I began working out with weights along with wrestling in my teens and competing in Olympic Weightlifting in 1997. I started coaching Olympic Weightlifting in 2004 as a hobby and now have now been training people of all kinds full time for over 7 years. And I still love the challenge!

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I guess you could say I live and breathe Olympic lifting. It’s dynamic and explosive; it takes strength, coordination and timing; and on top of that, you’ve got to have focus. It’s endlessly challenging. And yet there are only two lifts: the snatch and the clean & jerk. Olympic lifting involves real-life strength. It’ll help you in other sports, too. This is a sport that builds strength, speed, power, flexibility, as well as general athleticism. Anybody can do it.

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I spent several years working with Thrush Sports Performance Center in Sumner, where I trained under Senior International Coach John Thrush.  I really honed in on technique, for sure. But along the way I also learned the art of coaching–when to push and when to back off, how to motivate and how to demonstrate. 

 

I then found Crossfit through Crossfit Seattle and Dave Werner (Formerly CrossFit North, the first CrossFit affiliate ever), when I first came to CrossFit Seattle I was pretty much the lone weightlifter amongst all the CrossFitters. It turned out to be a great fit, there I learned the finer points of training for general fitness and working with a diverse range of abilities. The gym valued substance over flash, and did a great job of getting everyday people in all around great shape.  Working at Crossfit Seattle also reinforced the importance of including basic strength training in any fitness regime.  When you think about it, it’s the base for everything, whether it’s throwing heavy weights over your head or just being able  to lift your own body weight off the ground.  Over the years, I’ve been lucky enough to coach a broad range of people–from beginners looking to get in shape to Olympic caliber athletes; from middle-schoolers to senior citizens. 

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SELECTED CREDENTIALS:

• Bachelor of Arts Business Administration, University of Washington

• USAW L1

• CrossFit L1

• NSCA CPT (lapsed)

• Catalyst Athletics L1

• Poliquin Group PICP L1 Performance Coach

• Ido Portal Movement X Seminar