STRONG Fitness Magazine
highlights female fitness coaches making a real difference in their communities. Nominated by their clients and peers.
Featured March 5, 2025
Deborah Ampong
Age: 31
Location: Edmonton, Alberta
Deborah is a Personal Trainer & Group Fitness Instructor. As a coach and new mom, she empowers women to take control of their health and wellbeing. She creates a supportive environment where women can sweat, celebrate their strengths, and feel confident. Her mission is to help women achieve their fitness goals and become their best selves.
Jen DiCandia
Age: 44
Location: Sterling, Massachusetts
Jen is a Master Personal Trainer and Nutritionist. She lives and breathes fitness, and is a self-proclaimed gym rat. She believes that health is wealth and that nutrition is the key component to living your best life. She created NV Training and Nutrition with the goal to create the perfect fitness experience for her clients. Personally, she has placed top 5 in many Figure and Bikini competitions, triathlons, half marathons, and obstacle races. She says: ”if there is a competitive edge I am there”. She believes in the saying, “Nothing in life is accomplished without passion”.
Jessica Gunn
Age: 44
Location: Woods Cross, Utah
Jessica is a Certified Personal Trainer and Nutrition Coach. As a coach, she wants the world to know that she’s here to empower women to believe in their worth, transform their mindset, and create lasting habits that honor their bodies. Her mission is to guide them toward strength, confidence, and self-love—helping them feel, move, and look their best from the inside out.
Featured February 24, 2025
Darlene Griffin
Age: 22
Location: Saint John,
New Brunswick
Darlene is a Certified Nutritionist, Personal Trainer, and Nutrition Coach. Health and fitness has been a passion of hers since she was a young girl. After completely transforming her own life through nutrition and movement - she became a coach on a mission to show women that your health truly is your most valuable asset, and the journey to loving the way you look AND feel can be an enjoyable experience.
Erin Flannery
Age: 42
Location: Burlington, Ontario
Erin is a Personal Trainer, Yoga Instructor, Nutrition Coach and Culinary nutrition expert. She is very compassionate but also firm and honest, and likes to work with people that are ready to make the shift in their habits and lifestyle, who have a love for tasty and healthy food and are hungry for education. Because achieving the goals and desires you have are simple, but not easy, the SHED Family and herself are with you every step of the way—the easy and the hard. Are you ready for strength, energy, and ultimately—transformation?
Rita Victor
Age: 33
Location: Chambly, Québec
Rita is a Fitness Trainer and Naturopath. She wants the world to know that your body can reach its full potential and that you can feel your best at any age. Muscle has no age and training for longevity is what we should all strive for.
Featured February 16, 2025
Deirdre Slattery
Age: 52
Location: Ontario
Deidre is a certified personal trainer. She knows what it feels like to lose yourself in life’s chaos. She has been there broken, unsure, but determined to rise. That’s why she helps driven women to rewrite their stories through fitness, mindset, and self-love. It’s never too late to reclaim your power and live a life where you feel strong, confident, and unstoppable.
Hina Laeeque
Age: 44
Location: Edmonton, Alberta
Hina is a Personal Trainer Specialist, Healthy Eating and Weight Loss Coach, and former Certified Health Executive. She coaches South Asian women and champions ethnicity-specific recommendations for movement, nutrition and disease prevention. She tells us that South Asians have a higher risk of diabetes and heart disease than any other ethnic group, and 6 times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes, and 4 times the incidence of cardiovascular disease. She provides evidenced based fitness to her community, and through public speaking.
Shannon Nicole
Age: 32
Location: Oklahoma
Shannon is a Personal Trainer who is the proud owner of Bombshell Barbell. She empowers women to become their strongest selves through health and fitness. As a mother, published model, and someone who’s lost 100 pounds naturally, her goal is to create a Healthier World and especially impact Oklahoma in a positive way.
Featured February 6, 2025
Abby Baker
Age: 23
Location: Elk Point, Alberta
Abby is a recent Kinesiology graduate from the University of Alberta. She started her trainer career at EmpowerFit where she now trains women in group fitness classes, semi-private sessions, and postpartum moms through their return to strength and fitness. She has found her passion within the world of health fitness as she continues to inspire and motivate women of her gym’s community, along with all of those that follow her social media platforms. She wants you to know, fitness starts at any level, and she is here to get you started on your journey!
Amy Del Seyn
Age: 36
Location: Colorado
Amy is a Run Right pro certified coach, ACE personal/functional/sports performance and nutrition trainer. As a running and sports performance coach, she emphasizes the benefits of strength training for your specific sport - in order to prevent injury, improve performance, and increase longevity in sport. She focuses on the whole of the athlete and does her best to work with clients on many facets of their life & their sport.
