Francesco Zen
FOUNDER · HEAD COACH · ZTRAINING
18 years.
One standard:
results that matter.
I've spent 18 years coaching professionals across three continents. From executives managing 60-hour weeks to business owners who haven't trained in years. The problem was never motivation. It was always design.
The programmes most people follow weren't built for anyone with a real professional life. I built ZTraining to change that.
18 YEARS - Coaching executives and senior professionals across the US, UK, and Middle East
AWARDS - Industry Excellence Award, Washington DC (2019) and London (2021) — recognised for outstanding coaching outcomes
400+ - Documented transformations. Desk professionals, business owners, executives, actors and first-time clients
EDUCATION - Formal qualification in Diet and Nutrition alongside advanced biomechanics and performance programming
ZLIFE - Founder of ZLIFE — Ultra-luxury longevity and preventive health, serving UHNW families globally
THE COACH BEHIND ZTRAINING
MY APPROACH
I don't believe in
programmes built for
ideal conditions.
Every client I've worked with has one thing in common: they're not lacking willpower. They're dealing with schedules that make standard programmes structurally impossible to follow. Travel. Client dinners. 6am calls with other time zones. Back-to-back meetings that kill energy before a planned workout.
Early in my career I coached in gyms. I was good at it. But I kept watching people make real progress in-person, then lose it completely during a demanding work period.
The problem wasn't their commitment — it was that their programme had no mechanism for real life. It was built for people who train as their primary occupation.
The shift to online coaching was driven by one insight: the professionals who need this most are the hardest to serve in a gym setting. They travel. They work late.
They're in Dubai one week and New York the next. Building a system that travels with them, that adjusts in real time, that never requires ideal conditions — that became the entire design brief for ZTraining.
Today every programme I write is built around that premise. What does this person's actual week look like — not the week they wish they had — and how do we build a training and nutrition system that thrives inside it?
“The professionals who need this most are the ones a standard programme fails immediately.
Real results require a system built around your life, not against it.”
FRANCESCO ZEN · FOUNDER, ZTRAINING
COACHING PHILOSOPHY
Three things I believe
every effective programme
must have.
I
INTEGRATION, NOT ISOLATION
Training, nutrition, sleep, and stress don't operate independently. Pushing one at the expense of another is why most programmes eventually break down.
Every ZTraining plan is built as a single connected system, all four variables synergistically working together.
II
REAL-WORLD DESIGN
Your plan is built around the week you actually have, not the week you wish you had. That means specific protocols for travel, for restaurants, for high-stress periods.
The plan adapts; it doesn't break. If your schedule changes, I adjust. That's what weekly reviews exist for.
III
PERMANENCE OVER AESTHETIC
I'm not interested in a transformation photo at week 12 that reverses by week 20. The goal is a result that holds, because it's built on habits, not restriction.
The final phase of every programme is specifically designed to make the result permanent without ongoing supervision.
CAREER TIMELINE
18 years.
Three continents.
One methodology.
2007
STARTED COACHING
Began 1-2-1 coaching in Venice, Italy. Built a full in-person client base working with various professionals and first-time gym members.
2012
GAP DISCOVERY
After 5 years identifying why standard approaches failed busy professionals, the integrated 4-variable system. Training, nutrition, recovery, lifestyle was formalised as the Francesco’s methodology (not yet ZTraining).
2016
2019
2021
METHODOLOGY FORMALISED
After 5 years identifying why standard approaches failed busy professionals, the integrated 4-variable system. Training, nutrition, recovery, lifestyle was formalised as the Francesco’s methodology (not yet ZTraining).
INDUSTRY EXCELLENCE AWARD — WASHINGTON DC
Recognised at the international fitness industry awards in Washington DC for outstanding coaching outcomes and client transformation results.
INDUSTRY EXCELLENCE AWARD — LONDON
Second international industry recognition in London. By this point, coaching had expanded to serve clients across the US, UK, UAE, and Europe.
2023
FOUNDED ZLIFE
Launched ZLIFE — an ultra-luxury longevity and preventive health company operating globally, extending the ZTraining methodology into broader health optimisation for high-performance individuals. Headquarters in Dubai.
2025
ZTRAINING GOES FULLY ONLINE
Transitioned entirely to online delivery. Making the ZTraining system accessible to professionals globally, with the same level of personalisation and direct coach access as in-person work.
WHY ONLINE WORKS BETTER
The professionals who need this most can't be in a gym at a fixed time.
The move to online wasn't about convenience, it was about efficiency.
An in-person session once or twice a week with no system around it produces inconsistent results. A fully structured online system that travels with you, adjusts to your week, and is reviewed constantly produces consistent ones.
My most successful clients are the ones who travel constantly, who work across time zones, who could never commit to a weekly gym slot. The system is built for exactly that reality.
No app to learn. No platform to manage. The plan works through whatever communication method already fits into your day.
ZLIFE
Part of ZLIFE. Global Longevity & Preventive Health
ZTraining sits within ZLIFE, an ultra-luxury longevity and preventive health company operating globally.
ZLIFE works with high-performance individuals and organisations on comprehensive health optimisation, from executive wellness programmes to preventive diagnostics.
The connection means ZTraining clients benefit from a methodology rooted in the most advanced thinking in longevity science, not just conventional fitness coaching.
WORK WITH ME
Ready to find out if this
was built for your situation?
60 seconds. I personally review every submission and send a tailored response, whether you proceed or not. No pitch, no obligation.
No credit card · No obligation
Personalised response from Francesco guaranteed