MEET THE SHOP TRAINERS
Alyson Braden
Co-Owner
Head Coach
CrossFit Level 2 Trainer
Certified Nutrition Coach
Aly grew up in Schertz and now currently resides in Cibolo. She is married with 3 children. Her oldest is 20 and the youngest are 7 year old twins. In 2013, Aly was training for a marathon when she was introduced to CrossFit and was instantly in love. There was no going back to running for her!
Aly enjoys being able to help others reach their health and fitness goals. One of the many things she loves is being able to see women gain empowerment through fitness. There is beauty in strength. She also loves seeing athletes hit new PRs inside and outside the gym. "There is nothing more rewarding than seeing someone's self-worth, confidence, and self-esteem grow," she says.
Before becoming a trainer she was a nurse in a family practice office and then a stay at home mom.
Aly is passionate about Jesus, her family, friends, nutrition, and fitness! One of her favorite verses is, "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." 1 Corinthians 10:31 ESV.
Credentials:
CrossFit Level 2 Trainer Certificate
CrossFit Level 1 Trainer Certificate
CrossFit Gymnastics Level 1 Certificate
CrossFit Weightlifting Level 1 Certificate
Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certified
Spot The Flaw Certificate
Lesson Planning Certificate
Scaling Certificate
Judge Certificate
Daniel Braden Jr.
Co-Owner
Trainer
Daniel is a Christian, husband, and father that grew up and resides in Cibolo. Daniel is Aly's husband! When he's not on the road working as a pipeline welder to support his family, he is in the gym (or working on a project)!
Daniel has always enjoyed working out and enjoys being able to assist others in their daily workouts. Daniel says, "form is more important than how much weight you have on the bar. Once you get the form right, then we can worry about progressing with weights!"
Daniel graduated from Samuel Clemens High School in 2001 and from Texas Lutheran University in 2005 with a BA in Kinesiology.
Like Aly, Daniel is passionate about Jesus, his family, friends, nutrition, and fitness! One of his favorite verses is, "For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love, and self-discipline." -2 Timothy 1:7
Credentials:
B.A. Kinesiology
USAWL1
CrossFit Level 1 Trainer Certificate
Rick McGuffey
Trainer
Rick grew up in the Pacific Northwest and moved to Texas in June, 2019. He is married with 3 boys ages 10, 9, and 6. He is a business professional who also enjoys Spartan Racing, Jiu-Jitsu, and of course… CrossFit! It was at the conclusion of a Spartan race in early 2017 that Rick was introduced to the CrossFit methodology. Shortly after, he was hooked!
There are many aspects about CrossFit that Rick is passionate about. One of these is helping people regain the mobility, strength, and endurance they had when they were young. He himself had been very active all through his teens and twenties competing in and teaching martial arts. However, in his thirties he got busy with other aspects of life neglecting his own health and fitness. At 40, with 3 small children he decided to make a change. He wanted to be fit and able to play with his children as teenagers. CrossFit made such an impact on him through this journey he wants others to experience that same transformation!
Credentials:
CrossFit Level 1 Trainer Certificate
Spot the Flaw Certificate
Scaling Certificate
Jerry "JJ" Nichols
Trainer
Gym Manager
JJ grew up as a military brat who moved from state to state with a few oversees moves throughout his childhood. He spent a majority of his youth in Kailua, HI which is where he claims home. JJ moved to Cibolo TX in November 2019 and works at the Air Force Personnel Center as a civil service employee. He is a Christian, a devoted husband to Cristina, and father to Avrial (17), Addison (9), and Liam (6).
Growing up, JJ played a variety of sports which included track, swim, football and basketball. He is known best for being a motivator and team player. JJ has had the opportunity to coach youth soccer and high school basketball. Throughout his journey of sports and fitness, he has strived to find better ways to improve his health as well as encouraging others to do the same, which led him towards CrossFit. JJ began CrossFit in 2019 and was instantly hooked and has been at it ever since.
“There’s just something amazing about ‘The Community’ coming together to struggle and put forth max effort in order to reach a goal while motivating each other in the process.”
