Karris Johnson lightening bolt

9 Reviews
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About Karris

Dark Horse Elite Athletics is An All-Inclusive Personal Training & Sports Performance Program. Our purpose is to provide high-quality service to our clients using our 7 Pillars. These 7 Pillars include Physical Preparation, Psychological, Nutrition, Holistic Health, Recovery, Mentorship, & Education. DHEA focuses on long-term health rather than a quick fix. These 7 Pillars guarantee that you will see results & we will help you continue to build better lifestyle habits. Working with DHEA is more than just training it's a lifestyle! Be ready to come to work and make changes for the better!

About The Founder- Karris Johnson
Coaching Highlights
Former Equinox Tier 3 + Trainer
2021 NFL Combine Preparation #1 & #2 Draft Picks
Former D1/D2 Athlete & Strength Coach
Worked with high-level executives, NFL, MLB, NHL, Olympic, NBA & high-level amateurs.


Areas of Expertise

  • Core and Balance
  • Nutrition
  • Strength Training
  • Weight Loss
  • Flexibility and Mobility
  • Muscular Definition
  • Muscle Gain
  • Posture
  • Kettlebells
  • TRX
  • Functional Training
  • Sports Performance Training
  • Cardiovascular Conditioning
  • Cross Training
  • Injury Prevention
  • Stress Reduction
  • Wellness
  • Corrective Exercise

NCCA Accredited Certifications

PTA Global Certified Personal Trainer
NASM Certified Personal Trainer

Additional Certifications

EXOS Fitness Specialist, EXOS Performance Trainer , EXOS Performance Specialist, EXOS Advanced Strength and Power, Equinox Tier 3 Trainer, Equinox Certified Personal Trainer, NCSF Sport Nutrition Specialist, CSCS (in progress), 24 Hour Fitness Small Group Exercise Training Certification , Precision Nutrition

Education

Bachelor Of Science

Who I Especially Like Working With

Actors, Beginners, Brides-to-be, Cancer Survivors, Dancers, Disabled, Law Enforcement, LGBTQIA, Men, Middle-aged, Military, Models, Overweight/ Obese, Peri/Post-menopausal, Post-rehab, Pre/post-natal, Rehab, Runners, Seniors, Student-athletes, Women, Youth

Medical Conditions Experience

ACL tear, Addiction, ADHD, Ankle Injury, Anxiety, Arthritis, Artificial Hips, Asperger's Syndrome, Asthma, Autism, Back Pain/Issues, Bad Posture, Bone/Joint Injury, Depression, Diabetes, Disordered Eating Recovery, Golfers Elbow, Hip Pain/Issues, Hypertension, Metabolic Dysfunction, Neck Pain, Obesity, Plantar fasciitis, Pregnancy

Additional Languages Spoken

Spanish

16510 Aston

Irvine, CA 92623

No Gym Membership Needed!

Coach KJ has been my personal trainer for over the last six months. I have achieved positive and drastic results thanks to him. Not only is he a superior coach but he has a heart of gold. If you want the best KJ is your man.

Jordan B.

Coach KJ has helped me a ton not just physically, but mentally as well. The coaches take so much care in helping everyone and make sure you work out with the proper form. Also, they don’t just focus on one thing, they provide a full-body workout to target every muscle group. I have gotten so much faster and stronger because of their drills with weights and explosiveness. They also helped with my focus and that has transferred to my workouts at home and practices on the ice.

Zane T.

Karris is a really good trainer and an even better person! He helped me get stronger and more explosive by pushing me but at the same time not overdoing it! This allowed me to stay healthy and be able to progress quicker. He also helped me get the right supplements I needed to be able to train at a high level consistently. Karris gets the job done and exceeds expectations!

Mike D.

Coach KJ was able to help me a lot throughout my season. I came in with some experience in the weight room but they truly helped me with my form and skills. By the end of the season, I had better mobility, more strength, and better cardio to help me in my hockey career. As a team under Coach Kj’s training, we were able to push to the playoffs and show our skills as a team and as individual players. The environment was great and allowed our whole team to learn more about the right way to get stronger and healthier.

Sam S.

Training has helped me push my limits this summer. My teammates and my coaches in the weight room have helped me realize that I can always give 20% more. Also training with my teammates adds a competitive aspect in the weight room, with everyone training to be the best. Overall, I have learned to train to achieve a goal, and this year as a senior I hope to help everyone train with another national championship in mind.

Thomas S.

Coach Karris has helped me develop exponentially in the weight room over the past year, always pushing me to go heavier. He also guides me and my teammates on the proper form to lift as well as the muscle groups we are working. This progress in weights over the past year has transferred over to hockey where I can now skate and shoot harder.

Lucas M.

Over the past few months being able to train under Karris I’ve noticed significant growth in not only my strength and athleticism, but away from the gym, he has helped me shape a better diet and an overall better athlete!

Luca L.

Working with Karris Johnson was great. He provided me with the proper insight and direction, that would allow me to maximize the most out of each workout session. Because of Karris’ knowledge and prior athletic experience of his own, he was able to align his expertise with my goals and they were able to be achieved. Karris is one of the best trainers you’ll find around.

Myles B.

I’ve played for a lot of different teams that have had different strength training methods and performance coaches but by far the best experience I’ve had was Coach KJ. During the 2020 - 21 season, while I was training with Coach KJ, I saw a very steady and predictable increase in the weights I was able to lift and with this an increase to the velocity of my shot, passes and my overall physicality improved as well. The workouts were great, I never felt too exhausted before games or practices but I would always feel that soreness in my muscles indicating that the workouts were, in fact, working and improving my strength. Overall I could tell that you more than knew what you were doing, I always appreciated that you would push me when I wasn’t going hard enough while managing to never come off as overbearing and you’ve taught me workout routines, habits, and valuable knowledge that I’ve been using since then and going to keep using in the future. I also increased in weight during that season going from 148 lbs to a peak of 157 lbs.

Jake H.

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