Back Room Talk Coach Spotlight: Sherif Nassar
Connect with Sherif on Instagram
This episode of Back Room Talk takes us to Egypt, where Sherif Nassar coaches clients through Ramadan fasting, navigates the tension between OPEX principles and client expectations, and demonstrates why the hardest part of becoming a great coach isn't learning the principles, it's knowing when to bend them. Sherif's journey from CrossFit gym owner to professional individual design coach reveals why relationship building matters more than perfect programming, how coaches undervalue themselves by acting unprofessionally, and why the triangle of education, mentorship, and experience is non-negotiable for growth.
The Ramadan Laboratory: Coaching Through Fasting
Sherif's coaching practice operates in a unique context, 30 consecutive days of fasting from sundown to sunrise during Ramadan, where clients train without food or water during daylight hours.
The Adaptation Challenge
"I'm adapting, I'm used to it over the years. It's always easier when you know what to do when. You know your body, know when to train, to get a small meal, when to get a good meal and when to sleep."
His approach with clients: "I work before, during the fasting time. So all my clients, they have to come to me during fasting. It's more challenging to be able to manage them and still write good programs, but with reduced volume."
The Risk Management
"I have to be very careful with who is doing what during fasting for those who choose to train while fasting. I cannot risk giving them a big amount of volume because it would be risky for them to do it while fasting."
The Cultural Context: Food, Family, and Gatherings
Ramadan adds layers of complexity beyond just fasting, it's 30 days of social gatherings centered around elaborate meals.
The Social Dynamic
"Usually people gather and eat together. Sometimes maybe families, maybe friends. So it's always a very nice gathering with people and the way they enjoy the gathering is by bringing good food, nice food. Most of the time it's not healthy, so they eat very tasty, delicious, unhealthy food."
The Cultural Expectation
"I try to minimize the gatherings as much as possible because I know it's culturally accepted that you have to accept the gift and eat together no matter what the food is. If you don't eat it, no one is going to tell you something, but it's not the nicest thing."
The warmth matters: "It's very nice and very culturally very warm here when you eat together with people. But it comes with a price that sometimes you don't eat the food that you planned."
The Surprising Results
"Some people really get closer to their goals during this month. And I wonder how this actually happens. When we talk about scientifically, it's very hard to explain, but some people really lose weight and they still maintain their muscle mass, which is very impressive for me."
His conclusion: "For some people, Ramadan is an opportunity for them to make some gains."
The Mike Lee Story: When Your Coach Doesn't Understand Fasting
Sherif shares a memorable experience working with OPEX coach Mike Lee during his first Ramadan as a coached athlete.
The 11 AM Recommendation
"I asked him, Mike, what do you think? What time do you think I should work out during Ramadan? He said, let me research. So he came back to me and he said, I think the best time for you is 11 a.m."
Sherif's reaction: "I was shocked, like I'm gonna stay from 12:30 or 1 p.m. all the way until 6 without food and water."
Mike's Logic
"He said, if you wanna push it a little bit, we can push it little bit, maybe at three or four, but I think 11 a.m. is better because at 11 a.m. your body hasn't been fasting for long, so your body's gonna be more able to perform."
The problem: "I was thinking in my head, so what about afterwards? I cannot stay six, seven hours after the workout waiting for the time to eat. You're gonna be out of energy and too thirsty and too hungry to do anything."
The Damage Control Philosophy
Sherif's approach to coaching during Ramadan exemplifies meeting clients where they are.
The Realistic Approach
"I try to make it like damage control during this month. So instead of sleeping five, I ask them to sleep six. Instead of sleeping four, I ask them to sleep five. So I try to meet halfway so that we save as much as possible during this month."
The Alternative
"If I say, 'Hey, look, you're gonna come to me while fasting. We're not going to compromise the volume. You're just going to do the same volume. You're going to push hard.' If I do that, I'm not going to be a good coach because they're not going to be consistent and they will drop off for sure."
The Client Who Was Late: Humanity Over Systems
A recent client interaction captures Sherif's coaching philosophy perfectly.
The Situation
"I have this client who came to me today an hour late from the scheduled time and she kept apologizing because she had a baby recently, and her mother had surgery. So her house is a mess."
The Response
"I said, 'Hey, I understand. There's no reason to keep apologizing. I totally get what you are going through and I'm happy you're here. So let's just do something that you can do well right now.'"
