Our Coaches

Craig O'Hanlon limped into Tacoma Strength in January 2011 after losing a bet with himself. He was Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead, at least that's what his medical tests said. He jumped in head first. Leon taught him the basics of GPP (General Physical Preparedness) and introduced him to the Paleo & JERF (Just Eat Real Food) Movement. The rest is history. In his first month at Tacoma Strength, Craig dropped almost 40 pounds and won the Winter 2011 Clean Eating Gym Challenge. Read the rest of his amazing story.

As a French Classical Chef School Graduate and former Executive Chef and General Manager, Craig now offers Hero Support to the gym members of Tacoma Strength. Don't know how to cook? Contact Craig. Wondering about Paleo? Contact Craig. Looking to spice up your cooking game? Contact Craig. Got an item for the weekly newsletter? Contact Craig. Got an idea for a great social gym event? Contact Craig.

Wait. How do I contact Craig? .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

Seun began olympic weightlifting shortly after his collegiate football career came to an end in 2019. Since then, he has fallen in love with the sport; training and competing as often as possible.

When he is not in the gym he likes to enjoy the beautiful nature Washington has to offer or bury his face behind a screen like the true nerd he is.

Seun is a certified USAW Level 1 coach and you can and find him coaching athletes or training most days of the week.

Meredith joined Tacoma Strength in the summer of 2016 after having finished a short triathlon, only to discover that she could barely walk the next day. That's when she realized how little she knew about taking care of her whole self, despite playing sports all her life.

She started in the Fundamentals class, then went through the year-long Precision Nutrition program, and is currently a senior member of the Tacoma Strength Olympic Weightlifting Team. As a result of her training at Tacoma Strength, she has grown significantly in creating whole-self health and wellness.

Meredith is a Certified Athletic Trainer and also works for the University of Puget Sound Sports Medicine Department. She has years of experience with rehabilitation exercise and biomechanics. Meredith enjoys working with people of all skill and ability levels to assess and improve their movement patterns. She also specializes in adjusting exercises around injury and working with clients to help them live an injury-free life.

When she's not helping our members at the front desk you'll find Brooke training for fitness competitions. These competitions start with the letter C and end with Fit but since we choose to longer be an affiliate we aren't allowed to use that name. Yeah, it's weird.

Not as weird as the fact that Brooke has two first names.

Oh, and she owes me a bio as well so I can replace this one.

Jack joined Tacoma Strength in 2015, shortly after moving to Tacoma that same year. Jack did not consider himself the most athletic growing up, or knowledgeable in proper exercise and movement, he wanted to build a stronger foundation in fitness for himself.

Tacoma Strength proved to be a wealth of knowledge. Through the courses offered at Tacoma Strength, from GPP to Gymnastics, Olympic Weightlifting to mobility, he learned these different approaches played roles in improving how the body gains and maintains strength.

Through his fitness journey with Tacoma Strength, Jack has practiced improved nutrition with the Precision Nutrition program… although the occasional home baked good does make it into the gym now and then. (Sometimes a balanced diet consists of a cookie or an ice cream cone amongst friends.)

Jack is a senior member of the Tacoma Strength Olympic Weightlifting Team, and has competed in the 2018 and 2019 Armor Classic Weightlifting Competitions. (He even helped to design the team’s mascot.) He earned a 200-hour yoga training certification in 2019, and incorporates mindfulness, strength, and mobility through class sessions. As of 2020, he was brought on as a coach to help run group workouts.

You'll find Aliya coaching our early morning group sessions as well as on the Olympic Weightlifting platform as she prepares for her next competition.

What you won't find here (yet) is her bio because she hasn't provided one for us. Trust us. She's awesome... but she still owes me a bio.

Andrew started gymnastics when he was a wee tyke and competed through college at Michigan State University. He coached recreational gymnasts as well as advanced gymnasts for many years during and after my career.

Andrew found Tacoma Strength in 2008, received his Level One Certification in 2009, and the varied workouts have kept him coming back ever since.

He enjoys working core strength and programming cardio style workouts with dynamic movements. Come and play. It will be fun!

Ambrose coaching career began in 2019 and is a certified USAW Level One weightlifting coach and a Precision Nutrition Level One nutrition coach. They believes fitness is for every(body) and believes inclusion is of upmost important in the fitness community.

You'll find MJ coaching our afternoon group sessions as well as on the Olympic Weightlifting platform as she prepares for her next competition.

What you won't find here (yet) is her bio because she hasn't provided one for us. Trust us. She's awesome... but she still owes me a bio.

Jordan Coby was born and raised in Tacoma and attended Wilson High School. He attended Tacoma Community College and then later graduated from Central Washington University on a full-ride athletic scholarship to play basketball. Jordan earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Exercise Science while at Central Washington University. Using his education, experience he has gained, and attending various trainings, Jordan specializes in correct proper movement within exercise and strength training. He can provide workouts from novice to expert in terms of movement patterns. His love for proper movement has given him the knowledge and resources to help people work on moving naturally and safely in the gym and also daily life.

USAW L2 Certified Coach. USAW Athlete Development Model (ADM) Certified, SafeSport Certified.

Olympic-style weightlifting, or officially “Weightlifting” is the style of weightlifting contested at the Olympic Games. The events of weightlifting, or “lifts”, test virtually all of the muscles in an athlete’s body (including but not limited to, the legs, the back. the shoulders, the arms, the grip and the core) - more muscles than any other single sport. And because the lifts are performed more widely than any other strength and power testing events in the world with standardized rules, with no assistive equipment, the World and Olympic Champions in the sport of Weightlifting have earned the right to the title of the strongest men and women in the world.

No matter your age or experience it's not too late to step onto the platform. The team prides itself on being successful in guiding all ages even those who have never lifted before from learning the lift all the way to stepping into their first event. Contact us at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) for more information.