Like all of our coaches, Ivan also had a personal transformation that led him to coaching others.

Young Ivan Terra – who would have believed it without the photo?

Prior to CrossFit, Ivan was living an unhealthy lifestyle as a musician in Brazil.  His fitness was somewhat maintained by going to the “globo gym” but he found himself bored with that type of conditioning. He started looking for weightlifting gyms to do something different which slowly evolved into much more; enjoying a healthier way of living.

He was interested in CrossFit for a while, but there wasn’t a CrossFit gym in São José dos Campos. When a CrossFit affiliate finally opened nearby, he immediately joined.  The workouts were fun and he competed in many local competitions, but he found himself still wanting more!  He expanded his CrossFit knowledge by completing his Level 1 Certification,  as well as certifications in gymnastics and weightlifting.  As a member of the gym, he found himself staying after classes just to help other members and to share his learning.  That was when he realized that he had a passion not just for the sport, but for helping others achieve their goals.  

He made the decision to pursue a career in Coaching and earned his degree in Exercise Science at Unopar Universidade and began coaching classes at his local CrossFit gym.  He also had an opportunity to apprentice with his previous weightlifting coach. This allowed him to dive deep into the techniques and training to improve his skills to teach Olympic weightlifting. 

When he would visit Atlanta for the holidays, he would drop into Southern Strength and Conditioning to train.  He got to know the coaches and athletes, and when he moved to the United States in December 2017, we quickly offered him a coaching position.    

Ivan has a passion for weightlifting, and it’s his favorite class to coach.  He also coaches daily classes and provides individualized personal training.  He enjoys programming workouts and mixing weightlifting and gymnastics with cardiovascular movements.  Ivan says:

The thing I love most about coaching is seeing people progress to a life of fitness and teaching others how to be the best versions of themselves every single day.