THE CRUDE TRUTH Ep. 78 Nick Burns, CEO Petrofit

Nick Burns, founder of Petrofit, about maintaining health and fitness in the oil field industry. Nick shares insights on overcoming challenges and establishing healthy habits, emphasizing the importance of mindset and consistency. They also discuss Petrofit’s efforts to promote wellness in the industry and Nick’s upcoming nonprofit venture, Warrior Ranch, aimed at assisting combat PTSD veterans through structured programs and horse therapy. The episode concludes with a reminder to listeners to prioritize their health and reach out to Petrofit for support in achieving their fitness goals.

Highlights of the Podcast

06:06 – Who’s Nick Burns and what is Petrofit?
08:05 – Health and wellness
10:51 – The lifestyle pieces
11:55 – Tips for the holiday
15:17 – Helping the transition veteran or the person having trouble transition
16:53 – The connection you have with an animal
18:15 – Cold therapy
19:11 – Three different perspectives
21:48 – A great example of the three C’s

Please reach out to Nick Burns on LinkedIn

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THE CRUDE TRUTH Ep. 78 Nick Burns, CEO Petrofit

Video Transcription edited for grammar. We disavow any errors unless they make us look better or smarter.

Rey Treviño [00:00:00] As we continue through 2024 goals that we may have started last month, we may not be hitting them anymore. But is it too late to jump back on that wagon and also out in the oil field? How hard is it to actually work out on a daily basis while out in West Texas? We talked to an expert on this episode of The Crude Truth.

Narrator [00:00:20] In 1901 at Spindletop Hill near Beaumont. The future of Texas changed dramatically as, like a fountain of fortune, thousands of barrels of oil burst from the earth towards the sky. Soon, Detroit would be cranking out Model TS by the millions and America was on the move. Thanks to the black gold being produced in Texas, now, more than a century later, the vehicles are different, but nothing else has truly changed. Sure, there may be many other alternative energy sources like wind and solar and electric. But let’s be honest. America depends on oil and entrepreneurs. And if the USA is truly going to be independent, it has to know the crude truth.

Rey Treviño [00:01:03] Nape is a proud sponsor of the Crude Truth. Be sure to register for the Nape Expo 2024 for February 7th through the ninth at the George R Brown Convention Center in Houston, Texas. Hurry and register today. Nape where deals happen.

Narrator [00:01:19] This episode is brought to you by LFS Chemistry. Committed to being good stewards of the environment and providing the tools so you can be too. Nape Expo where deals happen. Air compressor solutions when everything is on the line, Air Compressor Solutions is the dependable choice to keep commercial business powered up. Sandstone Group, Exec Crue. Elevate your network. Elevate your knowledge. Oil and gas workers association. Pecos country operating. Fueling our future.

Rey Treviño [00:01:52] Well. Good morning. Hello. Thank you, as always, for tuning in for another episode of The Crude Truth. I am here today, and I’m just so excited that I’ve got on a guy that everybody knows that not one person has ever said a bad thing about, at least to my face. And probably the his either, somebody that’s been in the oil and gas industry for over a decade. Somebody that has also taught us how we can actually be out in West Texas and live a healthy lifestyle. I have on the man, the myth, the legend, Petrofit own Nick Burns. Nick, how are you?

Nick Burns [00:02:28] I’m good man. I’m glad to be here. I know we’ve been talking about for a while, so I’m glad we’re here.

Rey Treviño [00:02:33] I’m so glad I know you and I. I’ve been trying to get. I’m not going to lie to everybody out there. I’ve been trying to get Nick on for probably about a year and ten months, and, you were just blowing and going. I mean, you are if you’re not, in Houston, you’re in West Texas. And you are working whenever you’re traveling between Houston and West Texas. And of course, while you’re at both locations. Nick. Nick, how are you doing? And, what’s going on your way? Hi.

