scrolling. This Physical Friday I share the three follows that do that for me: @nohlsen, @davidgoggins, and @cameronhanes. I explain what each account brings, why it works as fuel, and the simple rule that turns watching into doing.

Listen now: press play in the player above and follow along.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who are the best motivational follows on social media for fitness?

In this episode I share three accounts that genuinely motivate me: @nohlsen, @davidgoggins, and @cameronhanes. Each one uses social media differently — yet all three post the kind of daily proof-of-work that makes you want to close the app and go train, which is the only social media worth following.

Who is David Goggins?

David Goggins is a retired Navy SEAL, ultra-endurance athlete, and author of Can't Hurt Me, known for brutal honesty about doing hard things daily. His posts are less about polish and more about the unglamorous reps — running, rucking, and refusing excuses — which is exactly why his account works as fuel rather than entertainment.

Who is Cameron Hanes?

Cameron Hanes is a bowhunter and ultra-runner famous for the motto 'keep hammering.' He trains year-round — lifting and running every single day — so he is physically ready for backcountry hunts. For the hunters and outdoorsmen who listen to Physical Friday, he is the clearest example of training with a real outdoor purpose.

Can social media actually help your fitness instead of hurting it?

Yes, if you curate it. Most feeds are designed to keep you sitting and scrolling, but if you deliberately follow people whose daily output makes you uncomfortable in a good way, the same scroll becomes a prompt to move. The test is simple: does the account make you train more or watch more? Keep the first kind, drop the second.

How should you use motivational accounts without just consuming them?

Turn watching into doing with a rule: if a post fires you up, act on it the same day — a workout, a run, a few sets of pullups, anything. Motivation has a short shelf life. The accounts I share in this episode earn their place by consistently triggering action, and I explain how I use them in the player above.

How to Build a Feed That Makes You Train

Here is the curation workout I describe in this episode — it takes ten minutes and pays off daily.

1. Audit your current follows. Scroll your feed and ask of each fitness account: does this make me train or just watch? Unfollow the watch-only ones.
2. Follow proof-of-work accounts. Add @nohlsen, @davidgoggins, and @cameronhanes — people who post the daily unglamorous reps, not just highlights.
3. Set a same-day action rule. When a post fires you up, do something physical that same day, because motivation decays fast.
4. Use their consistency as a benchmark. When you want to skip a session, remember these people trained today, and let that settle the argument.
5. Re-audit monthly. Feeds drift, so once a month prune anything that has slipped back into pure entertainment.

I walk through each of these in the episode. Press play in the player above.

Why Do These Three Accounts Make the Cut?

None of them are selling a highlight reel. @davidgoggins posts the miserable miles, @cameronhanes lifts and runs every single day to be ready for the backcountry, and @nohlsen brings the same relentless daily output. Watching people do the work makes skipping your own feel absurd. I break down what I take from each in the episode, so press play above.

What Makes Cameron Hanes Matter to Outdoorsmen?

He trains with a purpose every listener of this show understands: being physically ready when the mountain or the water demands it. Keep hammering is not a slogan to him, it is a daily schedule. For the guides and hunters in this audience, he is the template. I explain how I apply his approach in the player above.

Is Social Media a Net Positive or Negative for Fitness?

It is a tool, and the blade cuts whichever way you point it. The same hour of scrolling can leave you motionless or get you off the couch, depending entirely on who is in the feed. The test I use: does the account make me train more or watch more? I walk through pruning your feed in the episode above.

People & Topics Mentioned

@nohlsen · David Goggins (@davidgoggins) · Cameron Hanes (@cameronhanes) · Can't Hurt Me · keep hammering · bowhunting · ultra running · Instagram · Physical Friday

More Physical Friday Workouts

Physical Friday is my weekly fitness series for fishing guides, anglers, hunters, and outdoorsmen — the training, nutrition, and mindset to stay in the game for life. Watch and listen to every Physical Friday episode from Tom Rowland.

About Me

I'm Tom Rowland, a professional fishing guide based in the Florida Keys, host of the Tom Rowland Podcast, and the longtime host of the Saltwater Experience television show. On the podcast's Physical Friday series I share the workouts, fitness challenges, and mindset lessons that keep me ready for long days on the water, so guides, anglers, hunters, and outdoorsmen can stay strong and stay in the game for life.