The Principle
"The client is not selling themselves, not them selling the service to the client. If the client would not need you, then they would not sit in that room. So why would you try to convince them how good you are instead of them pitching you that I have a problem which I really want you to solve?"
His broader point: "We are not just coaches. We are humans at the end of the day and we need to be there and make them feel it."
Meeting People Where They Are: The Door Assessment
Sherif has developed a practice of reading clients the moment they arrive.
The Initial Read
"Meeting people where they are is the number one thing I try to focus on when they first meet the client at the door, when they arrive. I try to see what's happening. Are they stressed? Are they tired? Are they happy? Are they sad?"
Reading Between the Lines
"Sometimes I see in the face of a client that they're not happy with the programming. It doesn't have to be something in their personal life. Sometimes maybe we're not on the same page. They're expecting something and they're not seeing it."
The solution: "I try to talk to them and make them speak, like, tell me what's happening."
The Hard Lesson: Not Listening Enough
Sherif learned through painful experience what happens when coaches don't create space for clients to speak.
The Pattern
"I learned the hard way with the clients who did not have a good experience with me that usually it's because you're not listening enough. You're not trying to make them speak enough."
The Programming Trap
"If you have the perfect program and they are not convinced it's the perfect program for them, then you are programming from an island. They have no idea what you're doing and they don't understand that what you're doing is the best for them."
The fix: "You need to talk to them and meet them halfway so that they can trust you so that you can provide the program that you think is best for them."
The Biceps and Bench Press Problem
Sherif describes the classic tension between what coaches know is best and what clients want.
The Client Expectation
"Some clients have very different expectations. Like some people just want to do biceps and bench press. You're going to meet them halfway. You can't just say this is not right for you and I'm not going to do that. You're not helping either."
The Old Sherif
"I had to change my mindset and start being more flexible. I had this all OPEX ideas in mind and I want to implement them and they have the map work and they have all the progressions that I want to build up towards. And they just want to do biceps and triceps and look good on the beach."
The Solution
"I had to meet them halfway, maybe be more flexible with the concepts and principles that I have in mind and try to implement them, but without showing I'm implementing them. So I'm giving them what they want, I'm doing what I want, but in a way that keeps both of us satisfied."
The Full Body Workout Rebellion
A recent client story illustrates this principle in action.
The Initial Plan
After the consultation and assessment: "I had a plan in mind. Full body workout three times per week, twice a week, map work. And after one week of planning and writing everything, he said, 'I'm not happy with training and I think we should focus more on muscle groups.'"
The Pivot
"Instead of full body, he wanted like a chest and biceps, back and triceps on the other day, legs, et cetera. So I had to change the whole plan and write it all over again with two muscle groups each day in order to make him feel heard."
The balance: "At the same time, I will have to plan it my way, but I have to change the split in order not to lose the client and not to lose the interest of the client."
The Aerobic Day Shock
Another common friction point reveals the education gap.
The Client Reaction
"When they come on the aerobic day, they are shocked like, 'Why do I only have aerobic training for today? I want to train.' I said, 'This is training. You need to do this in order to recover so you can perform more in the next day.'"
The Old Response
"Me two years ago, I would have said, 'I'm going to do it this way because this way is better for you and you need to recover so that you can perform more on the following day.'"
The New Approach
"After experience with many people, this is not the right way to do it because you are gonna lose the interest and they're not gonna be consistent. The struggle is there for the coach to let the ego go and it's okay to make some changes to your initial plan as long as it keeps the client compliant."
His conclusion: "I think it's more important than principles."
The Strategic Compromise
Sherif has developed tactical approaches to satisfy clients while maintaining programming integrity.
The Cardio Example
"Let's say they want to do cardio, lots of cardio. I would put it at the beginning of the workout every time so that they are satisfied. And then I do the split that I'm planning for the day."
The Core Example
"Maybe they want to do lots of core. So I put it at the beginning of the day, get it done with, they're happy and then they start doing the rest of the work without questioning anything."
The mastery: "You need to give them what they want and still apply principles, do what you think is best, but you need to be smart about it."
The Surprising Truth: Buy-In Beats Perfection
Sherif discovered something counterintuitive about program design.
The Result
"Surprisingly, when you break the rules and they are both in the process of breaking the rules, they get more results. Because they are both in and they push and they're happy with doing it. So they stay consistent and they get results."
This challenges the notion that perfect adherence to principles always produces the best outcomes.
The 50/50 Practice: In-Person and Remote
Sherif splits his practice evenly between in-person and remote clients, using CoachRx for both.
