Coaches

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Jamie McGrath

Meet Jamie, the inspiring owner of Southpaw Training Center and Live Free Organic in Charlotte, North Carolina. With an impressive boxing career, Jamie has won The New York Daily News Golden Gloves three times, six National Titles, the Blue and Gold Tournament, Empire State Games, and many more. She was also part of the first-ever US Women's National Team, where she took gold in Finland, stopping all three opponents in the first round! 

After a 17-year hiatus, Jamie made a comeback to the ring on July 30th, 2022, stopping her opponent in the second round. She continued her journey of fighting on November 5th with a first-round knockout and won the South Carolina State Belt on March 11th. 

Jamie is not only a fierce fighter but also a devoted mother to her three children, Samantha, Sean, and Chase. Her passion for boxing and commitment to a healthy lifestyle is evident in her businesses, where she helps others achieve their fitness goals.

Coach Jay-

Born in the Bronx, New York.

Raised in Yonkers, New York.

As a youth, Coach Jay competed in boxing competitions held in Juvenile Detention Centers where he served all his teenage years as property of New York State.

He stands on the popular statement that boxing saves more lives than it takes.

Coach Jay lives with a “Have Less, Do More” mentality.

He also states that in life you will never meet a tough time that is tougher than you.

Coach Jay Has resided in North Carolina for the last 3 years.

2 of those years were simply battling to stay alive due to a diagnosis of stage 3 cancer.

Coach Jay states with conviction that the discipline, structure, and mindset that boxing gives you is how he was able to make choices to flip a 4-month prognosis into lifelong progress. The Glory goes to His Higher Power at the end of the day but as humans, we are given choices to push through or tap out.

As a Coach, he has mentored and worked with pro fighter and former welterweight champion Tony “2Sharp” Lee.

Coach Jay has a teenage daughter and a whole bunch of non-related children in communities that look to him for guidance as a male figure in life.

It takes a village to raise a child and a village to make a champion.

Be great!

Zadih Kadima

I’m Chris “The Viking” Tkaczyk and I believe it’s never too late to become what you might have been. Health and wellness have been a lifelong passion and I love seeing others around me conquer their fears and achieve their goals. I have over a decade of experience as a personal trainer, Trigger point, and deep tissue specialist, and have ten years of experience working in physical therapy in a hospital environment. I have 5 years of experience teaching Rock steady boxing to people with Parkinson’s. I’m also a professional boxer, fight promoter, and ring announcer, and look forward to seeing you at SOUTHPAW TRAINING CENTER!  

Mike Brooks

Ex-semi-professional soccer player who represented England at University level

Moved from England to the USA as a middle school Maths teacher

Enjoys coaching others and helping with their boxing and soccer development.

Goal is to stay fit and healthy through soccer and boxing for as long as possible!

Crystal Winfield

Crystal started at Southpaw Training Center over 4 years ago, as one of Coach Jamie's original clients. From coming one day each week to doing her first boxing boot camp, Crystal quickly fell in love with the sport and has been working out ever since. She lost 150 pounds, gained a new confidence, and became a Southpaw boxing coach almost 2 years ago. Her favorite thing about boxing is finding her own strength and helping other clients find theirs!

Crystal is also a pediatric registered nurse at a large local children's hospital.  

Hey! I am Lexi Arnold, a licensed self defense and boxing and kickboxing instructor in the Charlotte area. I have been training mixed martial arts (kickboxing, boxing, Jiu jitsu, wrestling, cage tactics) for over ten years. I have a Master's in Forensic Psychology from GCU, so knowing how offenders think and keeping possible victims safe are some areas I have always wanted to help in. I also am a signed author of Christian journals I wrote and lead Bible studies along with being involved in therapy services with kids with autism and disabilities. I have an extreme passion for coaching martial arts to others because of all the craziness going on in the world today with so many cases of sex trafficking, sexual assaults, bullying, and abuse for both male and females. Martial arts helped me to have a healthy outlet and a safe space, and I know it can be that for you!

Sara Hill

Sara Hill has a Bachelor of Science in Exercise Science from East Carolina University where she received an education rich in biomechanics, exercise prescription, exercise testing, and program development. She grew up as a competitive dancer in the Charlotte area which was her foundation for pursuing a career in the fitness industry.

She is a Balanced Body certified Pilates instructior and has also been certified as an AFAA Certified Personal Trainer and Group Exercise Instructor. Over the years, she has also picked up TRX, Yoga, Zumba, and quite a few other certifications. Sara has worked in the Charlotte area fitness and wellness community for almost 20 years. She brings knowledge from all of these experiences and training as well as her passion for helping her clients to Southpaw Training Center for the last 4 years!

Fun fact about Sara: She loves to travel!! She has visited 15 different countries and can't wait to add more to the list!!

Courtney's goal is to provide yoga to those that would otherwise not practice yoga. 

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Courtney (she/her/hers) has a background in dance and started her yoga practice in a  modern dance class warm-up without even realizing she was practicing yoga. She enjoyed the benefits of yoga and continued her practice at local DC studios until moving to Charlotte, NC. 

She continued her practice and in 2017, began to pursue her 200 Yoga Teacher Training Certification. She completed her 200 RYT in the Tantra Lineage, continued her training by completing a 300 hr Teacher training focused on social justice in 2021, certified in Mindfulness Meditation and is an Accessible Yoga Ambassador.

Noelle wants to help individuals in their mental, emotional, and physical health journeys through the holistic practice of yoga. 

She was trained in the Tantra Lineage and is the first Southpaw Yoga Teacher Training program graduate. She has been practicing vinyasa yoga since 2010 and began focusing more on pranayama and meditation after experiencing postpartum anxiety in 2018. In 2021, deep stretch yoga proved extremely helpful in addressing physical trauma to her spine.

The practice of yoga has improved Noelle’s life so much that she wants to share it with others so they can improve theirs.