Name and Credentials Licensed Massage Therapist, CrossFit Level 2 Coach, NSCA-CSCS
Training Swedish, Deep Tissue, Treatment, Cupping, Instrument Assisted, Hot Stone
Practice Philosophy Go hard, then go home
Why I do what I do As a competitive athlete myself, I struggled to find a massage therapist that understood what athletes put their bodies through while training. When I go in for a massage, I don't care about the color of the walls, the sound of the trickling waterfall, aromas of lavender/eucalyptus/citrus etc, or Enya (or flutes and wind chimes). I'm just there for one reason: to get my beat up body worked on, whether it takes elbows, knees, someone standing on it, or a baseball bat. This seemed to be a common conversation among follow athletes and even my friends. There's definitely a time and place for lavender scents and Enya, and that's what the other hundreds of InSpa, Elements, Yuan Spa are for. And there's a reason why I didn't name my business Tracy's Serenity Massage. The name pretty much sums up my massage: it is simple with no frills, with the sense that you're there to get work done.
A little bit about me: hobbies, family, interests I grew up in Bellevue, WA. My parents are both from Tokyo, Japan and moved to Seattle, where they met, in the 70s. My dad was into sports, so I grew up being active and playing sports throughout my childhood and through high school. Sports I played growing up include soccer, tennis, basketball, and wrestling. I also lifted weights to stay in shape or get stronger throughout the school year and during summer break when I was in high school. After high school, I decided to go to Washington State University to study Athletic Training, which I eventually switched to Exercise Science and earned a Bachelor of Science. College is also where I started judo and competed for about 10 years, eventually making it to the 2008 Olympic Trials is Las Vegas, NV. I continued to compete in judo after the Trials, but many of my friends stopped competing and they started to participate in a growing sport called "CrossFit". I've always loved lifting weights and getting stronger, but often felt I was the only female using barbells incorporating powerlifting movements for strength such as squats, deadlifts, even some power cleans, and bodyweight movements like pull ups or push ups (in my 15 years of going to a traditional "globo gym", I've maybe seen a female do unassisted pull ups maybe...3 times?). But the pictures my friends would post on facebook showed these CrossFit gym members, BOTH men and women, getting under a barbell, AND working on gymnastic movements like pull ups, push ups, and handstands. It didn't show men using a barbell, and women in the corner with 3 lb pink neoprene covered dumbells like I'm used to seeing at the gyms I've been to or worked at. This "CrossFit" looked like everything I ever wanted from a gym, but also seemed very fun and community oriented too! Long story short, I joined a local CrossFit gym, eventually leaving my personal training job of 9 years, and became a CrossFit instructor too. 7 years later, with 4 CrossFit Regional appearances and 1 CrossFit Games appearance, I'm training hard as ever and learning something new everyday.
If I'm not at the gym or massaging, you can catch me hiking, biking (to the ice cream shop), or eating. In the winter I love to snowboard because living in the PNW, you have to find a love of winter sports or you will be miserable. I tend to stay out of off-trail runs unless I'm with someone who knows every tree branch and snowflake layout along the way. Sometimes I'll enjoy a few runs through the park especially if the snow starts to pack out. I also picked up swimming since training for the 2017 CrossFit Games, and regularly lap swim every Thursday or Sunday at the local pool. During the summer, I enjoy some open water swims where the water isn't scary and gross.