The Gym Reaction
"I'm using CoachRx for both, which looks very weird at the gym. When people look for the workout while the coach is in front of them from where I live, this looks weird."
The local norm: "Usually there is no application. There is no preparation for the session. Maybe some coaches use just a white marker and board, a white board and a marker and they write a workout just a few minutes before the session starts."
Why He Plans
"I was never satisfied with the idea of not planning. I like to have everything planned. I know what we're doing. I know every week what happened last week and I like to see it. So I have the laptop open."
The jokes he gets: "Why do you have the laptop open like that? What's happening in here? What are you doing?"
His reasoning: "I like to have an initial plan. So I'm changing from something solid rather than just writing random stuff and changing it."
Remote Communication: Personalized by Client
Sherif has learned that communication preferences vary dramatically.
The Discovery Question
In his initial consultation form: "Which communication tool do you prefer to have as our communication tool? And I have Zoom call, WhatsApp, the messenger on CoachRx or just the comments."
The Range
"Some clients prefer just a comment on the workout. They just need nothing more. Some people would prefer something like a recorded loom video for them. Some people just like a phone call once every two to three months and that's it."
The outliers: "Some people actually don't like any communication. They just want to give you one comment, send you one text message, 'Please add me some core' and that's it."
The Philosophy
"I don't want to be someone who bugs them all the time, text them when they don't want text or send them every month, 'Hey, book a call with me, book a call with me.' And they don't want that. So I don't want to be a pain in the ass for them."
The Relationship Building Priority
When asked about his favorite part of coaching, Sherif's answer is immediate.
The Core
"I enjoy the relationship building. This starts with the initial consultation because I get to talk to them and connect with them. It makes the coaching a lot easier when you understand them as people, not as a client."
Why It Matters
"For me, the more I understand the person, the easier it gets because you understand how they think, what they're looking for, what they hate, what they experienced with training and coaches and programming and everything."
The Lasting Impact
"The relationship is the best part about it because it lasts more than coaching. Some people I stopped coaching and they still have a very good communication and relationship with them. And I know if they consider hiring a remote coach, they will just come to me."
The Soccer to CrossFit to OPEX Journey
Sherif's entry into coaching came through the sport he loved.
The Original Dream
"Soccer was my main sport and my aspirations was in the sport of soccer, not in anything else. And I started doing CrossFit on the side to help me with the fitness of soccer."
The CrossFit Phase
"I started liking CrossFit and the community of having a group and training together, suffering together. We had CrossFit.com every day, pick two, three workouts and we put them on the board with a few friends and do them together. We started creating a small group and we started growing the group. We opened the gym, a CrossFit gym."
The Burnout
"At the time I was very convinced that the group aspect is very important for fitness until I met OPEX. I was burned out from CrossFit competitions and competing. I felt it was time for a change."
The stagnation: "I was improving until a point I hit a stagnant point and I wasn't able to enjoy training anymore, lift PRs. I wasn't seeing any progress. It was just pure torture."
The OPEX Discovery
"I was very happy that I found OPEX and I started learning about it. And I started CCP and I worked with different OPEX coaches, 2015, 2016. And I was convinced it's the right path and the right way to do fitness for everyone."
The transition: "Gradually I started reducing my group classes until I stopped them completely this year. And I'm glad, I'm happy, I'm more convinced I'm helping people the right way now."
The James Fitzgerald Lesson That Stuck
In a CCP mentor call, James said something that fundamentally changed how Sherif views fitness.
The Exchange
"I was giving examples in the conversation about guys who are very famous in CrossFit and how they look very fit and how healthy they are, like Rich Froning, they have been in the game for so long and they're doing very well and they're PRing all the time."
James's Response
"He told me that someone looking lean doesn't mean they're healthy. This one thing stood in my head and I think he was absolutely right."
The Realization
"The more I stayed in the field, you see a lot of people who look very healthy and they're not and vice versa. You can see someone who looks very normal. He's not too shredded. He's not too bulky and he's very healthy. They're enjoying training. They look good. They can do a lot of stuff."
His conclusion: "Judging people by the looks is very misleading in terms of health."
The Professionalism Problem
Sherif has strong opinions about how coaches undervalue themselves.
The Doctor Comparison
"Looking at the coach should be exactly like a doctor or like a lawyer. There is no difference. You study and you have experience and you are professional, you care about them, and you help them stay healthy and fit, and you keep them away from the doctor."
Whose Fault Is It?
