ABOUT ME
I want to help you feel
great about your body.
Not only how it looks, but also what it can do.
My Philosophy
"The challenges you overcome in the gym make you a better person in your day-to-day life."
I believe that suffering makes you happy once the sweat is dry; that fitness is a key pillar of mental health; and that the challenges you overcome in the gym make you a better person in your day-to-day life.
I treat everyone that I coach as an athlete, because I believe if you have a body, you are an athlete. Whether it's carrying your groceries inside from the car in one trip, playing hide and seek with your kids, gardening without throwing out your back, or being able to stand up from the toilet unassisted when you're 95, the one thing that unites us as humans is that we have to live in our bodies. So why wouldn't you want to make that body as capable and as athletic as possible?
My training focus is on emphasizing what your body can do: if I can get you to run faster, jump higher, and squat heavier than you could last week, we'll know you've become a better athlete. Focusing on athletic progress is not only addictive, it's also a heck of a lot more enjoyable than waking up every morning and letting the number on the scale decide whether you can like yourself that day. (Trust me... I've done both.)
Just want to look better naked? That's okay, too! Remember that old saying "form follows function" - if I can make your body more athletic, you're damn sure going be happier with the way it looks in the mirror.
About Me
"I fell in love with the confidence that I gained from watching my body get stronger, faster, and more capable."
Hailing from the US, I grew up in Knoxville, Tennessee and lived in Washington DC and London before moving to Dubai - my adopted homeland! - in 2007.
Fitness has always been part of my life. Growing up, I was a decent competitive swimmer, a terrible but very dedicated gymnast, and a member of my school’s track, cross-country, and rowing teams. I ran my first marathon in 2003 & have completed about a dozen since, including one 56km ultramarathon in Cape Town, South Africa. I now compete in CrossFit, “the sport of fitness,” because I like to torture myself - for fun! - with an audience.
But before you roll your eyes and think “good for you, but what do you know about being a normal / lazy / unathletic / [insert self-deprecating adjective here] person like me?” … trust me, I’ve been there too.
From the time I moved to the UAE in 2007 until I left the corporate world in 2014 to pursue a new career in fitness, I had a regular 9-to-5 (... actually, more like 9-to-9) office job. My years in management consulting consisted of long days in front of an Excel spreadsheet, weekly commutes to glamorous client sites like Saudi Arabian oil fields or remote Nigerian villages, harried breakfasts of Diet Coke & mini Snickers bars snagged from the office pantry, and very little motivation to hit the gym at the end of yet another conference call that dragged on until 10PM. My lifestyle had gotten away from me, and before I knew it, I didn’t recognize my body anymore.
Luckily, around this time, a friend introduced me to a new style of training - constantly varied, high-intensity, functional workouts focused on measurably improving strength and fitness across a wide variety of different athletic domains. I fell in love with the confidence that I gained from watching my body get stronger, faster, and more capable, and soon I realized that I wanted to help others experience this same joy.
I founded my coaching practice in 2018 with a deep desire to share my passion for working hard, getting strong, and - through those things - finding happiness. I take a special pleasure in working with female clients from the broader Middle East region (... but don't worry men, I'll kick your butts too). Prior to establishing my business, I worked for 3 years as a Group Fitness Coach and Operations Manager at Iconic Fitness, one of the leading fitness facilities in Dubai. I am qualified as a REPS Level 3 Personal Trainer, a YMCA Awards Level 3 Personal Trainer, a CrossFit L1 Trainer, and a CrossFit Gymnastics certificate holder.
In addition to my fitness qualifications, I have a BA in Middle Eastern History from Georgetown University & an MSc in Comparative Politics from the London School of Economics… so yes, you can talk nerdy to me between sets.
When I’m not in the gym training myself or others, you can find me hanging out with my husband and my three sausage dogs, cooking delicious (... sometimes healthy?) food and trying not to kill the plants in my small Jumeirah garden.
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