Our TRIBE
Being a CrossFit coach is the greatest job in the world. Day in, day out, we’re charged with the responsibility of changing lives. Every day our members entrust us with their fitness, health, and future, we never take this trust lightly and we always remember that being a coach is a position of responsibility and service, not of privilege and power. Every coach at CrossFit Fareham adheres to the CrossFit Coaches Creed principles, as all our members should expect.
MATT BEARD
Head CrossFit Coach
Matt’s passion for fitness has been a lifelong one. Having always enjoyed physical endeavour and pursued most sports at school, college and throughout University, he started his career on the gym floor at the age of 18. By his own admission, using a gym had historically always been something he did for aesthetic reasons rather than performance related goals. It was only once he was introduced to the concept of CrossFit® in 2009 did he realise that by training to be fitter and stronger, he could ultimately achieve both.
Having trained and become certified in Olympic lifting, Power lifting, Gymnastics, Strongman and Kettlebells, he now truly understands the concept of effective training, and utilises this knowledge when coaching classes and individuals, to maximise potential and results.
As the resident CrossFit® guru and advocate, he is inspired and challenged daily by his peers to strive for success in both his own athleticism and coaching skills.
Qualifications
- BSc Sports & Exercise Science
- CrossFit® Level 2
- CrossFit® Level 1 Gymnastics
- CrossFit® Kids Instructor
- British Weightlifting Level 1 Coach
- KBT Level 2
- CrossFit® Judges Course
REBECCA BEARD
Business Manager
Rebecca joined the team in 2016, ahead of the big move to CrossFit Fareham 2.0. With a 10 year career in senior Business and Operational Management roles, Rebecca brings a wealth of experience in Business growth strategy, leadership, HR, marketing, Health and Safety and customer care.
Fitness has always been a prominent part of Rebecca’s life; she was a competitive synchronised swimmer for most of her teenage years, loved sports at school and has always been an active gym goer. Having trained up to 37 weeks pregnant, CrossFit helped her prepare her body for the birth of her two children and helped her get back into shape post birth.
Rebecca supports Matt by handling many of the strategic, HR and social functions of the business, working part-time around her own HR consultancy and training company.
Qualifications
- LLb Law (Bachelor with hons) 2.1
- LLM Leadership and Management L5
- CIPD L3
- IOSH Managing Safely
SAM HARLOW
Coach
With a cheeky disposition, an abundance of energy and a clear love of life, Sam is CrossFit Fareham’s newest CrossFit Coach. Having worked in commercial gyms since the age of 15, and as a CrossFit athlete himself for the last 9 years, Sam is no stranger to fitness.
From school age onwards, where PE was his only favourite subject, he has trained in various sports including rugby, trampolining, long distance running and BMXing. In 2010 he became intrigued in testing what the human form is truly capable of, and dedicated his energy and passion to Bodybuilding. This commitment led to a 3% body fat test and earned him an invite to the British Championships.
In 2012 he was chosen to represent his county as a young ambassador for the London Olympics, leading to a trip to South Africa to promote the Olympic values and to inspire and teach young people the importance of being physically active.
After a stint travelling the world and then recently settling down to start a family, Sam believes that CrossFit is the future of the fitness industry, and where he ultimately wants to be. As a qualified Level 1 coach he thrives on the sense of community, on developing himself as an athlete and coach, and supporting others to achieve their own fitness goals in a fun and effective way.
Qualifications
- L1 CrossFit Coach
- L3 Personal Trainer
MISCHA PRYCE
Coach
Realising her lifelong passion for all aspects of fitness, Mischa started her personal training career, and building her own athletic profile in the fitness industry, in 2016. She has trained in weightlifting, boxing, swimming, hiking & cycling, and competed in several local Crossfit and British Weightlifting competitions over recent years. As a fitness coach, being able to positively influence clients to understand that health and fitness goes beyond aesthetics alone makes each day a great one.
In her words ‘I try to inspire my clients to be more than the number on the scale, to focus on what they can do and want to achieve, to set themselves free from the social media body conscious rat race and really start to enjoy their health and fitness journey’
She credits joining CrossFit Fareham as a member back in 2017 as invaluable to her development as an athlete and as a coach. Realising she is still relatively early on in her career she joins the box super keen, driven and full of energy; excited to continue her professional development in a sport and career she has so much passion for.
Qualifications:
- Level 2 Diploma in Fitness Instructing
- Level 3 Diploma in Personal Training
ALEX BURTON
Endurance Coach
Alex is CrossFit Fareham’s specialist rowing coach. Since finishing a 30 year career in law enforcement, and motivated by a lifelong involvement in a range of sports both as a participant and coach, he qualified as a personal trainer and has spent the last few years coaching and mentoring other athletes.
A dedicated indoor rower himself, Alex has completed numerous specialist rowing workshops, is a member of an online rowing team and recently placed in the top 3 in two recent worldwide indoor rowing competitions.
Since Alex joined CrossFit Fareham’s coaching team in 2016, his mission has been to help all our athletes to improve their technique and efficiency on this essential piece of Crossfit equipment. He delivers monthly gym challenges, provides ongoing tips and support to members through our social media page and runs quarterly in-house rowing workshops.
Qualifications:
- Level 3 Personal trainer
- Level 2 triathlon coach
SAM LUNN
Coach
As an original member, Sam stepped into the box a skinny and unconfident tennis-playing physics geek who collapsed the first time he attempted a handstand. 6 years on, he is now CrossFit® level 2 qualified and one of CrossFit Fareham’s elite athletes. On the opposite end of the spectrum to most, Sam has been successfully attempting to gain weight since he started doing CrossFit®, and therefore understands exactly how hard it is to put on muscle and bulk up. As an integral part of the coaching team, he coaches classes and individual members with a passion to help them achieve their own personal goals. He loves CrossFit®, he loves training, he loves competing and he loves learning how to make people move better.
Qualifications
- CrossFit® level 2
- CrossFit® Gymnastics level 1
- BWL level 1
- BSc (hons) Physics
- Level 1 LTA tennis coach
- CrossFit Competitors Award