Nick Burns [00:03:07] Yeah, man, it’s it’s always busy, but, dude, for me, if I’m not busy, you know, I just. I get very bored. Just like I got to stay busy, especially because I’m battle with PTSD, you know, from the military. And if I’m not moving, you know, mentally, you know, I’m just not there. So I got to stay busy. But honestly, man, I think a lot of people, it’s just people ask me, you know, how I do so much because we have our we just talk about our veteran nonprofit that we’re about to start Warrior Ranch. Yeah. I mean, it’s just time management. You know, it’s like I plan out my weeks on a Sunday. I gotta know what I’m going to be doing, what I need to achieve, and I just start prioritizing. So.

Rey Treviño [00:03:44] Man, you know, you talk about that, you know. Yeah. No, we we had a meeting here in my office about that the other day. It’s like we got we need to be more efficient about scheduling. And I think it’s a mental thing. Because when we schedule, we actually have more free time. Yeah. For sure. And, you know, but everybody thinks, oh, I’m stuck. Like, I want my freedom and I want this. And it’s like, well, I think making a schedule is actually being free to be more.

Nick Burns [00:04:13] Yeah. What’s your point? Like, you know, we kind of hear your intro starting and stuff like that. A lot of people say they don’t have time, right? Right. And I tell people. You know, this is forever listening. You know, if you think you don’t have time, right? It’s not making new time, right? It’s optimizing the time that you do have. Right. So and that’s what people understand is you can’t add time. You need to optimize the time. Right. And I think once you sit down and audit your days, which we do, a lot of people do in our group, and the first thing we do it their struggle with time management. We audit their days. You see what stays and what’s goes. And you’ll find very quickly, man, that you get a lot of time. You just have written it down. So

Rey Treviño [00:04:53] Will you say that? And, you know, you’re absolutely right. It’s like even if you followed, which I don’t think we all do. And again, you’re the expert. So correct me if I’m wrong. Even if you follow the eight hour workday and an eight hour sleep cycle, that’s eight more hours a day that you still have to be productive.

Nick Burns [00:05:10] Yeah. For sure. I mean, it’s you’d be surprised 100%. You know, I’m all I’m on calls all day, right? With people, with clients, with with new companies that want to come on board and veterans and you know, I just I just suck it up. And I think a lot of people this is like just man up and do it, wake up early and get it done. Right? I mean, I’m up at 4 a.m. at the gym, I come back, I’m ready to work by seven, right? Yep.

Rey Treviño [00:05:34] So that’s the way to do it. I mean, I wish I could say I’m up every day at 4 a.m., but, I ain’t easy. No, it’s not easy. But I tell you this, those days that I am, I feel like I even got. It’s true. I got more accomplished, you know? Oh, yeah. Do you feel like your day was actually full and productive?

Nick Burns [00:05:54] Oh, yeah. You you set the standard, right? For sure. No, but, you know.

Rey Treviño [00:05:59] Let’s let’s let’s let’s dial back a little bit for the, for anybody out there that may not know you, who’s Nick Burns and what is Pedrofit?

Nick Burns [00:06:10] Yeah. So Petrofit was started actually originated for buffet. And as you can see my logo there in the back. I was with Chevron and I was first was back up. Actually, I was six years active duty Army as a combat engineers. I did, route clearance operations, demolition operations overseas. So the two tours, finding IEDs. So that was no fun, but taught me some some great discipline all along the way. Got out, went to school, and then, got my education and then hit the oil field. No industry. Right. While I was working for Chevron, I was going out to the field, a lot, talking to all the field offices. While I was out there managing, saw how unhealthy the industry was, and I knew it was like that. And even if you’re not in oil field, you’re a company man or whatever it is you’re constantly traveling or as the client entertainment awards, the alcohol and all the events, the golf tournaments. It’s just it’s just an unhealthy industry, right? I knew that, but once I went out to the fields, I mean, these guys were really struggling. And so people just started asking me for help. And then eventually I was like, well, I’m gonna turn this into a good business model, minus Bones Fitness. And then, did really well. And, and and then, eventually did so well that I quit my job at Chevron and then went full time with, with Branch Fitness. And then we rebranded to Petrofit 2020. One, I believe in on the years or all together. And then it just exploded. And then I think, you know, we’re the gold standard for health and wellness for all industry now. Really. So I hope we are we’re getting there.

