Hi, my name is Ross Harrison and I am an in-home personal trainer in Austin, TX. I have been a certified personal trainer (NSCA) since 1996 and I’m a certified strength and conditioning specialist (CSCS), nutritional consultant, and have completed numerous additional courses and certifications over the years. I also have a degree in psychology from Grinnell College.

My interest in health and fitness started at the age of 7 when I developed major hip problems and wasn't expected to be able to walk again. Throughout my life, I learned how important functional and intentional exercise is for maintaining and improving function and overall health. I know that my life would have been very different and I would be severely limited in what I can do at this point in my life without continually applying what I learned about health and fitness.

Now after 20+ years in the fitness industry, I use my extensive knowledge, experience, and skills in many areas of health and fitness to help others learn more about their bodies and achieve things they previously wouldn't have thought were possible. My ultimate goal is to help each of my clients live a happier, healthier, and more fulfilling life.

My favorite client story

fter 20+ years of personal training I have too many success stories to pick a favorite, but I do have a favorite type of story: seeing my clients achieve more than they thought possible.

Whether it's decreases in pain that clients previously believed were "normal parts of aging" or returning to activities they had to avoid for various reasons, helping my clients experience a more fulfilling life always inspires me.

It's also very memorable when clients learn new things about their bodies and gain a greater understanding of how it's supposed to function. Numerous clients have told me it's like learning a new language, one that makes them more successful and engaged in all areas of life.

My favorite exercise

While not my favorite exercise to perform, if I had to pick one, my favorite exercise would probably be the split squat. It does so many great things for your body, at least when performed correctly. It simultaneously improves muscle strength/endurance, stabilization, flexibility, and promotes good posture. It's also an incredible exercise for pointing out asymmetries and imbalances in the body.

While it might first appear to be a simple exercise, it certainly isn't. Unfortunately, I typically see people performing this exercise in a way that increases knee wear and tear instead of strengthening the stabilizer muscles around the knees, so they never really get all the wonderful benefits this exercise offers. I have found that improving split squat performance has a lot of carry over to improving performance in everyday life and many sports and other activities as well.

My favorite quote

"Life is a process of becoming, a combination of states we have to go through. Where people fail is that they wish to elect a state and remain in it. This is a kind of death." Anais Nin

My training philosophy

I follow a health first approach to fitness and while I certainly help people have better looking bodies, I don't sacrifice long-term health or physical function for short-term weight loss.

Optimal training is not just about training muscles or learning new movements, but rather understanding how your body creates movement. A primary goal of mine is to identify and retrain unhealthy neurological recruitment patterns. In other words, training to improve how your body functions even when you aren't exercising or consciously thinking about your body.

I believe this is one of the most overlooked and untrained aspects in fitness programs and it's perhaps the most important for maintaining optimal health and function throughout life.

My training experience

Over the course of my career I have been a personal trainer working with clients in their homes or various other locations, as well as a trainer at a large gym. Then in 2005 I created Precision Health & Fitness and have been working for myself as an independent trainer ever since.

I have worked with a wide variety of people over the years including competitive athletes, people with chronic health problems, weekend warriors, senior citizens, and children with neurological disorders. These days, most of my clients are everyday people who simply want to make the most of their lives. Perhaps the most obvious things my clients have in common is they are intelligent and enjoy learning about how their body functions. It's probably not a coincidence that many of my clients are teachers or work in a health related field.