Hey everyone. My name is Joey Mandarino, and I’m the owner of the Weightlifter’s Guild. I think one of the first things people want to know before they receive coaching from someone is why they should trust that person to train them in the first place. A good coach has the potential to change your life. So, I think it’s only fair that I tell you my story so that you, at the very least, trust me to be a COMPETENT coach.

I have a Bachelor’s Degree in Physical Education from Illinois State University, and I also hold a CSCS (Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist) and USA Weightlifting L-1 certification. I have been coaching in some form for the last 10 years, even before high school ended I would coach some of the freshmen on our Gymnastics team and teach them different skills if the actual coaches were busy, we did have 50-60 people on the team every year after all.

Once I graduated, I became a CrossFit coach 6 months later, and would coach at our summer camps for gymnastics. 4 years later, I coached my high school’s freshman team officially, and helped lead them to a State record finish! Helping them get stronger, watching them grow up, being someone they were comfortable talking to about meaningful parts of life; to have any sort of positive impact on those boys, that is my proudest achievement to date.