Rey Treviño [00:07:41] Well, I mean, I, I don’t think anybody doesn’t know about you guys and, and let’s talk about that. It’s like, so you’re you are the standard. So what are you doing with some of these companies.

Nick Burns [00:07:52] Yeah. I mean we have companies come in that, you know, we’ll bring on, you know, 1015 main field teams, office teams. You’re trying to build camaraderie and competitiveness and grit and discipline and just be healthier teams. Right. More productive. Right. Because you changed your health and wellness. Everything changes, right? You you show the work better, more mental clarity, less brain fog. You’re less sick. You know, it’s 275 pounds at one point, you know, before military and changed my life. Obviously now I’m doing it for a living. So I mean but yeah, we bring in companies and, you know, and small teams and just trying to increase camaraderie that way. We build up, we scale up, or we have like our one on one offer. Obviously one could come in. Doesn’t matter if you’re a a while, you’re in oil and gas or an accountant or superintendent or, you know, a land man. And, you know, just we customize everything around the person.

Rey Treviño [00:08:40] Okay. And so when you you talk about, you know, you go in and you’re working out, is it just with the oilfield that you’re doing this, or are you also going into the offices and helping them out as well and creating programs for those guys?

Nick Burns [00:08:53] Yeah. Yeah, both. You know, we you know, we don’t do one on one training, right? We do everything online. Right. So that’s what we’re it helps more scale more people because I think it’s better for this industry because there are so on the go and it’s you can’t go to a trainer, you know, because you’re in the field or you’re traveling. And so it’s this model’s better because we can help more people at their on their time rather than go to a trainer in your on their time. Right. It’s very hard to do. So but yeah we bring in companies, you know, we depend on where they’re located. But you know, we’ll do, some survey stuff, some, you know, but it’s mostly it’s all online for sure.

Rey Treviño [00:09:30] Well, you know, I do know that online is is obviously where, there’s more convenient these days. I mean, everything’s now on an app for the most part, and especially when you’re out in the field, I mean, you’re out there all the time. And, you know, I remember when I was out there, I mean, obviously, especially back in the, what is it like 2000 back during the boom of the 2011, you know, right before the year? 12, 13, 14? I mean, it it it was worse out there. I mean, you know, it’s definitely more stringent than it is now. And, but, I mean, we were eating, you know, junk food all day during the day, you know, sodas all day. And then you had the company guys in that one, and they were just cooking up a storm. You know, they don’t get me wrong. I love a good steak and baked potato, but, you know, when you’re out there making that company money, you know, hey, you’re having steak and potato every night. Yeah, well, you know.

Nick Burns [00:10:23] And that’s the thing, too. We talk. I mean, people are surprised. We do eat it, right? I mean, it’s the lifestyle. But let’s just give you more structure with it, right? Because suicide seems like alcohol industry. That’s also an old, a Derek and or of a feel guy, whatever it is that they can’t drink what they don’t do. Yeah, they drink like a fish. Yeah. It’s like, okay, good drink. But let’s have these habits and these non-negotiables first. So you’re remaining metabolic and then go have a couple beers. Right. But we just that’s the the lifestyle pieces. Soon as you take something out people will feel for it and they want to have it. They’ll binge on it. And this is that cycle of death, right? So yeah, you got to have the tacos and the barbecue that they’re on site. That’s just what we’re on our boundaries. Right.

Rey Treviño [00:11:06] Right. And people said on. You know, I got to give a shout out to my mom, actually to my brother, because he’s a vegetarian and he just got back from being out in the oil field for about three years. And he loved his lifestyle. I mean, he did.

