About Us
Sport can be a vehicle to change someone's life in healthy and positive way. We love witnessing an athlete’s transformation of self concept & identity. This is what we live for.
Meet Our Coaches
Jason Lentzke
Toro Performance Coach
Jason discovered triathlon in 2005 when a running injury forced him to embrace cross training. Throughout this athletic journey, he has logged thousands of hours, earned an elite license and made plenty of mistakes along the way. Since 2012, Toro Performance has been Jason's vehicle to help athletes avoid most of the pitfalls that he discovered.
Jason works with triathletes, cyclists, runners and endurance athletes of all skill levels. He has guided beginners to their first Ironman finish line, professional triathletes to the podium, cyclists (criterium, road, MTB & gravel), marathoners, ultra runners and virtually every skill level in between. As a life-long student of endurance sport, Jason shares a passion and commitment to excellence with his stable of athletes.
Jason understands that your time is precious. Your training should be integrated into your life, not dumped on top of it. Given your available time commitment, Jason’s full-time job is to get you as fit as possible.
Jason grew up in Pewaukee, WI and studied at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. As the founder & owner of Toro Performance, he currently lives, trains and coaches full time in Phoenix, AZ with his wife Coralie and their daughter Juliette.
Notable Achievements:
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Over 15 years of coaching experience & a lifelong athlete
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USAT Coaching Certification, 2008
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Specialized Body Geometry Bike Fit Technician
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Multiple Boston Marathon qualifier
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Ironman Hawaii & Ironman 70.3 WC Finisher
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Countless Ironman & Ironman 70.3 podiums
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2016 Duathlon National Championship runner-up
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Competed in Ironman & Ironman 70.3 events all over the world
Whitley Atkins, Ph.D.
Toro Performance Coach
Whitley has competed in endurance sports her entire life but developed a love for triathlon in 2014. She believes that the biggest reward is seeing hard work pay off and getting to celebrate that hard work by challenging yourself daily. Overcoming the adversity in training translates to multiple facets of life and allows her athletes to be the best versions of themselves.
Whitley has multiple degrees in Exercise Science, including just finishing her PhD in Health, Sport, and Exercise Science. Her research focus during her PhD was focused on hydration, electrolyte balance, and heat acclimation. Further, she developed a niche with female athletes by focusing on fluid balance and female specific physiology. Her scientific knowledge provides Toro Athletes with a winning edge in competition.
Jason has coached Whitley since 2016. Through his mentorship and guidance, Jason has not only led her to multiple 70.3 podiums and a World Championship, but collaboratively honed her skills as a coach.
Using both her education and athletic experience, Whitley has coached her athletes to be successful in all distances of the sport-including attaining World Championship qualifications.
Whitley is currently living and training in Dallas, Texas but makes frequent visits to the Sonoran Desert.
Notable Achievements:
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USAT Certified Coach, 2015
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Ph.D. in Thermoregulation Hydration & Renal Physiology
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World Championship 70.3 qualifier
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All World Athlete
Pablo Gomez
Toro Performance Coach
After being sidelined by an injury while playing tennis, Pablo decided to start running to stay in shape, and this quickly led him into the endurance and triathlon world. In 2011, Pablo moved to Austin, TX and began compiling multiple Overall and Age-Group wins and podiums in distances ranging from super-sprint to Half Ironman, as well as multiple finishes in other endurance events ranging from 5k road races to Multi-sport Adventure Races. Pablo has managed to qualify for numerous World Championships in the 70.3 and Olympic distances while finishing more than 26 Half Ironmans in his career thus far.
Pablo attended Texas State University as an Undergraduate and Graduate student, where he graduated with a Masters in Arts in 2018 while making his way to the Elite level of the sport and developing as a coach.
Through his experience as an athlete, and years in the sport working under different coaching styles and in different performance environments, Pablo has solidified a coaching philosophy based on quality work and the pursuit of excellence through discipline and dedication, while keeping a balance throughout the different life stressors. As a coach and athlete, Pablo understands the importance of having a consistent training and racing schedule that prioritizes and takes into consideration each athlete's life demands and challenges.
Pablo currently lives, trains and races professionally out of Bogota, Colombia.
