Alyssa Parten is a remote and face-to-face strength and conditioning coach from Birmingham, Alabama. Alyssa has a Bachelors in exercise and sport science from The University of Alabama, and has currently earned a double Masters degree in human movement science and strength and conditioning from Concordia University Chicago. Additionally, Alyssa holds numerous certifications, including NSCA certified strength and conditioning specialist (CSCS) and NASM corrective exercise specialist (CES). Following the completion of her masters, Alyssa plans to pursue her doctorate in exercise physiology to eventually pursue teaching at the University level, while remaining dedicated to coaching current and future athletes and educating others through content creation and speaking engagements.

She specializes in strength coaching and corrective exercise, with a majority of her clientele being competitive and recreational powerlifters (young adult to masters) and roller derby athletes. She also has experience working with youth athletes (soccer, tennis, golf, baseball) and post rehabilitation clients. Her passion is in both coaching and educating her athletes. Her philosophy for coaching is not just telling her athletes what to do, but helping them understand why and the reasons behind her coaching strategies and corrections. Moreover, Alyssa strives to cultivate a relationship with her athletes that allows open communication and freedom to ask any questions. Knowledge is power, and Alyssa aims to not only build strong and resilient athletes, but also knowledgeable ones, confident in their own education and understanding.

When she isn’t coaching her athletes, she enjoys writing evidence-based fitness and health related content for a variety of respected outlets, such as NASM and The Sport Digest. Alyssa has published articles on training strategies, exercise physiology, coaching methods, exercise considerations for different health conditions, and more. She is also currently working on multiple journal publications scheduled for submission by the end of the year.

 

Alyssa grew up in the Florida panhandle. From a young age she learned the benefits exercise and being active had on her body. At age seven she was diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis that often had her on crutches, unable to walk. Her parents began to homeschool her following the diagnosis, to give her more time each day to be active, rather than being in a classroom for long hours each day. Alyssa was involved in dancing and gymnastics until she discovered and fell in love with the sport of baton twirling. Baton twirling carried her through high-school. She even, thankfully, went into remission at the age of sixteen, and attributes this spontaneous remission to her activity level (and lots of prayers). Once entering her undergrad years, she felt the arthritis was starting to return, so she picked up resistance training to strengthen her bones and improve joint mobility (among all the other benefits of strength training). She believes this prevented the arthritis from making a come back. From here Alyssa picked up bodybuilding and competed for a couple years before transitioning into powerlifting. Today, she is coaching and competing in raw powerlifting, educating others on the benefits of exercise, and helping other athletes improve their performance and function through strength training.