Credentials:
CrossFit Level 1 Trainer Certificate
Lisa Martinez
Trainer
Barbell Coach
Originally from California, Lisa has lived in the San Antonio ara since 2009 when first stationed at Fort Sam Houston as an Army Medic/Orthopedic Technician. Since discharging from the military in 2016 and pursuing her education, she is now a School Psychologist at Randolph Field ISD.
Lisa has always lived an active lifestyle having played soccer since she was five, running cross country, doing Muay Thai and Jiu Jitsu, being an Army Combatives instructor, and even taking ballroom dancing lessons. She shares that she enjoys challenging herself and when she finds something she is passionate about, she commits herself to learning the craft and being the best she can be at it.
Two years ago, after a year of life circumstances holding her back, she decided to commit herself to fitness and discovered The Shop in Cibolo when passing by its original location. Since joining the shopFAM, she has been a consistent CFC member who has transformed herself mentally and physically through CrossFit- always sharing her journey in hopes it can inspire others.
Lisa shared that while she has always been a fit person, strength and strength training has never been something she pursued. She has taken a special interest in strength progression because she feels that is her weakness. As a result, she has become passionate about learning proper lift mechanics and striving to be a stronger more efficient lifter.
She says, “there is something intimidating about lifting when you first start. Whether it’s being a newbie and not feeling comfortable with Olympic lifts or comparing yourself to others. Once you get out of your head and gain confidence, you feel like a badass no matter what weight you have on the bar!”
As a new CrossFit Coach, her hope is that she can support others on their fitness journey- especially with setting and reaching barbell goals!
Credentials:
CrossFit Level 1 Trainer Certificate
USAWL1
Judge's Certificate
Selena Neptune
Trainer
Selena grew up in a small town called Crane,TX. She graduated from Crane High School in 2015 as Salutatorian. She then went to Odessa, TX for college which is where she met her now husband, Kaleb. Soon after, she moved to San Antonio to attend UTSA.
Selena graduated from The University of Texas at San Antonio in December 2019 with a BBA in Accounting, BBA in Finance, and Masters of Accountancy. She earned her Certified Public Accountant (CPA) license in July 2021 and now works in taxes at a public accounting firm.
Selena tried out CrossFit for the first time in June 2015 and immediately knew that it was her “sport” for now on. After growing up playing competitive softball and participating in high school sports, she was searching for something to satisfy her competitive side. CrossFit did that and more. Not only did she become a better athlete, but she learned so much about how to treat and fuel her body with the proper nutrition.
Selena enjoys working out at the gym, competing at Crossfit competitions, reading, hiking, spending times outdoors, trying new places to eat, and spending quality time with her husband.
After 6.5 years of doing CrossFit, Selena received a little push by Aly and Kaleb to pursue coaching outside of the CPA life. She looks forward to the new adventures of being a coach and helping people reach their goals whether it’s to be fit, to be healthy, or just to be happy!
Credentials:
CrossFit Level 1 Trainer Certificate
Kaleb Neptune
Trainer
Kaleb is from Odessa, Texas which is where he was first introduced to CrossFit by his girlfriend, and now wife, Selena.
Kaleb participated in many sports growing up but focused in on track and cross country towards the end of his high school career in an effort to gain a collegiate athletic scholarship. Kaleb ran track and cross country for the University of Texas of the Permian Basin while obtaining a BS in Mechanical Engineering. He then continued his passion for endurance training and competed for the triathlon team at Texas A&M University where he obtained his MS in Nuclear Engineering.
Kaleb has used CrossFit to strengthen his endurance training since being introduced to the sport in 2016. He also likes to compete in CrossFit comps, triathlons, and marathons. He challenges himself everyday to continuously get better.
He enjoys sharing his passion for CrossFit with his wife and the community.
“What I love about CrossFit is that it allows every individual to push themselves to improvement daily regardless of their background, current fitness level, or skill sets. No other sport allows such adaptivity.”
Credentials:
CrossFit Level 1 Trainer Certificate