Notable Achievements:
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Countless Ironman 70.3 podiums
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Professional Long Course Triathlete
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1st in the 2017 70.3 All World Athlete ranking
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Multiple World Championship qualifications
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2012 USAT Long Distance Champion
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Competed in Ironman and Ironman 70.3 events all over the world
Dr. Scott Ellis, DPT
Toro Performance Coach
Scott’s journey into endurance sports took a different path than most others do. With his background in basketball, Scott spent most of his athletic career learning to hate running, since it was usually only in the form of line sprints before, during, and after practice. After his basketball career came to a screeching halt, he expanded the scope of his education receiving a bachelor's degree in athletic training and a doctorate of physical therapy both from Northern Arizona University. During his time at school, he spent thousands of hours working with athletes, coaches, and strength and conditioning specialists in a myriad of sports endeavors. Scott helped develop athletes from young children through the professional ranks by teaching injury prevention and treatment, strength and conditioning, nutrition, recovery, and dealing with the emotional and psychological roller coaster associated with a training season.
Scott has completed 13 full distance Ironman races around the world, countless Ironman 70.3 races, and a handful of marathon and ultramarathons.
Being a full-time medical professional, Scott has often found himself trying to find ways to balance a full-time job, full-time training, a happy home, and he has proven that it can be done with a proper schedule and a good support team. Scott is now a physical therapist and athletic trainer in the Chicago-land area and has trained, rehabilitated, and coached numerous Kona and Boston-bound endurance athletes throughout various training seasons.
Scott also works with countless age-group athletes training for short and long-distance racing who are toeing their first start line and have goals outside of a “podium finish” or a “championship qualifier”, frequently out to simply push their own limits to prove they can finish. Outside of training and working, Scott spends time with his Ironman-finisher wife, Lauren, their menagerie of rescue animals, and anyone who will join him for a mountain summit.
Notable Achievements:
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13 Ironman finishes & counting, countless Ironman 70.3 finishes
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Regional Beer Mile Champion
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Competed in Ironman and 70.3 events all over the world
What Athletes are Saying
Heather
Salt Lake City, Utah
Coach Jason was my highest matching coach on the Ironman Coach Match service four months ago. He responded immediately to my request to discuss coaching and his training methods. I hired him that day after feeling 100% confident in the compatibility of the match. In the four months Jason has been coaching me he has exceeded my expectations in every single area of my training. All training metrics of my performance in swim, bike and run are significantly stronger. My body composition has improved by 5% BF and an increase in muscle. I feel supported in my training and even in general life with Jason’s professional and compassionate demeanor. I would recommend Jason for anyone looking to hire a coach to help them reach their peak!
Bridget
Berkeley, CA
Jason has been my coach since January 2014. I could not be happier with his coaching these past 1.5 years! He has done an outstanding job training me for two Ironmans (my second and third ones), helping me attain "personal best" times at both events. He has also successfully trained me twice for the Wildflower Long Course, several Olympic-distance races, a "gran fondo" ride and running races. Throughout the over 1.5 years that I've followed Jason's advice and daily workouts, I have stayed healthy (no real injuries to speak of), gotten stronger and had a lot of fun. I consider these results to be directly attributable to Jason's excellent workouts, communication, advice and guidance. In particular, given that I'm 49 years old and have been side-lined pretty frequently in the past by injury, I am thrilled that Jason's coaching (including frequent/excellent communication with me) has enabled me to do so many challenging races without getting hurt or sick. Jason has also done an excellent job as a coach of honoring my particular goals and respecting my non-triathlon/training schedule.
Di
Rockford, Michigan
I have been working with Jason since January. He was referred to me from a friend who used him 2 Ironman races. He has not disappointed me in anyway and has lived up to his reputation from my fellow athlete. He is quick with communication and support. He reminds me of nutrition and hydration which I never realized how important those were until we started working together. He is flexible with my workouts when I need him to be and allows me to make changes as necessary. He doesn't overwhelm you with your training, but rather works with your existing schedule to make it all fit. I know i can always count on him to be constructive in any area he feels I am lacking or not giving my full potential . I have much more confidence in my September IM by working with Jason than I ever did before. I would recommend him for athletes of all levels and experience :)
