Amy Nerlinger

My whole life I’ve identified as an athlete; it’s in my blood. Growing up, I played basketball, soccer, and swam.

Up until high school, the primary influence on my athletic development was my father, who coached most of my teams. A Division 1 college football player and a high school state champion in wrestling and football, he knows a thing or two about sports, and about life, not only teaching me about competition and tactics, but also determination, resiliency, and hard work.

From my perspective, it’s hard to find these lessons outside of sports, so after focusing so strongly on my athletic career in high school and playing club soccer at Boston College, I didn’t know what to do when that was no longer a part of my life. I was searching for something that provided a similar stimulus to my experience in that athletic environment.

Fast forward about 6 years, after dabbling with exercise programs, I found CrossFit. I fell in love with the competition, the variety, the pain, and, most of all, the community. CrossFit has been my safe space, my outlet for stress, my social group, my teacher, and a place where I’ve gained strength, not only physically but also mentally and emotionally.

As a coach, my goal is to create this same environment for our members. I want to coach members like my father coached me – not only technique, skills, and strategy, but also how to be mentally and emotionally strong.

This spirit, mind, and body connection instilled in me from a young age came to life while obtaining my master’s degree in Counseling Psychology, with a concentration in Athletic Counseling, from Springfield College in western Massachusetts.

At SC, I gained experience working with both teams and individual athletes on the mental components of performance enhancement and overall well-being. When working with clients, my goal is to help them better understand their internal world in order to navigate their external world in a more holistic and healthy way. By preparing individuals with the skills and strategies necessary to meet the demanding needs of their environment, they will achieve greater overall well-being and greater success at work, at home, at school, in their sport, or in the gym.

Some topics I’ve focused on with clients include, but are not limited to: mental toughness, emotional intelligence, mindfulness, stress management, anxiety regulation, resiliency, adaptability, confidence building, self-control, time management, motivation, goal setting, grief management, eating disorder awareness, psychological return to sport after injury, career and academic advising, relationship management, communication, role definition, and conflict resolution.

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