Years ago I was lucky enough to watch and assist now legendary athletic trainer Matt James. Working with Matt on a number of camps and with lots of athletes taught me volumes about developing the athlete into a truly flexible, explosive, and top-tier competitor. The days of the weight room and adding mass ended when Matt, Tommy Shaw, and others, working with Nike, developed new drills and training techniques. The thought of taking my kids and their friends to a gym where there were more rubber bands than weights was foreign. Matt was on the ground level of that revolution in sports training and helped build and create SPARQ and the NFTC Camps which later blended to become The Opening. A former QB at PSU, James opened and ran the Velocity Sports indoor training facility in Hillsboro . He was running that while working with Nike. He led many camps and clinics and developed many drills and products with Nike. He did such a great job that they eventually hired him full time. He is now running Nike Grass Roots football and leads the Elite 11 QB group and can be seen every season on National TV as he leads the Nike Opening Camps and finals.
Since that careful and innovative groundwork was laid many trainers have entered the space. Many are doing excellent work. One of those is John “JB” Barnes who is a newer face in the Pacific NW in terms of big names in the training field, but in a short time he has made himself known as a premier guy. Barnes played college football in Arkansas and went on to play in the CFL. Since completing his career he has dedicated himself to becoming one of the best trainers in the game.
Barnes runs ProBallerFtiness and in the past year leased the “house that James built”. Now settled into the old Velocity training facility inside ATI Physical Therapy “JB”, as he is known, is busy training boys, girls, men, and women. In watching him the past 3 seasons I can vouch for his personal character, his focus on the kids, and his commitment to innovating and using the best equipment available today.
I want to give JB the highest recommendation I can as a trainer and coach. Equally high marks I give him as a person.
We visited his gym the other night and talked for about 2 hours while the team at KosenMedia mapped out his entire Gym in a 3D tour. The tour they have posted now shows you how the facility is designed and laid out. It also includes links to his training videos which can be accessed by taping on the equipment throughout the facility. This is one impressive place and the tour is equally awesome. Few places have 50 yards of indoor field turf, a 40 yard plus indoor track, and this much state of the art equipment. You have a look below and at this link at Pro Baller. It is that outstanding.
Now let me speak to you Parents and athletes. Regardless of your sport you want to be the best right? To be the best you have to develop the skills to compete at the very highest level in your position. That can be coached and learned by positional coaches and there are so many great coaches who can teach you the sport you compete in.
But when you look at your body, your speed, quickness, agility, flexibility, muscles, leaping ability, vertical and lateral movement, and all of those elements things are a little bit less clear. Everyone claims to be a great trainer but this is where things get tough. Credentials are easy to come by and finding the best trainer, one that will give you the edge and make you the best, is difficult. It is the case almost all of the time that the best athletes are the best recruits.
When I first researched this topic my kids were coming up and we sought out the word of some top coaches. They sent us to Matt James. He took care of our guys and showed us the best techniques and training equipment and they became the best athletes they were capable of becoming. Every single athlete that came into his space and listened and worked found their peak and many of them are now Olympians, Major leaguers, and NFL players. Many more went on to lead their high school and college programs. All became better.
JB Barnes is now among those top trainers we count among the best of the best and we recommend you reach out to him for a work out. We are, for the record, not affiliated nor paid by JB. We are revealing his program here in the Portland area because so many athletes are needing a place like this and a trainer like this. I believe we are seeing the rise of a star in the athletic training world and his comittment to his business shows in the equipment and the lease he has taken on to have an indoor facilty like this one.
Kosen has done a lot of real estate and business shoot for us and our clients so we highly recommend them as well.
