A true student of fitness, Doug is a coach that understands the details that inspire success.
Doug Miller is a professional natural bodybuilder, seasoned entrepreneur, and driven leader who has transformed passion into purpose in both the competitive world and the supplement industry. His relentless work ethic, commitment to excellence, and devotion to community have made him a respected voice in strength culture and fitness business leadership.
As founder of Core Nutritionals, Doug utilized his education in biochemistry to formulate products that perform optimally.
We had an opportunity to talk to Doug about his fitness journey and this is what he said.
I am Doug Miller. I’m a professional bodybuilder, biochemist, and founder of Core Nutritionals.
In 2002, a year removed from college, I was encouraged by a local bodybuilder at my gym to compete. At my first show I won the overall novice division and was instantly hooked on this sport. I later won my natural bodybuilding pro card at my second competition, the 2003 OCB Charm City Classic. After winning my pro card, I went on to compete as a pro bodybuilder in the then IFPA with the highlight of my career winning the Yorton Cup Pro World Championship twice.
Working out is something that many of us do to be able to keep up with fitness or mobility. Training is deeper than that. It’s the discipline that it takes to reach a specific end goal.
Physically, it is beneficial for your body. You’re putting forth a dedicated effort that improves your physique for the better - whether you plan to compete or not. Mentally and emotionally, the self discipline of training guides how you feel about yourself. To reach milestones along the way, and ultimately CRUSH IT for your end goal, does wonders for how you feel about yourself.
Obviously I’m a fan of my own brand: Core Nutritionals, especially the latest Transformers line. First and foremost, I am sure to eat an optimal diet and then I stack that with plenty of hydration and supplementation, especially on lifting days when the body is in need of quality incentivising and repair.
Keep the reason why you’re doing this on top of mind. The motivation for your journey must come from within, first. Especially in the beginning when it can be tough to keep yourself on the path. It doesn’t take very long for your body to switch to desiring the new routine and you’ll miss not being active more than you’ll dread the workout of the day.
Growing up in Huntington Valley, Pennsylvania ( a small town near Philadelphia), my childhood was an extremely active one filled with sports like soccer, swimming, and baseball. In high school, I earned 11 varsity letters collectively in these sports and was an all - regional athlete. It was really while I was at Penn State that things pushed into fitness after I was introduced to the weight room on campus.
My favorite area to train is my back and legs but, truthfully, there’s no part that I don’t enjoy working on as they all work together for the common goal.
“Being strong” is much more than just physical strength. It is discipline, self-motivation, and the willingness to do things even when they’re difficult for a greater good. Not matter what I do, I always try to do the absolute best with what God has given me and will push as hard as I can until I get there.
I find that higher volume workouts work for me. I use different splits, for myself and my clients. Honestly, almost anything works if you go all-out with maximum intensity. Pick a basic exercise for the bodypart you are training and build your workout around that. If you are doing legs, make basic barbell squats the centerpiece of your workout and add other things around that. The sets and reps depend on the individual. I typically work up to sets of 20.
Bodybuilding.com is an essential resource for me to be able to keep up with the latest (supplements, workouts, fitness conversations) in the industry so I’m always keeping my life goals at top-of-mind. Having community is a great way to push through to success even if you may not be feeling like it on that day.
I would tell my future self that it is worth it. Every squat. Every lift. It was all worth it. I’d also be proud of all that I had accomplished with my work and knowing that I stuck to my core principles all the way to the very end.
