About Me

	Ryan Atkins I have been involved in athletics and training since childhood. Starting out playing traditional sports like baseball and basketball, I eventually pursued swimming and diving in high school. I discovered my passion for martial arts when I was 12 years old. I studied Tae Kwon Do and Karate throughout my teenage years, gaining a black belt in the latter before traveling to Madison for college. During my days there, I would study other arts: Aikido, Kendo and Ninjitsu, but my passion reignited when introduced to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Muay Thai towards the end of my college career. After graduating and finding a new MMA school my home town, I later studied aspects of wrestling and boxing. In 1997, I competed in my first UFC-style
competition and took the division, winning three fights in the same day. My last fight was in 2001 and I maintained a winning record during those years. Knee problems later hindered efforts to reenter the sport. In 2002, a friend suggested that I turn to Olympic Weightlifting to stay in shape. A cursory internet search on the subject led me to CrossFit and he was soon hooked, both to the workouts and to the web community. Through the online community, I learned much about strength and conditioning  from some important early members of the CrossFit message board at the time, managing to read every post (small community back then!) from coaches such as Greg Glassman, Robb Wolf, Mike Burgener, Dan John and many others. I served briefly as a moderator for the CrossFit message board and, after founding CrossFit's 11th affiliate in 2005, coached at a handful of certifications. Also during this time my daughter got involved in competitive gymnastics and I had the great opportunity to coach at the recreational level for two years at the facility where she trained. In 2011, a move of my gym provided me the opportunity to not only serve as the Head Strength and Conditioning Coach of a private high school in the Milwaukee area, but has reignited my drive for some fresh knowledge. I currently count John Welbourne, Louis Simmons, Kelly Starrett, Joe DeFranco, Mike Robertson and Eric Cressey among my current influences and look forward to continually improving my skill set as trainer/performance coach.
My main goal is to use these tools to empower the lives of others, whether it be in their daily lives around the house, on the battlefields of foreign lands, in our city streets upholding the law, or in the pursuit of victory in athletic competition. I've worked with a broad range of clients including UFC/MMA fighters, firefighters/fire science students, soldiers, law-enforcement personnel, high school/collegiate athletes, children and grandparents. Outside of my duties as CrossFit Milwaukee's owner/head trainer and the Head Strength and Conditioning Coach for Dominican High School, I am the proud parent of a son (David, soon will 10 years of age) and a daugther (Julia, about to enter her (gasp) teenage years).