Nick Burns [00:11:21] Everything in the oil field. That’s.

Rey Treviño [00:11:22] Yes. And he did it. And like I was sharing with you beforehand, you know, he’s a he’s a long distance runner. So I even got a phone call one time from a buddy of mine going, I just saw your brother running on, you know, Leaf Road. This over there by Purple Gallagher. I was like, no, you did. He goes, yes. And, you know, so you said it’s structure and lifestyle and it’s, you know, I think that’s key. And you know, something else I want to I want to share with everybody after that you shared, is I loved your holiday. You know, here we are. We’re recording here after 2023. But one of your, tips for the holiday was, hey, you’re going to have tons of holiday parties to go to. Tons of good food before you go out down a poaching drink so you don’t eat as much at these get togethers. And I thought, that’s actually very genius, because obviously if you work out, you use them as meal replacements. And this way it’s a way to not subdues your appetite, but, you know, a way to fill you up in a healthy way without having to eat all the good snacks. Right?

Nick Burns [00:12:22] Yeah, yeah. It’s like any time you get a, you go out and for that, you’re taking a lunch or client out for dinner. I got can have one beer. Right. But then it turns into six and you’re having appetizers and all. So it’s it’s a downward spiral right. So it’s it’s more or less just come into it already satiated. Right. And already metabolically tuned. And then you’re not going to do that as near as much or if not all right. So it’s just about having a plan. You know, it’s it’s the same process we teach for a big dinner or a big party or Thanksgiving or whatever. It is a holiday. It’s just, you know, get your workout in, remain metabolic, get your water, get your protein, go into it. And you’re just like, man, I don’t need it. All this stuff, right?

Rey Treviño [00:13:03] Yeah, I like that metabolically. Metabolically too. I don’t have to start. You know I know I’m good.

Nick Burns [00:13:10] Yeah. It’s tough. Yeah. You’re metabolically tuned, right. It’s just like. And that’s the thing, man. Tell me 99.9% of people comments aren’t eating enough and about right. Eat too much, gain weight eating less to gain weight. So you have to find that balance right. And most people are just under eating and metabolism is just just gone.

Rey Treviño [00:13:30] Yes, I know again, you know, I’m not a I am definitely not a, specimen, picture of it. And so, I mean, I, sometimes I can tell I won’t eat breakfast and then I’ll eat a huge lunch, and then you eat a huge dinner and, so, you know, just.

Nick Burns [00:13:46] Pretty ripped everyone to watch list. Do vote for getting ripped.

Rey Treviño [00:13:51] No, no, no.

Nick Burns [00:13:55] The ripped our teeth are getting.

Rey Treviño [00:13:56] Maybe, maybe what we need to do is get one of those. Remember how, JP Warren and Keith Stelter years ago, like, shaved their heads for the end of the year? The. We need to find a couple guys like, who gets a rib by the end of the year, like, yeah, we’ll get a couple of your, guys, and we’ll we’ll raise money for them.

Nick Burns [00:14:12] Yeah. They did. You just started. There we go. There, there you go.

Rey Treviño [00:14:17] Hey, Nick. Okay, you. Here you are. You’ve got Petrofit. And, you briefly mentioned now that you are looking to give back you. And again, I should have highlighted in the beginning, I apologize. Thank you for your service, for defending our country and our freedoms here, to eat unhealthy or eat healthy. So thank you, for that, man. And and for your sacrifice. Now you’re giving back to others with the Warrior Ranch, which is a nonprofit. Let’s talk about that a little bit and what all you’re doing. Because I’m really excited about this.

