About Invictus

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MEET INVICTUS

14 Years of Coaching Excellence

Invictus Fitness was established in 2009 with the GPP health-seeking community in mind. While we have also been honored to coach and develop some of the top CrossFit athletes in the game, our coaches have always remained true to the mission of serving the diverse goals of our GPP-seeking community. 
To do so, we focus on one service - the quality of our coaching. On the floor and off the floor, our team of coaches are true professionals that continue to seek knowledge, incorporate diverse methods, and aren't afraid to question their own methods in search of growth.
We are honored to share the lessons, principles, and methods that our team has honed over the past decade to successfully serve our community and elevate our gym to one of the premier training and coaching environments in the world.

Meet Your Instructors

Kirsten Ahrendt

Director of coach Development
master coach
Kirsten has been coaching, managing, and leading at Invictus for over 6 years. Previously, she was a member of the U.S. 7’s Rugby team, graphic designer, and business owner. She thinks critically and creatively about the coaching profession and aims to inspire and educate other coaches to evolve society’s relationship with health, fitness and performance. She has coached humans on their way to a variety of goals - summiting Kilimanjaro, BUD/S selection, and navigating postpartum and pregnancy fitness. She believes deeply in the huge, untapped potential for community-based health coaches to positively impact people's health and lives.

TJ O'Brien

Invictus MIND-MUSCLE director
master coach
TJ is a Master-level coach at Invictus, with 4 years of experience with this team and director of the Invictus Mind-Muscle mobility series. He strives to foster a positive and energetic training environment for his clients and believes that body follows mind; mental fortitude translates directly to physical well-being. He loves to chat about meditation, food, and wine and can be found cooking, cycling, or at the beach when he’s not in the gym. 

Kim McLaughlin

Manager
master coach, nutrition specialist
After earning her Masters degree in Sports Psychology in 2012, Kim left corporate America and became a full-time Invictus employee. Since then, she has gained experience in various coaching, managing and leadership roles, which allows her to mentor new coaches with a holistic and integrated approach. Kim has pursued a diverse coaching education, most recently focused on nutrition and hormone panels.

Fritz Nugent

olympic lifting coach
master coach, nutrition specialist
Fritz began his coaching career in 2008 as an assistant track and field coach at the University of Illinois. Since then, he has helped thousands of athletes across dozens of sports as they trained towards their best selves. Fritz is a big fan of each one of his athletes, envisions success for them all, and works diligently to help them thrive. His favorite coaching areas are Olympic Weightlifting, sprinting, and mindset. You can find him at Invictus in downtown San Diego. He is married with a baby on the way, and two sweet cats.

C.J. Martin

oWNER, FOUNDER
MASTER COACH
C.J. Martin is a Level 4 CrossFit instructor, USA Weightlifting Coach and former member of the CrossFit HQ training team. He believes that fitness is a medium for learning to cultivate an unconquerable mindset that will lead to not only improved health, but also happiness and success in all aspects of life. C.J. has coached more than 60 individuals and dozens of Masters athletes to the CrossFit Games. He has also coached Team Invictus to the CrossFit Games for 11 consecutive years. He has worked with athletes around the world through online coaching and program design since 2009, but still prefers the day-to-day interaction with athletes of all ages and abilities that walk through the doors of Invictus’ physical facilities.

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