About Mark Diaz, Head Strength Coach, Certified Personal Fitness Trainer, and President of Physiqology, Inc

Mark Diaz is the Head Strength Coach and owner of Physiqology, Inc. His experience in strength training and physical preparation spans a 26-year period. Like much of the rest of his life, the evolution of Mark's career is an example of persistence.

Athletic Career

Mark began training with weights in the 6^th grade for three reasons: he wanted to be picked on less, he wanted the girls to like him more, and he wanted to be able to compete in sports. He soon fell in love with weight training as an end unto itself, and used it as a springboard for participation in other athletic disciplines.

Mark played football and track and field throughout high school for the Sawyers in Saugerties, NY. He graduated in 1989. After a brief stint of active duty in the Navy, he walked on to the football team at College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA. There, he played strong safety under the tutelage of Defensive Coordinator and Defensive Backs Coach Kevin Coyle and Head Coach Mark Duffner from 1990 to 1991.

From 1991 to 1992, his coaches were Defensive Backs Coach Bill McGovern and Head Coach Peter Vaas. Obligations to the United States Navy, academics, and the painful reality that he was not going to be a professional football player ended his athletic career in 1991. His career as a coach was yet to begin.

New Paltz, New York Personal Trainer

In 1994, Mark graduated with a Bachelor of Arts. He also graduated with an insatiable desire for knowledge of sports performance enhancement. In 1994, he became a certified personal trainer through the American Council of Exercise (ACE), and in 1995, a Medical Exercise Specialist (MES) through the American Academy of Health, Rehab, and Fitness Professionals (AAHRFP).

Mark's first job was as a personal trainer in his adopted hometown of New Paltz, NY. He soon produced top numbers in training at his local club, and was hired as a part-time strength coach for the baseball and swim teams at State University of New York at New Paltz.

New York City Personal Trainer

Mark moved to New York City in 1996. He worked as a personal trainer at both Crunch Fitness and Equinox, and became a top producer and leading authority at both clubs. He formed his first company - Triskelion Strength - in 1997, and worked as an independent personal trainer until approximately 1998, when he met Charles Poliquin. From that time on, Mark decided that he would become a strength coach.

New York City Personal Trainer Becomes a Strength Coach - Informal Education

Mark interned with Charles Poliquin five times in four years from 2000 to 2004. During that time, he received a formative education in top level sports performance enhancement.

Under the auspices of the Poliquin Performance Center, Mark worked with top level athletes in the NFL from the Arizona Cardinals, Green Bay Packers, and San Diego Chargers. From the NHL, Mark met and trained players from the St. Louis Blues. He also coached PGA pros. In the Olympic disciplines, he garnered experience with competitors in bobsleigh, hockey, long jump, luge, pole vault, and sprinting.

In the summer of 2004, recognized as a leading authority in the training methodologies of Charles Poliquin, Mark was hired to collaborate with Integrated Edge to produce Stronger Online. The online application was billed as a virtual program writer and workout performance tracker based on the training methodologies of Charles Poliquin and the Poliquin Performance Center (PPC).

Current Formal Education

For his work at the Poliquin Performance Center, Mark was designated as a Level II, or regional coach, in 2006. As his level of theoretical training knowledge was now much higher than his track record of performance in the world of sport, Mark was only Level II coach allowed to teach the Poliquin International Certification Program curriculum during its early development.

The PICP Level II certification, as well as the Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) from the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) - the only internationally accredited certification in the industry - are the two personal training certifications that he holds today. He is also a certified master Biosignature Modulation^TM practitioner, and has reached beyond the realms of personal training and strength coaching to the areas of physical therapy and clinical nutrition.

During 2006 and 2007, Mark studied with French Doctor of Osteopathy Guy Voyer, and became one of the first people in the United States to earn an official designation in Soma Training. The Soma Training degree is equivalent to a physical therapist designation, though it carries no official license in the United States. Most recently, Mark completed a six month post-doctorate level course in clinical nutritional evaluation and diagnosis - Integrative Assessment Technique - with IAT founder Loren Marks, DC.

Results-Based Coach

In 2006, Mark produced his first world champion in the discipline of Seido karate. Since that time, he has worked with athletes in Canada and in the United States in the disciplines of professional baseball, American- and Australian-rules football; hockey, karting, lacrosse, and track and field. At the present time, he is a national level coach with competitors in four sports disciplines - discus, hockey, karting, and shot put.

Mark is also a permanent member of the Poliquin Strength Institute staff of instructors. He has written columns for New York fitness magazines, www.charlespoliquin.com, and www.realfighting.com. His specialty, in his own words, is physiqology - the science of personal training. When athletes, corporate executives, and weekend warriors want an integrated, scientific approach to fitness, they call Mark Diaz at Physiqology.