Darragh Hayes Fitness

Healing Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Through The Lens Of The Nervous System Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune condition where the immune system mistakenly attacks the protective covering of the nerves. This can lead to pain, fatigue, muscle weakness, and relapses over time. Yesterday, I had the privilege of working with a new client who’s been living with MS for 8–10 years. His body carries high levels of pain, especially in his legs, which he describes as feeling like “dead weight.” He’s already doing incredible work in The CMB Gym with my brother Darragh, supporting his health through strength training and nutrition. Now, he’s beginning his psychosomatic healing journey with me at Firefly Somatics™. After our first session, he shared: “I’ve never experienced anything like this before. I haven’t felt this relaxed and present in my body in years… it’s unexpected.” He even compared it to the feeling after an or**sm — his whole system flooded with endorphins and dopamine, leaving him feeling electric and alive, yet calm and deeply relaxed all at once. As he continues this journey, he’ll be working on regulating his nervous system alongside somatic bodywork in session. Over time, through neuroplasticity, this combined approach will help him regulate his immune responses, ease inflammation, and reduce pain levels — supporting his body, mind, and overall wellbeing. This is the beginning of a powerful healing journey — one that combines body, mind and spirit in service of true health and wholeness. www.fireflysomatics.com

Words without action are just words. Words are nothing without action.

Change can only happen when you stop talking and stop listening to the voice telling you why you can’t do something. This is fear and conditioning, this is a lack of self belief which stems from low self worth.

You can do anything you want to do and you can be anything you want to be, it just needs you to take one step at a time towards what it is you desire. Age is not a determining factor, it is what you believe it to be. Nothing is impossible if you just take some action.

Don’t end this year the way you started last year. Make the changes necessary, heal your nervous system, heal your childhood wounds - those self limiting beliefs, change the behavioral patterns - repetition and consistency will be the key. 1.5yrs ago I was just over 70kgs with a double herniation of my spine in fear of not being able to walk again, never mind train. Today I sit at almost 91kgs training 5 days per week, on a completely different path and in love with training again.

A year from now you will wish you had started today.

Client Spotlight ⭐️

Danielle Hayes’ transformation journey at CMB Gym is a profound testament to the power of dedication and expert coaching. Under the guidance of CMB Gym, Danielle not only transformed her physique but also rose to the heights of becoming a World Powerlifting Champion.

Starting out with personal challenges related to weight and self-esteem, Danielle made the pivotal decision to reshape her life through fitness. With Darragh’s mentorship, she began her transformative journey, pushing beyond the typical boundaries of weight loss to embrace a more empowering objective — mastering the discipline of powerlifting.

The shift from basic fitness routines to the rigors of powerlifting marked a dramatic turn in Danielle’s fitness philosophy. It wasn’t just about losing weight anymore; it was about gaining strength, confidence, and an athletic prowess that many only dream of. Darragh’s role transcended that of a trainer to become a cornerstone of support and inspiration, propelling Danielle towards her goals.

At CMB Gym, Danielle’s potential was realized fully, culminating in her winning national and world titles in powerlifting. Her journey also saw her breaking two national records, a feat that speaks volumes about the caliber of training and encouragement provided at CMB Gym. Danielle’s success underscores the gym’s ethos of not just training bodies, but forging champions through comprehensive, tailored fitness strategies.

The environment at CMB Gym, fostered by Darragh Hayes, is one where each individual’s fitness goals are nurtured with utmost dedication. The gym prides itself on a holistic approach that emphasizes knowledge, results, and a commitment to excellence.

Client Spotlight -

Kevin McAuley, originally from Co. Down and a former resident of Dublin and Australia, embarked on his fitness journey with years of training under his belt. Despite his dedication and tireless efforts, Kevin found himself stuck in a frustrating cycle, unable to achieve the results he so earnestly sought. The lack of progress was not just demoralizing; it challenged his motivation and questioned the investment of his time in training routines that offered little to no return.

Determined to break this cycle, Kevin initiated a search for a personal trainer in Dublin that could meet his aspirations—not just for physical transformation but for an educational journey into fitness and wellness. His quest for knowledge and a deep desire to physically excel led him to CMB Gym, a place he recognized from media coverage but decided to scrutinize further. After reviewing client transformations and reading through the gym’s glowing reviews, Kevin reached out for a consultation.

Our first meeting was set for an early 6am slot, the only time available due to a packed client schedule. Kevin’s enthusiasm was palpable from the start. He arrived eager to learn the intricacies of achieving peak physical condition. During our hour-long discussion, we laid out a comprehensive plan tailored to his goals, marking the beginning of an extraordinary transformation journey.
Kevin’s dedication was evident from day one. Throughout his time at CMB Gym, he not only achieved the physical results he yearned for but also enriched his understanding of fitness and wellness. His transformation was holistic; he mastered meditation, enhanced his sleep quality and bedtime routine, and learned breathing techniques to regulate his nervous system. These elements, combined with rigorous physical training, facilitated Kevin in reaching the best shape of his life.