Nick Burns [00:14:51] So. So am I. It’s going to be great, especially for West Texas, the veterans out here in West Texas anywhere. And I mean, what comes in. But the point of it is to bring combat PTSD veterans out and, you know, have a mental, recalibration. I’m was right is you go from a very hostile environment, a lot of structure to civilian roads, as most people struggle with. It just stops. Right. So instead, we’re helping the transition veteran or the person having trouble transition, give them a very structured 21 day program and we’ll take them out to the ranch. So we have it’s 1000 acre ranch, you know, there’s the homeowner with with sleeping quarters. And we’re going to teach them the ins and outs of working ranch. So fixing fences, working cattle, organic equestrian horse therapy as well. They get paired up with a horse. And then, you know, we’ll have a few. There’s almost yellow. There’s a couple, there’s a TV show. I’ve got the TV show name, but it’s like a who wants to be a cowboy or something, but like, we’ll teach them though the methods of that. But it’s, it’s it’s great. And running my courses it’s not easy doing that. Right. So it’s the grit and grind and that we want to place them, with Border Patrol or get them into the whole field. That’s a good transition, right? Wow.

Rey Treviño [00:16:07] Yeah. Well, man, either. Places God knows we can use good men and women right now is at the border, in and out in the oil field. I mean, where you’re serving American.

Nick Burns [00:16:16] Yeah. He can be the combat vet or Green Beret out there on horseback, right in our border. That’s how to ride and become a cowboy. And they can also do that. You know, it’s pretty good.

Rey Treviño [00:16:29] Know, you talk about the horses and there’s such inlets because I’m pretty sure everybody thinks, are you you’re not just doing riding with the horses, are you? There’s there’s more to, to what I understand, there’s more to being around a horse than just saddle up and going. Is that correct?

Nick Burns [00:16:47] Oh, the main question. Therapy is a real thing, right? It’s it’s not new, but the connection you have with an animal is different. Right. And an animal that you’re using for work, you’re seeing every day. You’re right. It’s a connection that you build. Right. We hope to get some good sponsors and donations where we can actually the veteran comes through and they get paid with the horse and they can keep the horse if they had the means to do that. Yeah. Which would be massive because and they have their own horses, their buddies like their dog. Right. So it’s you know, and it’s that in itself is a huge mental, just re grounding for them, man. I think it’s they need they need something like that. And then obviously if you know, we, we have connections with the bigger ranches out here in West Texas as well. And they want to be a ranch animal place in their own, or they want to continue down the road or patrol or obviously where we’re at, West Texas, they get into the oil field pretty easily.

Rey Treviño [00:17:40] So yeah. Lee man. Yeah, I mean, I’m glad I’m glad you kind of expanded on that because I’ve heard that. And I just wanted everybody else out there to know that. It’s like, you know, what I picture is, is that that connection is in the old Clint Eastwood John Wayne movies where you see the horse stand by him, or, you know, when he’s about to be hung, he’s like, the horse actually doesn’t move because, like, no, I got your back on that, you know, you know, and and plus the responsibilities don’t joke. You know, you got to y’all brush him. You gotta I mean, you know, like you said, it’s really like a dog. And it is that connection is great.

Nick Burns [00:18:13] And we’re doing other practices. It’s called cold therapy. You know, mindset, whole food eating. I mean, it’s it’s a cleanse, right? It’s a full cleanse. Great transition to get there to to get that grit and grind back in their life that they’re missing. Right. And and it’s them to a role that’s pretty grit and grind. Right. Old field and Border Patrol. We can’t get much more gritty than that.

Rey Treviño [00:18:35] No, no. You know, Nick, as, as as we continue on in 2024, I want to kind of, here in my teaser, it’s like we’re now into 2024 people have, you know, probably spent the first 3 or 4 weeks of the year doing, doing whatever their workout was. And now they may have they may be on the verge of like, you know what, I’m done or they’ve already given up, you know, what can you say to those guys out there? Or, and women that are like, I’m, you know, we can get back on the horse, so to speak, right? Nick?

