Abby Black

Abby moved to Seattle from North Carolina, bringing a strong background in fitness and performance training. She played both soccer and track in college, earning a degree in Exercise & Sport Sciences along with certifications as a personal trainer (ACE) and group fitness coach (AFAA). With experience training and coaching in both collegiate and gym settings, she has worked with a wide range of individuals to help them achieve their strength training goals.
Her passion for strength training began in childhood, driven by a desire to get stronger and faster. She thrived in a gym environment with a coach, witnessing improvements not only in her athletic performance but also in other aspects of her life. That experience inspired her to pursue a career in fitness, helping others build strength, confidence, and resilience through training. Outside the gym, she enjoys discovering new coffee shops and exploring the city.

Alex Maloney

Alex has always wanted to work in the sports/medical/rehab world but didn't know what her direct calling would be with the vast array of options. She started playing soccer at the age 9 and through her first 3 years in college. After missing her senior season and back-to-back shoulder surgeries, Alex took a yearlong athletic training internship - which led her to the question, "How do we prevent injuries instead of waiting for one to happen?". That's when she found the world of strength and conditioning and obtained her NSCA CSCS certification in May 2023. Alex is also a Certified Functional Strength Coach (CFSC) and USA Weightlifting L1 Certified Coach.

When she is not coaching, 90% of Alex's time is filled with her Great Dane Oreo - they love hiking, traveling and exploring dog friendly places in Seattle. The rest of her time is spent either in the gym, playing recreational soccer, or in the kitchen experimenting with new recipes.

Chris Travis

Chris is the Owner of Seattle Strength & Performance (SSP). He opened the Queen Anne gym in August 2020 and has since expanded SSP to 4 locations. Before fitness, Chris worked for a decade in corporate technology and business at Amazon. In 2019, he got inspired to leave his corporate role and enter into the fitness industry. He began as a trainer before opening his first gym. Since then, he has not only expanded SSP but also become a fitness business speaker and coach through his work in an organization called Business for Unicorns.

Chris holds the below education and certifications:
- Masters of Science (M.S.) in Exercise Science and Health Promotion (PennWest University)
- Certified Personal Trainer, Performance Enhancement Specialist, and Fitness Nutrition Specialist through the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM-CPT, PES, FNS)
- Certified Functional Strength Coach (CFSC)
- Spartan Race SGX Certified Coach
- Girls Gone Strong Certified Pre & Postnatal Coach (GGS-CPPC)
- Functional Movement Systems L1 Certified (FMS-L1)
- Functional Range Conditioning Mobility Specialist (FRCms)
- BioForce Certified Conditioning Coach
- Level II Certified Speed Coach through the National Association of Speed and Explosion (NASE)

Cory Axmear

Growing up in Kansas City, Cory spent her childhood dancing but never felt particularly athletic. However, her passion for understanding the human body and optimizing performance led her to pursue a degree in Exercise Physiology. In this pursuit she fell in love with strength training, realizing you don’t have to play sports to feel athletic. After an internship at a sports rehab physical therapy clinic, she found her true calling in helping people bridge the gap between rehab and returning to their sport or everyday activity. Cory holds certifications in NASM CPT, CrossFit Level 1, FMS Level 1, and (coming soon) CFSC.

In 2022, Cory moved to Seattle, drawn by the outdoor opportunities like hiking and exploring the mountains and lakes. When not coaching, you'll find Cory outside enjoying nature, reading, cooking extravagant meals, or screaming to world how much she loves her two cats, Olive and Leto.

Dalton Burr

Dalton's passion for fitness comes from a decade long career as a professional dancer in Chicago where
he performed with such companies as Aerial Dance Chicago, Elements Contemporary Ballet, Chicago
Repertory Ballet, and Drifters Collective circus arts. This culminated in the founding of his own company
DNA Circus Arts in 2018. Dalton relocated to Seattle just over two years ago with his partner Jeff Scott
and dog Kiba. A move that has allowed him to be closer to his family that live in Portland. As of
December 2023, he is recognized as a 500hr certified yoga instructor with an emphasis in both vinyasa,
and yin restorative practices. Also, in 2023 he served as a national trainer in the launching of a strength
based training program with the nation’s largest yoga corporation, incorporating strength based
exercise fundamentals within a traditional yoga practice. In addition, he is completed his Certified Functional Strength Coach (CFSC) certification in Sep 2024!

