Founder & Head Trainer

Jason Leydon is the founder of CrossFit Milford in Milford CT, which has been to the games 5 times and has had athletes at the games 11 years in a row. Team CrossFit Milford finished 2nd in the world in 2015 and Jason has produced 10 podium finishers.

After opening his gym and establishing himself as a head coach during the inception of the sport in 2008, he has since shifted his focus to teaching his own seminars for both Athletes (Athlete development) and Coaches (proper coaching theories and techniques). His athletes include International record holders in powerlifting, National Team members for USA weightlifting, All American wrestlers, the elite in the CrossFit universe (30+ games athletes and over 7 podium finishers), State champions and All American high school basketball players.

His professional focus is on personalized strength, conditioning and movement quality which ensures the foundation is properly built on an individual level so each athlete can reach genetic and athletic potential. He is an established, knowledgeable and respected teacher, coach and resource in the global fitness community.

Ryan has practiced and coached the Sport of Fitness since 2008, from the time when he opened a CrossFit gym in San Diego, to transitioning to Individual Design coaching both in person and remotely. As an athlete, he has competed in both CrossFit and the Endurance world, completing multiple Olympic Distance Triathlons, Ultra Marathons, and local-level CrossFit competitions. He has more recently taken up BJJ as well as hunting (which is much more easily accessible where he lives now in the Pacific Northwest), which are his new passions, in addition to functional training.

In late 2017, Ryan decided to leave his service in the Coast Guard to pursue coaching and growing UPRISE Fitness full-time. Since then, Ryan has had the honor of working with numerous tactical athletes, CrossFit Games, Sanctional, and Semifinal athletes, as well as everyday athletes who just want to be better so they can keep crushing life. To this day, Ryan’s number one goal is to help people live a life where their fitness never holds them back, and they can continue to do badass things.

As a coach, Ryan’s focuses are his athletes and to always continue learning, especially in the realms of strength & conditioning, mindset, and nutrition, he’s always working on one or more certification programs. He's also Director of Education for Conquer Athlete, building out all our educational courses, and heading up the mentorship programs, where he can share his passion for learning and developing with other coaches. Using his knowledge and learnings from some of the best mentors in the business, he helps his athletes and mentees develop both mentally and physically so they can reach their highest potential.

Fitness has been a part of Tommy’s life since he was 13 years old. He was lucky enough to have older cousins who wanted to help an overweight teenager fit into normal clothes. Unfortunately, around the age of 15, he lost one of those cousins; the gym became about much more to him than just about looks. At that time - and to this day - the gym is a place for him to escape, to forget about the world, and enjoy the present moment. Throughout the years, Tommy realized that many people could benefit from fitness - not just for their looks, but their mental health as well. This is one of the many reasons that Tommy lives to coach; making people happy is one of the greatest gifts in the world.

He found Crossfit at the age of 19. After training the sport for a year, he was offered a part time coaching position that quickly turned into a career. Over the past 6 years, Tommy has been a head coach and general manager of multiple Crossfit gyms. During this time, he has coached thousands of hours in both group and individualized settings, from top level athletes, to single moms, to teenagers stepping into the gym for the first time.

From the day he started Crossfit, Tommy quickly became obsessed with the methodology and how to program more effectively. Over the years, he has picked up quite a few certifications that include: CrossFit Level 1, CF Level 2, Active Life, CF Gymnastics, Precision Nutrition, and a one-on-one mentorship with Jason Leydon. On top of that, he is also on the Crossfit Affiliate Programming Team, creating programming and class plans for close to 1,000 affiliates across the world.

His mission in life is to leave a mark in the fitness industry. He wants to be known for making people better, not only their physical health, but their mental health as well.

Jerod has always been active in sports, starting at the age of 5 playing soccer to competing collegiately in track & field. Shortly after graduating, he was introduced to CrossFit in 2009, and has been hooked ever since. At that time, he helped open an affiliate in central Pennsylvania before moving to Virginia.

Since then, he’s coached for the past 14 years, shifting to a full time position in 2017. Along the way, he earned his CrossFit Level 3 (CCFT) and became a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist through the NSCA – among other certifications.

In that time, he’s worked with hundreds of athletes, both in the group setting and remotely. Whether it’s programming for the affiliate or the individual, he takes the same systematic approach to improving their fitness and helping them reach their potential.

In addition to CrossFit, Jerod also trains Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and currently holds the rank of purple belt.

Lesha found their love for sport in deep south Louisiana, training as an all-state cross-country runner and national powerlifter. Once they relocated to the east coast, Lesha was a national level rugby player with the Philadelphia Rugby Football Club for 7 years and shortly after retiring from rugby, Lesha discovered CrossFit as their new community. Now, recently relocated to Mexico City, Lesha believes more than ever that Crossfit is a global language.

From 2011 to 2023, Lesha co-owned and operated one of Philadelphia’s most successful CrossFit affiliates. This experience provided them with opportunities to grow as a coach and help build a diverse community through fitness. During these years, Lesha obtained various certifications, including CrossFit Level 1 & 2, Pose Running Certificate, OPEX, USAW Level 1 & 2, and the Foundations of Trauma-Informed Weightlifting. They have coached nationally competitive junior, senior, and masters weightlifters as well as Semi-finalists in CrossFit.

Lesha believes that everyone deserves to reach their fitness goals, whether they are competition-oriented or health-focused. They take pride in delivering effective custom programming with empathy & care. Lesha has over 15 years of experience working with clients ranging from home gym enthusiasts to competitive athletes. One of their coaching tenants is that everyone can and should consider themselves athletes, and every athlete is deserving of a direct road map to their goals.  Lesha continues to compete as a masters athlete at events like Masters Fitness Collective, Legends Championship, TFX, and Hyrox.

Lesha believes that fitness is a journey and is dedicated to collaborating with individuals to grow into their full potential, both physically and mentally. They believe that each athlete is chasing their version of greatness, and while reaching their potential is hard work, it can also be done while having fun.

Stacey grew up taking part in a variety of sports and competitive activities from a young age.

Whether it was skiing at 6 years old, running, playing softball, basketball, soccer, racing in moto-cross, or competing in CrossFit, Stacey always loves to see what is possible.

Throughout college Stacey continued to elevate her competitive career playing Division 2 softball at Slippery Rock University. Upon graduation in 2016, she fell in love with CrossFit and soon began to compete in the sport. Stacey’s continued her education graduating from California University of Pennsylvania in 2021 earning her Doctorate in Health Science and Exercise Leadership (DHSc). She also is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS), through the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA).

Paring both her competitive experience and knowledge, Stacey stives to provide effective coaching. She has coached competitive and non-competitive athletes for over 8 years in both the private and collegiate settings. Stacey’s clients have ranged from competitive CrossFit athletes, Hyrox Athletes, collegiate sport athletes, and non-competitive athletes seeking to maximize health.

Christina is Conquer's Athlete Manager and all things behind the scenes at Conquer.

She’s been in the fitness industry for over 15 years, from coaching gymnastics and pole vault before finding her way to CrossFit. She and her husband (Coach) Ryan owned an affiliate in Southern California before transitioning to exclusively online coaching and helping other fitness companies run their online fitness businesses - which is how she found her way to Conquer.

As for her personal accolades, she was an All-American Collegiate Pole Vaulter before she found CrossFit, where she competed as a top 10 Regionals athlete in both the North West and SoCal, and also competed at the CrossFit Games with her Team CrossFit Intensify in 2012.

She continues to be passionate about fitness, health, nutrition, and wellness, and champions Individual Design as the ideal training options for athletes.