Nick Burns [00:19:07] Yeah, for sure. I look at it from, from three different perspectives. One is mindset, right? I think most people come into an it’s an all or nothing type thing. I want to get fit. I’m just I’m all in. Yeah, right. It is it. This is my year. And they go they’re they’re super high speed and they go into it just all or nothing. And that’s usually what leads to failure because they’re they do too much. Right. Right. And so first out of look at that. If you’re in that mentality you need to take a step back right. Focus on small wins, getting motivation quickly, building discipline habits first right. Getting the wins and building and scaling on that. Right? Right. Secondly, it’s like I talked about it. You know my consistency looks different from your consistency. Yes. Goals different lifestyles. You know it’s you need to sit down like okay what am I inconsistent with. Right. And then reverse engineer it. You know, guess who who does like okay. Well how do I get more structure in my food. You know what the habits I need employ I better plan. So we just look at the big goal of losing weight, right? Yeah. If it was just a workout nutrition plan that solved all the problems. We all have six bags.

Rey Treviño [00:20:13] Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Nick Burns [00:20:14] Clearly it’s not the case. Right? So, you got to go down to routine and lifestyle to figure out what. That’s that, right? You fix the root cause, right? Which is a lot of it’s mindset and lifestyle integration issues, like fad diets that are out there that don’t fit lifestyles and habits. But you never fix that. You know, you never going to. Keep the weight off, right? Like the weight loss is, the Lord is reward. You fix everything else so that people need to think about.

Rey Treviño [00:20:42] I love it, Nick. We’ll Nick for those out there. That that again. Haven’t heard of you. How can they reach out to you and contact you in Petrofit?

Nick Burns [00:20:51] Yeah. You know the petrofittraining.com? I’m on social media. I’m all over it. Are you seeing my face? A lot of there. Or you can just reach out to me. Nick@Petrofit.info.

Rey Treviño [00:21:01] Okay. Nick@Petro fit info.com.

Nick Burns [00:21:04] Yep yep yep. Or country fit. Better fit.info.

Rey Treviño [00:21:07] Petro fit.info. Nick at petrofit.info.

Nick Burns [00:21:11] Yes sir. Or does it reach out to do here? He he can get you connected.

Rey Treviño [00:21:16] Definitely I can reach out. Yes I mean and you know and just on a personal note, I had such a great time hanging out with you at that, Houston, Texas game, back last month. That was such a great time. And you were just so chill. And, because we walked that whole damn arm, that whole that whole damn stadium just to our place, and you’re just like, oh, okay, let’s go over here. Let’s go try over here. And I mean, you just chill about it. I mean, you’re just, you know, you remind me as well. No, not remind me. You are, a great example of the three C’s, you know, cool, calm and collected and, now, of course, you know, I haven’t seen you with your son, you know, after he knocked. Yeah. But no. Yeah. Not. Yeah. You know, joking, but no, I knew I just, you know, everybody out there. If you haven’t met Nick, it is worth a conversation and a handshake to meet him. He is definitely one of the good ones, as as people would say. Nick, I cannot thank you enough for your time today.

Nick Burns [00:22:13] I did. I love what you’re doing with this podcast and this industry, too. You’re telling the truth, right? The crude truth is real. Now, I listen to every episode, man. You got, you know, you’re doing great things, man.

Rey Treviño [00:22:24] Oh, thank. Thank you Nick. You know, but my goal is, of the show is just to get out there. Because the crude truth is, you can be out there for 45 days and live a healthy lifestyle. I’m just like you got nobody else but yourself out there. Do it. You know that’s the crude truth. Yeah.

Nick Burns [00:22:42] I love that. That’s the crude truth. That’s solely right. I mean, they they blend well together for sure. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I’m gonna start using that.

Rey Treviño [00:22:50] Nick, again, I cannot thank you enough for finally coming on, and I obviously, I, I got to get you back on. We’re going to get you in-studio at some point. And, so, again, for those of you all out there that are looking to continue your success for 2024 or are looking to start that success and have that epic 2024 to that on January 1st, 2025, you’re like, damn, it was a good year. Reach out to Nick at Petro Fit. And to all our listeners out there, thank you. And we’ll see you again on another episode of the Crude Truth.

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