"The role of the professional coach should be more valued in a way. And it's the coach's responsibility that it's not valued anymore."
The Professional Standard
"If you go to the doctor and the doctor is looking at his phone throughout the assessment or you go to the lawyer and they don't have a bag and a book with a suit, have an office, what would you expect from them? You're not going to view them as a professional."
His point: "If everyone is taking it seriously, I think people will start looking at it differently."
The Laptop Question
Sherif regularly gets questioned about his professional setup.
The Client Reaction
"Sometimes I have a look from clients like why are you doing all of that? Like why do you have the laptop? Why do you plan? Why do you have the workout?"
What It Reveals
"They haven't seen any kind of professional attitude from any coach before. They haven't seen an initial consultation or an assessment or planning or an application with all the workouts planned and written ahead. And they don't expect any kind of follow-up."
The Bigger Problem
"It's something that we need to improve by time and spread the awareness for others to start taking it more seriously. Because otherwise we're going to be underpaid, undervalued, and we're not gonna make enough money to sustain this profession."
The Honor the Individual Gap
When asked about individualization in his market, Sherif sees a pattern.
The Reality
"I'm going to treat you as an individual, but the workouts are the same. Sometimes it's too random. They're just going to give you a workout that pleases you as the client, but there's nothing behind it. Like there's no planning."
The One Good Workout Trap
"A lot of coaches focus on giving one good workout. Like I'm going to give you a great workout today. I'm going to make you feel great. You're going to sweat, do abs. That doesn't work on the long term."
The missing piece: "If I just give you the best workout for today and I have nothing planned for the following days, what happens is that I'm gonna get lost. Eventually you lose credibility if you don't plan."
The Mentor Hunger
Sherif articulates something many coaches feel but don't express.
The Need
"As coaches, we always need a mentor. Like no matter how good you are, you need someone you can refer back to and take a second opinion. Here's a client I'm working with right now. Maybe I'm missing something."
Why It Matters
"If you only have one way to do things, you get stuck very easily. You need different ways. And when clients feel you have different ways of approaching their training, they feel like you're a master, like you're not just laying out templates for them."
The Source
"You can only get that from a mentor because principles will only take you so far, but you need a different brain with experience, someone who can do the magic with very small changes, they can just flip things around."
The Community Disconnect
Sherif identifies a gap in his professional development.
The Missing Piece
"This is one of my current goals, it's to stay connected with the other coaches and hopefully find mentors who I can look up to and maybe get the second opinion."
The Problem
"Sometimes you just get stuck in the same ideas. If you see my programs, maybe other coaches programs, maybe all of us are sticking to three or four or five ways of programming and doing things because you are not thinking differently. You are the same person."
What He Needs
"I don't have a technical community. Someone who I can rely on or maybe share ideas, get stuck with them and maybe tell them something controversial they can argue about and see where we can reach."
The Triangle of Growth
Sherif's closing advice captures his philosophy of professional development.
The Three Elements
"Have a good balance between studying, having mentorship and working with clients. Don't lean on one aspect over the other."
The Warning
"Don't go all in for education and leave the experience. Don't go all in for mentorship and leave the education and experience. It's this triangle that you have to stick to all three all the time in order to grow."
The Risk
"If you lean on one or two over the other, you're going to miss out."
The Journey Forward
Sherif Nassar's coaching practice demonstrates that mastery isn't about rigid adherence to principles—it's about knowing when those principles serve the client and when flexibility serves them better. His willingness to:
Meet clients where they are, even during the intense demands of Ramadan
Prioritize relationship building over perfect programming
Let go of ego and adapt plans based on client feedback
Maintain professional standards even when it looks "weird" in his market
Admit the ongoing need for mentorship and community
Balance OPEX principles with client buy-in
These qualities separate coaches who help some people from coaches who help all people who come to them.
Most importantly, Sherif proves that the hardest lesson in coaching isn't learning what to do—it's learning when not to do it.
Connect with Sherif Nassar
Find Sherif on Instagram where he shares insights on coaching, training through Ramadan, and building sustainable fitness practices in Egypt.
Instagram: @sherifnassar_
Practice: 50/50 in-person and remote coaching
Philosophy: "Meeting people where they are is the number one thing"
Specialty: Balancing OPEX principles with client expectations while maintaining professional standards
Sherif's story reminds us that great coaching isn't about having all the answers, it's about asking the right questions, listening to the responses, and being human enough to adapt.
Next Steps
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