Leah Sterling
Age: 40
Location: Calgary, Alberta
Leah is a IFBB PRO, PN Level 1, Bachelor of Kinesiology Degree in Exercise and Health Physiology, Bachelor of Commerce Degree in Business , Olympic Lifting Level 1, Police Officer, and UofC Track Athlete. With over 20 years in the fitness industry, she brings experience as an athlete, competitor, shift worker, and mother. She believes in balance, progress over perfection, and the power of mindset. She tailors programs to each person’s goals and abilities, pushing past perceived obstacles with high expectations and unwavering support—110% every step of the way. Fitness is a journey, and she is here to guide, motivate and help unlock your full potential.
Featured January 23, 2025
Jackie Cox
Age: 39
Location: Maui, Hawaii
Jackie has a BS in Kinesiology, and is certified in Pain agree Performance Certified Level 1 and Kettlebell Training. As a passionate coach, she is dedicated to guiding women, especially those navigating perimenopause and menopause, to unlock their full potential. Her mission is to fill the guidance gap & empower women to feel confident and their best. She believes in challenging ourselves to grow, and that women should lift heavy, eat their protein and remember: you can do hard things!
Katie Koutnik
Age: 43
Location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Katie is a Functional Medicine Certified Health Coach, with certifications in Strong Formula and Personal Training. She believes women in their 40s can be the strongest, most confident version of themselves. Her approach blends sustainable strength training and nutrition with real-life strategies that fit into busy lifestyles. Her mission is to help women feel unstoppable, sexy, and capable at every stage of life.
Paige Hardy
Age: 39
Location: Austin, Texas
Paige is a National Fitness Director, with experience in boxing, self defense, kettle bell, strength & conditioning, powerlifting, spartan obstacle course, HIIT, group fitness, and personal training. As a coach, she wants the world to know that she leads with love, fire and strength in her pursuit to help women harness their true capabilities, believing every person is wildly capable of transformation. Her mission is to close the gap between fitness, coaches, and members, building resilient healthy bodies, educated and powerful mindsets, and thriving communities.
Featured January 18, 2025
Adenike Charles
Age: 46
Location: Toronto, Ontario
Adenike is a Kinesiologist and Certified Personal Trainer and owner of JUST2SWEAT Studio. She is a passionate coach dedicated to transforming lives through faith and fitness. With a background in Kinesiology and certifications in personal training, life coaching, and nutrition, she specializes in tailored programs for women over 35, athletes, and adults with disabilities. Her expertise spans injury prevention, corporate wellness, and mentorship, reflecting her commitment to holistic well-being.
Lisa MacDonald
Age: 37
Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Lisa is a Fitness Coach who feels that she is more than just a powerlifter. The thing she cares mostly about is empowering women to be fulfilled and happy using fitness as a vehicle.
Maureen Brintnell
Age: 52
Location: Woodstock, Ontario
Maureen is a Certified Midlife/Menopause Fitness and Nutrition Coach. Through her own perimenopausal weight loss journey, she learned that transformation goes beyond before-and-after photos (although lovely to have!) She believes it’s a journey back to self, healing her relationship with her body, food, and the scale. Now, she helps women in midlife prioritize their own health after years of putting everyone else first, rebuild strength, and change how they approach aging.
Featured December 17, 2024
Andi Wagner
Age: 52
Location: Zionsville, Indiana
Andi is an Exercise Physiologist and Certified Personal Trainer. She thrives on helping women become the best version of themselves, and live a healthy fit lifestyle. She understands that working out does not come natural to everyone and with all the information out there, it can be confusing. She wants to streamline the exercise process and show women they can workout smarter, not harder.
Rose Simmons
Age: 45
Location: Albuquerque, New Mexico
Rose is a Mindset Coach, Success Coach and Life Coach. As a coach, she helps women overcome self-doubt, embrace their power, and radiate confidence inside and out. By combining mindset, fitness, and self-care, she guides them to break limiting beliefs, align with their goals, and create lasting change that celebrates their strength and femininity.
Ramona
Temple-Gonzales
Age: 53
Location: Corrales, New Mexico
Ramona is a Gym owner, CPT, Certified Nutritionist. As a dedicated fitness coach, her passion is to help others step out of their comfort zone and discover the incredible potential within. She believes the strength you gain in the gym reflects in all aspects of your life. Every step taken brings you closer to a healthier and more confident version of yourself!
