Performance Talk with Dr. Ewell Gordon

Tom Sheppard is a UK based strength coach with a speciality in Powerlifting. Before his focus shifted to coaching during his own lifting career he became British champion on 5 occasions in 3 different weight classes and held multiple European and World Records as a Junior competitor.

He works with competitors and high level athletes from various disciplines to improve their performance as well as coaching a large UK based powerlifting team which boasts numerous British, European and World champions. The most notable of which being his wife, Naomi, who is an all-time world record holder, multiple world champion and lb for lb the strongest powerlifter in Europe.

As a coach he works with companies such as EliteFTS, Thibarmy and T-Nation to provide informative content on all things related to lifting as well as running seminars and workshops in the US and Europe which cater to athletes and coaches of all varieties.

Tom has also worked with charities such as Mind to help raise awareness of mental health issues specifically related to depression, eating disorders and body dysmorphia which are commonly encountered in the fitness industry

Allen University

Motivated and creative individual with a background in many different fields. Her experience ranges from teaching, Athletic Training, leadership, fitness, education and customer/client service. I enjoy working in a team setting to learn and collaborate. I have had the opportunity to work with a variety of patients/ clients from general population chronic back pain to Israeli Professional Basketball performance training. I am in the pursuit of continuing to work in high performance sport.

A dedicated sports performance professional with expertise in sports performance, sports science integration, and female athlete development. With experience spanning positions within the Professional Referee Organization (PRO), University of Pittsburgh, and US Soccer Federation, I am at the forefront of integrating multidisciplinary approaches to athlete and organization success.

Assistant Athletics Director for Sports Nutrition for Purdue University Athletics. Oversee sports nutrition program and specifically work with football, men's basketball, volleyball, and soccer. Primary duties include: individual and team nutrition education, providing counseling and MNT as needed, evaluating supplements for legality, safety, and efficacy, managing student volunteer work-force to appropriately run Fueling Stations, assessing body composition and identifying athletes at high-risk for bone injury using Lunar iDXA technology, and managing seven-figure budget to provide all teams with adequate and appropriate supplementation.

Co-instruct Rookie/Continuing Sports Nutrition Education through Purdue's Nutrition Science Dpt.

Published my first book, The Healthy Former Athlete, with Skyhorse Publishing in 2017. Thehealthyformerathlete.com

Extensive media background, with highlights being continued work with Big Ten Network Live as a color commentator and sideline reporter for women's soccer and basketball. Proficient in social media (@LinktoNutrition) and have formal influencer contracts with Gatorade Performance Partner and Potatoes USA. Have extended Purdue Sports Nutrition's reach into a large Twitter following, as well as Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.

Prior to starting work as a sports dietitian, I gained a large base of clinical experience as a floating dietitian with St. Vincent Health. This role allowed me to work in a wide array of clinical settings both as the sole RD and as part of a multi-RD team, as well as complete managerial and food service tasks.

Graduated from Purdue University with my BS in Dietetics & Health, Nutrition, and Fitness (Dec 2011) and my MS in Health & Kinesiology (Dec 2019). Completed Coordinated Program in Dietetics at Purdue University.

Member of Purdue Women's Soccer team 2007-2011 with Academic All-Big 10 honors 2008-2011.

Doctor of Chiropractic since 1993, graduating cum laude from Northwestern Health Sciences University

Diplomate of the American Clinical Board of Nutrition

Certified Chiropractic Sports Physician

Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist

Active Release Technique (ART) Certified - Upper Extremity, Lower Extremity, Spine and Masters Certified

Master Strongfirst Certified Instructor, StrongFirst.com

Advanced Strength & Speed Strategies by Dr. Hartle is an educational system dedicated to improving athletes of all ages.

National-level presenter and creator with expertise in developing educational content and training. Distinguished certified S&C specialist and health educator with a Masters in health behavior change. I have designed and delivered online courses for coaches working across various levels – from entry-level coaches and personal trainers to specialists in youth development and high-performance athletes.

Have a respected and proven track record of effectively training coaches (both in-person and virtually) through engaging written, audio, and video content.

This experience, coupled with global seminar leadership across 16 countries and work with diverse populations (young coaches, professional athletes, and even Navy SEALs), demonstrates my ability to connect with a wide range of audiences.

Mindset and Meditation

My final semester of College I was fortunate enough to be an intern Strength and Conditioning Coach at the United States Air Force Academy. Upon completion, as an intern, I pursued my own business. I opened up a personal training studio that I ran for five years. Furthermore, I was interested in corporate management for a large fitness company (24-hour fitness). I became an assistant fitness manager and enjoyed learning more about the corporate world. Here I am today as Strength and Conditioning Coach at Vista Ridge High School. I enjoy the position that I am currently in and look forward to many more years.

A longtime associate of Kill, the relationship between Klein and NM State's head coach stretches back to 1994 when the two were on the same football staff at Saginaw Valley State.

Klein's most recent collegiate stop came at UCONN in Storrs, Conn., where he was the director of football strength & conditioning for a period of time beginning in January of 2017.

From 2010 until the early stages of 2017, Klein's services were called upon by Minnesota of the Big Ten. As the head strength & conditioning coach for the Gophers' football team, the squad made significant strides in strength, agility and endurance which have positively impacted their competitive performances.

For three years prior to joining the Gopher staff, Klein served as the Director of Sports Performance at Northern Illinois, where he oversaw sports performance for all 17 sports.

Klein coached at Southern Illinois from 2001-07. During his time at Southern Illinois, Klein designed the strength and conditioning programs for the five-time Missouri Valley Conference Champion Saluki men's basketball team and the three-time Gateway Conference Champion football team. Klein also helped design a new strength and conditioning center while he was at Southern Illinois.

Prior to taking on the strength and conditioning program, Klein coached the defensive line at SIU in 2000 and 2001. Klein coached the defensive line and implemented the strength and conditioning program at Emporia (Kan.) State from 1999-2000. 

The NCAA Division II level is where Klein started as he signed on with Saginaw Valley State to be the Cardinals' assistant coach for both football and track & field from 1994-99. Along with his coaching duties, Klein designed and created the strength & conditioning program for the University Center, Mich., institution.

Klein's certifications include a Strength and Conditioning Specialist from the National Strength and Conditioning Association, a USA Weightlifting Club Coach from USA Weightlifting and Speed and Explosion from the National Association of Speed and Explosion.

A native of Apple Valley, Minn., Klein earned his bachelor's degree from Carleton College in 1993 before secure his master's degree from Emporia State in 2000. He and his wife, Allison, have two daughters, Taegan and Torin.