Kari Schneider, MSc is one of Canada’s top strength coaches. New to London Ontario she is quickly establishing her company as London’s best resource for high performance strength and conditioning. She founded Empower Conditioning in 2005 in Winnipeg Manitoba and in 2010 relocated the business to London and partnered with her husband Paul Duerden.
Kari’s education is part of what sets her apart. She began her degree at University of Northern Colorado and double majored in Fitness and Exercise and Athletic Training. She transferred back home to Canada and finished her Bachelor’s degree at the University of Manitoba. She is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association, a Certified Exercise Physiologist through the Canadian Society of Exercise Physiology, a First Responder and a Technical Level II Olympic Lifting Coach. Kari also became a certified Athletic Therapist through the Canadian Athletic Therapy Association in 2001. She completed her Master’s of Science degree in Kinesiology in 2008.
Her work experience is second to none. Kari was the Manager of Strength and Conditioning for the Canadian Sport Centre Manitoba from 2001-2006 and trained multiple National and Olympic level athletes from Swimmers to Rhythmic Gymnasts. Kari was the head Strength Coach for the Men’s and Women’s National Volleyball Teams (for 8 years), The Manitoba National Triathlon Centre (for 9 years) and other National and Pro-level athletes (including National Training Centre Soccer, pro football athletes, Paralympic Tennis, National Arial Ski, and many more). She was the Manitoba Provincial Director for the National Strength and Conditioning Association for 5 years and recently returned from living and working in Izmir, Turkey. Kari consulted there as an exercise physiologist for her husband’s professional volleyball team- Arkas Volleyball. Currently, she works with Team Canada Rowing, Team Canada Hockey and Team Canada Rugby along with many other athletes and clients.
Kari loves spending time with her family (husband, 2 daughters and 3 stepsons) and dog. She enjoys coaching her daughter’s soccer or track, running, Olympic-lifting, hiking, climbing, weight training, snowboarding, skate skiing and motivating and educating people through presentations and seminars. She believes in continual learning and improvement and runs her company accordingly!