Mwamba RFC winger Brian Mutugi on online fitness venture and crazy daily egg diet
Reading Time: 5min | Sat. 11.07.26. | 16:38
It would be easy to mistake him for another social media fitness creator chasing likes and algorithms. But the videos only tell part of the story
The comments arrive almost as quickly as the videos.
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"Are those weights real?"
"How is he squatting that much?"
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"This guy is not human."
Brian Mutugi has become a familiar face on Kenyan fitness timelines. Every few days, another clip emerges of the Mwamba RFC winger disappearing beneath a heavily loaded barbell before standing up with apparent ease, leaving thousands stunned by feats that seem almost routine to him.
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It would be easy to mistake him for another social media fitness creator chasing likes and algorithms. But the videos only tell part of the story.
His office is now split between the rugby pitch and the gym floor, but neither existed in his plans when he finished high school.
"The first time I set foot in the gym was after Form Four," Mutugi tells Mozzart Sport.
At first, lifting weights was simply another part of becoming a better rugby player. It was functional rather than passionate, but his obsession came later.
That turning point arrived after Paris.
Mutugi travelled as part of Kenya Sevens' wider squad during the Paris 2024 Olympics, serving as a training reserve while Shujaa finished ninth. Watching one of the biggest sporting events in the world from the inside gave him something more valuable than a medal.
Perspective.
"After coming back from the Olympics, I told myself that I had been fit for seven years, and I felt like it was time to help other people get fit,” he said.
It sounds simple now, but the decision would fundamentally change how he viewed fitness. He was no longer training only for himself.
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"I was in the Kenya Sevens setup for two seasons and had gained a lot of knowledge and experience. It did not make any sense for me to stay at home and not share that knowledge,” he continued.
That idea became Tugiman's Fitness, an online coaching platform that has steadily built a loyal clientele through personalised programs, nutritional guidance and brutally honest advice.
But before he could coach others, Mutugi realised he still had homework to do.
"I started studying meal plans and nutrition. I was a fitness expert, but I wanted to study the nutrition part of it,” he said.
Like many players, he had spent years understanding workouts while paying less attention to what happened in the kitchen.
Within weeks, that changed.
"After a month or so, I got the basics and finally started my fitness journey, Tugiman's Fitness,” he offered.
Unlike many trainers who build businesses around keeping clients dependent, Mutugi's philosophy is almost commercially self-destructive. He wants people to leave.
"My basic principle is I just work with a client for only three months. After that, there is no need for me to keep eating your money, because you already have all the knowledge. If someone has not changed after three months, even after two years, they will not have changed,” he said.
His bluntness extends beyond business.
Scroll through Kenyan social media, and fitness debates often descend into familiar arguments. Some insist exercise is unnecessary because life is short anyway. Others worry that lifting weights will transform them into oversized bodybuilders.
Mutugi has heard every version.
"One of the things people love saying out here is that we will all die. Someone says there is no need to make their bodies suffer, and at the end of it all, they will die. They just let themselves be.
Others think that if they workout they will resemble bodybuilders like Gachau. Unless you are using steroids, there is no way you will look like that. I have been working out for about 11 years now, and I do not look like a robot,” he said.
Ironically, fitness almost never became part of his life. His dream as a teenager was medicine.
"If I were not in rugby, fitness would not be a part of me. I would be a chubby and fat doctor who advises people wrongly,” he laughed.
Mutugi's routine borders on monotonous.
He wakes up at around 9 am. Drinks one and a half litres of water. Takes coffee. Training runs between midday and one o'clock.
Only then does he eat.
"Mostly I eat a minimum of 13 eggs, rice, and avocado. I don't eat greens," he said.
It is a diet that raises eyebrows, but Mutugi insists the bigger issue among Kenyan athletes is not necessarily what they eat, but how little attention they pay to nutrition altogether.
"Most Kenyan athletes just eat. They do not pay attention to nutrition. If they stick to two meals a day, maybe eggs during lunch and meat at night, they will be okay."
His body offers the evidence he trusts most.
There was a time when injuries repeatedly interrupted his rugby seasons. He would often break down before the circuit reached its closing stages, but not anymore.
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"Since I started being intentional about working out and nutrition, I have seen significant changes in the field. The last Sevens circuit was the first season I went that long without getting injured.
My strength on the pitch has improved, and I can hold on to bigger tackles because I have good carries. What reduced my speed is that I added weight from 81 to 86 kilograms,” he said.
Despite building one of Kenya's fastest-growing online fitness brands, he has no interest in spending decades as a personal trainer.
"I don't want to be a gym trainer or fitness trainer after rugby. Probably I want to own a gym. That's my next project. I will help people for free on matters of nutrition and fitness because I have other things I am doing quietly,” he said.
Until that day comes, the videos will keep appearing on our timelines.