Ten years. What a milestone!

When I started this business a decade ago, I had no idea what the future would hold.

My wife Milly and I had been backpacking around the world for three years and had spent most of our savings on travel. We literally had nothing but the clothes in our suitcase when we stepped off the plane from London and crashed at my parents’ house in Bright.

A few months later, Milly was offered a job at a newspaper in Melbourne, so we decided it was time for a fresh start and for me to open my own remedial massage and myotherapy business. We packed our suitcase and hit the road in our $1200 Ford Courier, headed for Melbourne.

Sam Noble’s dad Frank spent a week helping to bring the clinic to life.

The first hurdle was choosing where to base my remedial massage business, but as soon as I drove down Bluff Road, I instantly fell in love with Black Rock. I knew it was the right location.

Damien Finn was the first remedial massage therapist to join the team.

In the months before we opened, there were many sleepless nights trying to organise everything from council permits to marketing, but it all came together in the end and we opened for business in May 2014.

Like most business owners, I tackled a rollercoaster of emotions in those early weeks – excitement to finally be open. Anxiety about how the business would go. But it turned out my worries were for naught, and soon we began to develop a loyal network of clientele.

I’d be lying if I didn’t admit there have been challenges over the years, none more so than the COVID lockdowns when the business had to close for months on end. But with the support of our clients, we were able to come back stronger than ever.

And boy has there been plenty of highlights. I’ve had the pleasure to work with some of Australia’s top athletes, helping them to perform at their peak. Standouts include:

Boxer Sam Soliman and Muscle Freedom owner Sam Noble

• Supporting Australian professional boxer Sam Soliman at his fights.
• Working with Swiss-Italian motorsports racing driver Simona de Silvestro and Australian driver Garry Jacobson.
• Being invited to the UK to support Australian swimmer John Van Wisse with the Arch to Arc.

These are just my personal highlights. My team of talented therapists have had their own wins over the years.

Ten years on, I am extremely proud of how Muscle Freedom has grown. We are lucky enough to have some of Melbourne’s best remedial massage and myotherapists among our team, people we consider dear friends.

Our clients never fail to inspire us, from the elite athletes performing at the top of their game, to the everyday people who know that their health is their greatest asset, one which deserves investment.

Swimmer John van Wisse and Muscle Freedom owner Sam Noble

To top off a great decade, two years ago we opened a remedial massage clinic in Bright – a feat I might not have dreamed possible when driving down the Hume all those years ago.

To my therapists who work so hard day in, day out – thank you. Muscle Freedom is what it is because of you.

And to the clients who continue to support us – thank you. Some of you have been with me from the very start, all those years ago.

I’m so excited to see how Muscle Freedom evolves in the next 10 years and what our next chapter will look like. If it’s anything like the first decade, I know it will be an exciting one.

We like to have fun at Muscle Freedom