His understanding of somatic breathing practices has had a direct impact on not only how he personally trains but how he coaches as well. SSP’s core value: “strength training is for everybody” has been a personal life mission of his (in yoga this is called a sankalpa), and a defining factor in his decision to join the team.

When not in the gym Dalton is usually relaxing at home with his partner and dog watching your favorite
reality television show or playing video games online with his friends.

Josh Bottorff

Lex Florence

Libby Kiesow

Libby grew up playing basketball and riding horses, so being active has always been a major part of her life. In her mid-twenties she was getting really tired of making up her own gym routines. She wasn’t getting stronger and she started to dread the whole treadmill thing. But group fitness was appealing and seemed motivating, so after learning about CrossFit through a friend in 2015, she tried it. The community and learning to lift heavy things in a multitude of ways drew her in. She began coaching in 2022, which only fueled her passion for strength training and for making strength training accessible to all. She has experience in gym management, recruiting, training and community building. Outside of the gym, she enjoys hiking, spending time outside, riding motorcycles and drinking lots of coffee.

Libby’s education
-BBA in Marketing
-CrossFit Level 1 + 2
-USA Weightlifting Level 1

Marci Beck

I come from a sports medicine (sports performance & return to play specialist), NCAA D1 and fitness background with ten+ years of experience. My education in the field is a dual master's degree in sports science & rehabilitation (Logan University). As a lifelong athlete and fitness enthusiast I wanted to build a career out of what I was most passionate about - athletics, fitness, and human movement. My first certification was NASM CPT, and I have since received my CSCS certification through NSCA, and TPI L1 certification through Titleist Performance Institute. I have worked in multiple fitness concepts across the U.S. and, after those experiences, decided to open my own facility in Detroit, M.I. An opportunity to move into the collegiate sector arrived and I jumped on the chance to then get to work with the athletes that I had shared experiences with in my collegiate career as a strength & conditioning coach from mid-major institutions (C-USA & Southland) to SEC power 5. Working most closely with football & basketball, I also got the chance to expand my horizons and worked with athletes across the sports spectrum with soccer, softball, baseball, lacrosse, track (sprints & throws), cross country, tennis, volleyball, and even bowling.. Yes... Bowling.

Though the collegiate sector was such an amazing experience where I learned more than I could have imagined, the return on time investment was not sustainable. I left NCAA athletics to return to the private sector where I worked with a large orthopaedic organization in Nashville (TOA) and was able to continue to work with some of the college athletes I had previously worked with. Working with athletes from NCAA to professionals (NFL, WNBA, MLS, NHL), to high school and developmental athletes, general population, neurodivergent individuals, and other healthy healthy individuals and those in the pre-/post-operative care continuum. The team I worked with was comprehensive: sports orthopaedic surgeons, general ortho, physical & occupational therapy and athletic trainers on both the acute care & long-term continued care. Return-to-play was a big piece of my experience with TOA, and I cannot begin to explain how much growth that opportunity meant for me as a practitioner. I am so blessed for the years spent there. I was looking to move back to the PNW as a re-transplant, and the SSP opportunity presented itself and I am grateful because I get to work alongside a passionate group of professionals who not only share a need for helping others, but enjoy growing in leadership as key pieces to a growing and thriving business model here at SSP. I not only get to help others, but I get to do it with a team as eager as I am to develop and grow as a professional! I am originally from Toronto, ONT, but grew up in Vancouver & Victoria, BC, and am stoked to be a part of this growing team!

Michael Pastore

Michael is a life-long athlete and is still playing organized soccer. He was introduced to weightlifting in college by his coaches and quickly realized what a game changer it was to get on the field more. After college, strength training became a routine to maintain a healthy lifestyle and source of a community. After working in tech and coaching part-time at various gyms for 13 years, Michael found SSP and a unique role that combined both professional experiences in project management and working in gyms. Opening SSP Ballard was Michael’s first task in joining the team and set the template for how SSP will join new neighborhoods across Seattle in the coming years.