Heart Rate Variability: Tangible Biofeedback From The Vagus Nerve Heart Rate Variability (HRV) is an emergent property of complex cardiac-brain interactions and non-linear autonomic nervous system (ANS) processes. A healthy heart is not a metronome because it exh…

My Healing Journey Continues-

Discipline, Consistency, Repetition, Passion, Desire, Drive, Motivation and Accountability.

These are some of the keystones to getting what you want to achieve on a physical and mind level.

Everything we manifest in our lives is done so on an energetic level, you will manifest what you feel, how you think and how you act, so choose wisely the thoughts you have, the words you speak and the actions you take. Awareness is the key 🔑 the more healing you do emotionally the more awareness you will have.

I remember in the midst of the 3rd spinal herniation, losing so much weight, people asking my family if I was dying or if I had cancer. I knew I’d lost 21kgs but I didn’t think I looked that bad 😄

Hitting that rock bottom changed my world and greatly changed my perception on many things within me and how I perceived things externally. I thought working myself into exhaustion was the only way, 14-16 hour days was my norm. I thought not resting was the only way. I’d feel guilty if I didn’t train. These thoughts weren’t conscious, they were subconscious, I did it all without even thinking. It was hardwired into my nervous system.

Understanding my patterns and understanding “why” I did this on repeat was the start of my emotional healing and it also massively helped my physical healing because I had no choice but to listen to my body, to rest to focus on better sleep, to regulate my nervous system, to breathe, to do vagal toning exercises, to do cold and hot therapy. It’s only when something drastic happens will you listen. My sister said this to me on repeat and she was always speaking truth.

The truth of it all is, we have a short time in this matrix of life, live it, enjoy it, heal your wounds and manifest what you desire. It felt like a lifetime away for me last year and now I have my body back because of all the aforementioned keystones. Don’t wait until something drastic happens like I did!

GO GET IT!

Another amazing transformation from . Only 18 weeks of dedication, adherence, consistency and getting all of the necesseries done such as stress management-ie. Meditation, breathwork, cold therapy, nervous system regulation and putting 100% effort into his training. Nothing changes until you change!

Kieron had never meditated before, he didn't understand his nervous system, his traumas & never lifted a weight before coming into gym. He now regulates his Autonomic Nervous System through daily meditation, does parasympathetic NS breathwork daily, does cold therapy and expanded massively in just twelve short weeks. He had a goal in mind for his wedding and I feel he's surpassed that with the knowledge he's gained and results he achieved! He lost 7kgs and gained lean muscle mass at the same time through constant guidance and adherence. Well done Kieron.

My Journey continued…

Nothing in this 3D physical reality is linear, changing your body composition - building muscle, losing bodyfat, rewiring your brain, rewiring your ANS, healing trauma..

Breaking my spine for the third time brought me to a place I had never been before, the darkest and scariest place I’ve ever been. In the spiritual realm it is called the dark night of the soul. I thought I had hit my lowest point years before that but this injury brought it to a whole new level. Looking a neurosurgeon in the face while being told I may not walk again didn’t phase me but what came after brought me on a journey of physical and emotional turmoil and in turn, healing.

Something inside me, a knowing, told me I would be ok and to trust my own inate healing powers, to trust my body. I did and it hasn’t let me down, why? Because I believed, mind , body and soul I would heal and nothing would stop me. I was willing to do absolute ANYTHING to heal as it felt like my whole life had just been paused and taken away from me, everything I loved, my training, my livelihood, my sanity.

My body was in a dorsal vagal state, deep in a sympathetic flow, I was in horrendous pain and at some points my belief started to waver. I am human right? Being in that state for so long I started to dissociate, become deeply depressed, full of fear and anxiety, despair, severe panic attacks, became bitterly angry and resentful, I hit the top of the bellcurve (I will explain what this is later). Why did this have to happen to me, yet again!

I stuck to what I know works, science (I did question this at times but it doesn’t lie)! As hard and as dark a place that this took me I kept going, believing and implementing all go the tools I had to heal, which included -

* Parasympathetic breathing
* Changed my nutrition to Carnivore only
* Fasted - two 36 hour fasts per week
* Quality Deep Sleep
* Monitored HRV
* Alpha/ Theta Meditation
* Hertz frequencies
* Infrared Sauna Therapy
* Cold Water Therapy
* Electromagnetic Therapy
* Physical Therapy
* Acupuncture
* Walking (I had no balance so this wasn’t easy)
* Squatting - holding the kitchen sink
* Split squats - holding the stairs
* Spinal Decompression

These are some of the modalities I used and as you can see it is quite extensive, it became my full time job, my everything went into healing, 100% of my energy.

L-Men billboard shoot which spanned 5 countries across Asia.

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Result after result. Eric got shredded in only 8 weeks and is still training in the five years later!