Services

Scientific and evidence based programming

International coaching experience

Proven results & success

Strong support network and community

Mutual trust, passion, and respect

"I thought I had a good grasp on what I was doing when it came to lifting in the gym both from a body building and strength perspective. Upon teaming up with James to coach me into my powerlifitng meets, I soon realised that there is so much more to training than just lifting weight both for strength and aesthetics. Frequency, volume, intensity and injury prevention to name a few all go into making a constructive, safe and productive training plan. Whether you are looking to improve general everyday performance in your life, comeback from injury or get strong, James will help you reach your any and all of your goals"

"I've been powerlifting with James for 9 months now. I only have great things to say about him and his coaching. I've made phenomenal progress not only physically but also mentally. Lifting has given me a new found confidence in myself and James is an excellent facilitator - I could never have come this far on my own. James' science-backed process is world class and I'm proud to be a member of #teamatlas"

"My first stint of powerlifting was back around 2001 through to 2004 in the equipped only era. My interest dragged me back into the fray early 2018 for my second round of my lifting career where I trained myself. After the 2019 Nationals I felt I needed more technical expertise and made contact with James Schroder at Atlas Powerlifting and have never looked back. It’s great to be coached by someone who is so positive and who imparts all of their knowledge to you as the lifter. James' programming is excellent and targeted for me and my goals both strengths and weaknesses. My progression and journey with James and Atlas thus far has been fantastic, I have only had 6 weeks lead up to this year’s Nationals due to a horrendous injury while travelling to the regionals, but James managed to find alternative exercises that I could do to mitigate pain while still increasing strength in the main lifts. He always displays great belief in me as a lifter, he guides me through my uncertainties and I feel I am extremely lucky and proud to be one of his lifters."

"After a brief attempt at self-coaching, I joined the Atlas team at the start of 2019. Trying to coach myself gave me a much greater appreciation of what is involved in coaching. Even though I’m am experienced lifter who has been powerlifting since 2016, the science of programming was beyond me and so I approached James for help. James had been assisting with a Novice comp in Auckland that I’d attended, and was I was impressed by how attentive he was and his athlete focus. I‘d also seen how well Atlas athletes had performed at Nationals that year. These days, due to a degenerative condition I compete bench only (however my programming encompasses all lifts). I have really appreciated James’ willingness and ability to work with and around my limitations. With his coaching I have gone from strength to strength. While I’ve reduced my training frequency to allow for more recovery, I have made significant gains and remain a very competitive bench athlete. James is a responsive and intelligent coach. This is my first experience of having a distance coach (I’m in Auckland) and it has worked really well. I’ve had real time feedback on my sessions and he has even supported me in competition from overseas. As a masters athlete, I’ve appreciated James ability to think creatively about programming that respects my own knowledge, ability and priorities. James comes highly recommended by me."

"I started powerlifting in 2017 at a novice competition, held at Atlas, I hadn’t heard of the sport before but liked the idea. I’d been at Atlas since the year before but after the novice comp I started getting more specific powerlifting programs from James. When I started at Atlas I was just a new person who’d never been to a gym before. In the first year I progressed a lot and got reasonably strong, however, once I started more specific programming I saw my strength increase a lot. I can now deadlift more than my total from when I started at Atlas."

"James cares tremendously about everyone he works with. And, once you realise how much he cares about helping his athletes become better, you realise just how much he KNOWS in regards to how to help each athlete reach their potential. Within my first year of being coached by James he made me a World Champion, returning from Sweden with a gold medal squat, bronze bench, and gold & an IPF World Record in the deadlift. James' coaching approach has meant that I have officially (and some unofficially) broken IPF/NZPF records 106 times; including 24 Oceania, 7 Commonwealth & 5 World Records. I have worked closely with James regarding my nutrition. He helped me cut down a weight class without losing strength as well as helped me improve my relationship with food. James' enthusiasm and dedication is contagious. His training style not only helped me become stronger, more importantly, his approach helped me build confidence and belief in my ability."