Christopher Bathke, MA, CSCS, PN,IKFF-CKT
Background and Education
Education and Experience 
Chris is a fitness coach specializing in body composition and movement quality. He holds a Masters of Arts degree and is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist with the National Strength and Conditioning Association. In addition he is pre and post-natal certified, and holds coaching certifications from Precision Nutrition, the International Kettlebell and Fitness Federation, and World Kettlebell Club.
A firm believer in the value of continuing education and experience Chris’s approach to is to integrate research with practical knowledge gained from years of working with athletes and the general public. As a former Master Instructor for Equinox Fitness Chris developed and implemented trainer education programs, and continues to be involved in teaching workshops for trainers and the general public. On the learning side he continues to learn from the best minds in the fitness and physical therapy worlds including Dr. Stuart McGill, Gray Cook, Bill Hartman, Alwyn Cosgrove, Lenny Parracino, Robert Dos Remedios, and many others.
Elemental Fitness Lab is a culmination of learning how the best fitness coaches produce consistent results for their clients, and merging that with his background in various arts and sports. He has studied studied martial arts in Japan and the U.S. for more than15 years, competes in cyclocross and kettlebell sport, and enjoys surfing, snowboarding, bouldering, cross country skiing, and golf.
Chris also enjoys writing, and has written articles for Men’s Health Magazine, Men’s Health UK, TMuscle.com, Oregon Healthy Life, and JPfitness.com.
Blaine Brignell, NPTI, IKFF-CKT
Blaine Brignell began pursing a knowledge of health, strength, mobility and overall wellness in 2007 and in the process lost a good deal of weight. This experience proved to be a paradigm shift, and he pursued movement with an insatiable curiosity. Through trial and error he realized that movement was something to be learned and practiced – not a matter of inherent ability. Playing ultimate frisbee, swimming vigorously and following a self-imposed running discipline led Blaine to complete a marathon in Nashville, TN later that year.
While attending college, he moved to Portland and soon after attended the National Personal Training Institute to improve the quality of his practice. Simultaneously Blaine began training Kyokushin karate, a pursuit which provided essential tools for training and understanding movement. The combined physical and mental alacrity provided by martial arts segued well in to studying kettlebells with the IKFF. These pursuits all require a practice of strength and endurance which draws greatly from one’s ability to maintain precise control of the body. These endeavors, in addition to the functional and academic knowledge gained through NPTI, and a desire to learn have provided Blaine a palate of physical, experiential and academic knowledge which he utilizes to teach strength, mobility and kinesthetic awareness: fundamental components of general physical readiness and lifelong health.
