Snatch: 186kg Clean & Jerk: 230kg Total: 416kg
Back Squat: 300kg
Front Squat: 265kg
Overhead Squat: 220kg
2020 Tokyo Olympian 3-time
Pan Am Champion 6-time
National Champion USAW L1 Coach
I've been competing in Olympic weightlifting for over two decades, and coaching weightlifting and CrossFit for 15 years. I've competed at the top of my weight class over the last decade and most recently realized my Olympic dream at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, Japan. I'm a multiple-time National Champion and Pan American Champion. I originally got into weightlifting through football, with my dad trying to improve the strength and conditioning program at my school. I leaned into coaching starting in 2007 when my family owned and operated our first of a few CrossFit gyms over the years.
One of the biggest turning points in my career was in the form of a serious back injury in 2009. I herniated a disc in my low back and it required surgery that was ultimately unsuccessful. At the time, I had invested so much of my identity into being a weightlifter, and to be looking at the possible reality of never competing again... was a difficult time. At one point I did stop lifting, and it helped me refocus. I learned that my identity is not built just upon labels of what I do, but more about who I am. And eventually, when I did get back into weightlifting, I learned to appreciate every day, because being able to do what you enjoy is a blessing. Cherish it. With a renewed focus and appreciation for the sport, four years after my back injury, I won my first National Championship and made multiple international teams Alin in the years to come. Sometimes, it's the mentality that holds us back, and it takes a physical setback to remind us of that.
I truly enjoy helping people out. I like to use my experiences in the sport to help athletes take days in stride, and also improve technique with an overall positive mindset.
