Bio:
Entreprenuer, developer and sports & fitness trainer, collegiate strength and conditioning coach.
Sarah is also a USAT Triathlon Certified Coach, ACSM, MES, ACE-CPFT, NASM-CPT, AAHFP-CPT, COOPER CLINIC-CPT,NFPT-CPT is a multisport strength and conditioning expert, triathlon coach, business entrepreneur, and the co-founder and President of Ironsmith, The Fitness Doctors, Inc., in Austin, Texas. And most recently, Sarah is a commercial property developer and founder of The Wimberley Athletic Club and The Texas Fitness Ranch in Wimberley, Texas.
Ironsmith was the first sports training, conditioning, and movement skills corporation of its kind established in Texas. Additionaly, The Wimberley Athletic Club is the first and only full service health club in Wimberley, Texas.
Sarah has been recognized as one of "America's Best Professional Fitness Trainers" by Vogue magazine.
Sarah brings more than 23 years experience as a sports conditioning and fitness teaching professional -- as well as her background as a successful multisport athlete, scholarshiped collegiate track athlete, all natural championship bodybuilder and triathlete -- to her roles of Professional Strength and Conditioning Coach, triathlon coach, educator and public speaker.
Sarah has earned a national reputation for creating Ironsmith's PlayStrong Institute advanced sports training programs. The PlayStrong Institute provides specialized basketball, soccer, running, swimming and cycling, strength and conditioning training to individuals and teams to improve strength, power, endurance, speed, agility, quickness, core and joint stability, balance, visual acuity, offensive and defensive footwork. As a result of the implementation of this program nationwide at colleges and universities, Sarah served as a visiting professor at Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas from 1997 - 2000 where she taught the PlayStrong curriculum.
Over the past 18 years, Sarah has received national and statewide recognition for the development of the trademarked PlayStrong Basketball Skills and Conditioning program.
In that capacity, Sarah has worked with over 650 male and female athletes to develop basketball, soccer, running, swimming, and cycling, strength and conditioning programs. This equates to over 18,500 cumulative hours of work with athletes at all levels of experience and ability.
Clients have been athletes, coaches and teams from junior high to the professional level, including coaches and teams from: The University of Texas,St. Edward's University, Harvard, Yale, Boston College, Dartmouth, University of Minnesota, Texas A&M, Bentley, Stonehill, Trinity, Southwestern, Bethel College, and the ABL Colorado Explosion.
Her client list also includes professional athletes, olympians entertainers, actors and musicians.
In addition, Sarah has authored numerous articles on functional sports conditioning and was a contributor to The Little Abs Workout Book by Erika Dillman. Sarah has been featured in many national magazines & publications: Energy, Oxygen, Cooking Light, InStyle, SHAPE, Self, Walking Magazine and The Denver Post, ABC NEWS.COM.to name a few. Sarah holds multiple certifications as a sports movement skills, medical exercise, and sports and fitness strength and conditioning expert.
Community involvement:
Volunteer Strength and Conditioning Coach for St. Edward's University Women's Basketball Team
Austin Chamber of Commerce Member
Wimberley Chamber of Commerce Member
Cypress Creek Church Member
Volunteer Strength and Conditioning Coach for St. Edward's Women's Basketball Team
Person most admired:
My mother.
She is a retired elementary school teacher. I realize that I admire her most for her steadfastness in maintaining a career and raising three children as a single mother in the late 1960's. This was a time when single mothers with careers had no mentors or role models.
Favorite book:
The Little Prince by Antoine De Saint - Exupery
because it was written for the child from which the grown-up grew.
It is a great blueprint for understanding life on this planet.
What I enjoy most about my work:
Partnering with people to obtain their goals.
Every client is unique and every day is unique. The most enjoyable facet of strength and conditioning work is that it is truly an art based upon a science. The stategies to success require creative solutions that continue to intrigue me.
Greatest accomplishment:
Staying in business for 18 years through many different economic downturns. For example staying in business through the real estate bust in the early 1980's and the World Trade Center disaster in 2001. I feel that knowing when to reinvent or reposition our business has been both a great blessing and accomplishment.
Greatest challenge:
Obtaining our first SBA loan. We were told no by two banks before we got a yes. We were told no because at that time, there was no history or precedent for a personal training or fitness service business in Austin, Texas. It had never been done before. I learned every "no" leads one closer to a "yes."
Advances I envision in my field over the next 10 years:
We will see traditional methods of strength, conditioning and rehabilitation evolve rapidly in the next decade to include equipment that is designed to immulate the body's natural movement patterns. This is due in part to the improvement in technologies that allow us to produce the equipment neccessary to maximize strength and minimize joint wear and tear. We will see the development and production of equipment that operates in mutiple planes of movement versus one or two.
Strategies to maintain balance in my life:
I try to live outside of clock time. What I mean by this is I never tell myself it is too early or too late to accomplish something. Or that I am too young or too old.
I do not watch the news or listen to commercial radio. Media with commercials is one of the greatest time robbers of all.
Advice for emerging entrepreneurs:
Find mentors early on! Ask for help from people who are sucessful doing what you want to learn to do. Offer to "shadow" professionals who are in your chosen field. Ask to intern or volunteer your time & presence with potential mentors or employers. Thank them for their time! This is often forgotten. Additionally, when you approach a potential mentor or employer, do your research - know something about them and their business before meeting them. [i.e. review their website, brocures, etc.] Ask questions and literaly take notes. Show your mentors appreciation and respect. You will stand out above all other potential mentors or job candidates. If you make yourself available whether compensated monetarily or not, opportunity will always find you!
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