When not in the gym, Michael is spending time with his wife, daughter, and 2 dogs enjoying the trials and joys of parenthood. He also is a Sounders season ticket holder and tries to attend as many matches as possible. Michael holds a Masters in Business Administration from Seattle University and has previously held various functional fitness certifications.

Natalie Ribble

Coach Natalie wasn't a super athletic kid, but fell in love with fitness in her early 20's after discovering strength training. Strength training helped her embrace her body, do things she never thought were possible, and learn that there was more to fitness than just losing weight. After that, it became her personal mission to bring the powerful experience of getting strong to as many people as possible and make the fitness industry more inclusive and welcoming.

Since 2018 Natalie has had a wide variety of experiences in the fitness industry - most importantly finding SSP in July of 2021. Natalie was initially hired as a Coach and Programming Assistant due to her passion for exercise physiology and the art of writing exercise programs, but has worked her way up due to her dedication to the mission of SSP and ability to inspire and lead others to do the same. Over the years, she's helped grow our Youth Athletics program tremendously, helped open new SSP locations, hire and onboard your favorite coaches, and so much more. Her role as Chief of Staff allows her to use her almost decade of coaching experience to "coach coaches" so to speak, and has found a real passion for leadership and mentorship.

Natalie's education and certifications:
- Bachelors of Science in Biology - Furman University
- Masters of Science in Applied Physiology and Kinesiology - University of Florida
- NSCA: Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS)
- Certified Functional Strength Coach (CFSC)

Ryan Wilson

Sam Holter

After an emergency surgery took her out of the one sport she loved, Sam struggled to find a form of movement that she truly enjoyed. Rehab from this surgery was also limited and left her walking with a limp and chronic pain for nearly a decade, since it would be considered a success if she could simply walk again. Any sport or form of exercise felt impossible.

After moving to Seattle in 2021 she began working with a new health care team to address these concerns and slowly but surely developed strength and mobility, and with it, a new found love for strength training. In a few short months, she realized her limp had significantly decreased, she no longer woke up in pain, and her quality of life had improved dramatically. She wanted to learn how to help others experience what she had, so in 2021 she enrolled in the NASM CPT course. Sam is a Certified Personal Trainer through NASM and a Certified Functional Strength Coach (CFSC).

In her free time, you can find Sam either cooking up something new in the kitchen or in the mountains somewhere.

Taylor Bender

Taylor's journey began in the vibrant city of San Luis Obispo, California. From a young age, she discovered her passion for athletics, immersing herself in soccer and volleyball. Throughout high school, Taylor embraced the challenges of being a three-sport athlete, eventually finding her stride in softball.

Despite facing numerous obstacles in her youth, Taylor remained resilient, working tirelessly through college while juggling a full time role as a restaurant manager and server. Her determination led her to pursue a degree in Exercise Physiology, with a focus on Strength & Conditioning, Sports Performance and Physical Education. Taylor also became a certified personal trainer through NASM. Alongside her academic pursuits, she dedicated herself to coaching volleyball for 3 seasons, fostering a love for both competition and mentorship.

Beyond her professional endeavors, Taylor finds joy in reading, lifting weights, walking her dog Scout, and on the pickleball court, indulging in her competitive spirit.

Zack Losack

Zaira Armendariz

Zaira Armendariz is a transplant from Southern California. She is a passionate advocate for mental health and well-being and earned her master's in Positive Psychology from Arizona State University along with certifications in Resilience Coaching and Personal Training. She is also currently obtaining a certification in Wellness Coaching. Zaira loves empowering others through their journey of healing and finding their mental and physical strength. Through her journey of discovering what a healthy relationship with exercise and fitness could look like, she was inspired to pursue her personal training certificate and help others. She is very excited to have joined an amazing team of compassionate coaches and a fantastic community of members here at SSP.

When she is not coaching or at the gym, she loves spending time in nature, trying new food, and spending time with her loved ones. She hosts a wellness podcast on the side and likes to participate in obstacle course races like Tough Mudder and Spartan!