I have been a certified Starting Strength Coach since spring of 2022, and have been coaching the barbell lifts since 2019. I previously coached for the Starting Strength franchise gyms, and was the head coach at SS Boston for a year. I now coach independently, in-person and online. Aside from coaching, I taught middle and high school mathematics for 5 years, and am now beginning a new journey in the US Army (shipping out fall of 2024).
I prefer working with youth athletes, serious novice lifters, service members, veterans, and older men who struggle with pain and injury.
I enjoy fishing, grilling, good cigars, good whiskey, and good conversation.
I do in-person coaching, when available. An introduction to the four main lifts is $150. After that, each in-person session is $70.
* First month: $345. This involves a consulting call, initial form checks and necessary adjustments, all programming, video feedback for every lift, and communication via WhatsApp (all clients are added to my coaching WhatsApp group, which functions as one hub for information, messages, etc.). The first month is a larger investment due to the level of attention and communication necessary to set a client up for success. After the first month, clients can then pick from two options, listed below:
* Tier 1: $295/month. This includes all programming and a video covering the top set for each main lift (either once weekly or broken up according to programming). 30 minute phone calls or zoom sessions are also included - up to 3 per year.
* Tier 2: $245/month. This will include all programming. All of your training videos will be reviewed, and programming adjustments made. The expectation is that I have reviewed all of your videos, and will add necessary notes regarding your programming and technique, if necessary.
- You are free to move between Tier 1 and Tier 2 on a monthly basis.
- I do not offer one-off form checks or programming consultations. If you are interested in shorter term coaching, my recommendation is to sign up for the "first month" option. This will ensure that things are taken care of the right way. A one-time meeting is not sufficient to achieve desired results.
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15 Reviews on “Austin Khamiss, SSC”
I’ve looked like a skeleton all my life. After wasting my time on exercise routines that don’t work, and hurting myself lifting with bad form, I decided it was time to get serious about getting strong. With guidance from Starting Strength Online coach Austin Khammis, I was able to gain 60lbs of body weight, hit PRs that once seemed impossible, and do it all with safety and confidence. If you want to put on serious muscle, get strong as an bull, and learn a lot in the process, I cannot recommend Starting Strength Online coaching, and coach Austin Khamiss enough.
Working with Austin has been an amazing experience. He has helped me achieve my initial goals and then some. Very inspiring character, guided me through the late stage of the NLP and has taught me a bunch about myself in the process. He has made me a fan of the press and I dare say it is one of my favorite lifts.
10/10 Great coach, hard working and dedicated person.
I’ve immensely enjoyed and benefitted getting coached with Austin. I’ve been with him and SS for just 7 months now and I have deadlifted 330 lbs, squatted 285 lbs, benched 192.5 lbs and pressed 135 lbs! Being over 40 now, and growing up on a very low protein, mostly vegetarian Indian diet, I never thought this was possible!
Austin has an eagle eye and focused on every aspect of my technique from day 1 and was able to communicate it in a way that I can feel it down to my bone when I am doing the lifts. Before working with him, I scoured the internet, particularly youtube and watched a ton of videos, and injured myself frequently doing these lifts. With Austin’s guidance, I was so relieved to pull heavier and it was much less of a struggle
Austin has been coaching me for the better part of a year now and I’ve really enjoyed working with him. He has been coaching me in person and online when I need to travel.
As I get older and more injury prone, Austin does a great job of balancing my goals and my health. I’m pretty competitive with myself and have always been one to “run through the pain”, so I really appreciate that he pushes me when I need it, and that he helps me take care of myself when I need to change things up to avoid injury.
I also appreciate that he doesn’t just give instructions, but he helps me to understand the science behind the strength and I learn a little bit more about myself all the time. Austin has helped me identify the cues that work best for me and my journey, and I really appreciate the personal care that’s gone into helping me to get stronger every day.
Austin’s coaching has been very beneficial to me. When I first started working with him, he immediately fixed some major form and programming issues that had gone unnoticed. Even though I could have fixed these issues on my own with enough time and research, it was a worthwhile investment to outsource this to Austin as it saved me months and years of effort. His help has been invaluable to me even after we had solved the initial form and programming issues. In particular, Austin teaches things that are not easy to learn elsewhere, e.g. how to prepare oneself mentally for difficult lifts, as well as optimizations to lifts that make a big impact once the weights get heavy. He truly has a wealth of knowledge and experience, and his ability to break down complex ideas and communicate them is top-notch. I would recommend Austin to anyone wanting to get strong quickly, efficiently, and with minimal risk of injury, regardless of their level of experience in strength training.
Austin is a great coach. What stands out is his ability to come up with programming solutions tailored to your needs. If you get stuck, which is inevitable for any trainee, he has a knack for getting you unstuck quickly and keep your progress going as fast as it can. I’ve experienced this myself firsthand and seen it happen with a dozen of his other trainees. As for my own training, I’m still hitting personal records on lifts regularly after a year at Starting Strength, and I owe it in large part to Austin’s coaching.
Austin is a fantastic coach. In the work he does with me, and what I have seen him do with others, he takes the time and care to understand his clients’ needs; to create a thoughtful, targeted, and safe program for each individual; and to offer helpful critiques that prioritize overall well-being and efficiency. The goals we set together are challenging yet attainable; to be honest, they usually exceed what I think I am capable of. But Austin is the most fierce supporter in the room during work sets; even if I fail a set, I want to try again because Austin makes me believe in myself more. If you told me 9 months ago that I’d be deadlifting 270 and benching 140, I would have guffawed, but with the SS program and Austin’s coaching, I surprise myself each time I’m in the gym.
I lifted a barbell for the first time last year when I was 67 yrs old. I’m barely 5’, 115 lbs and had 2 injured shoulders & severe back pain from 2 falls. I had so little upper body strength that I could not lift a 10lb bar.
I began the Starting Strength program and last year Austin Khamis became my coach. I wasn’t strong enough to Squat & Press by conventional methods so Austin modified my workouts to help me constantly increase my weight & attain PRs that I never dreamed I could do. I’m now Squatting my body weight, Benching 61 lbs & Dead Lifting 155lbs with Austin’s coaching. I tell Austin he’s a magic coach for what he has helped me achieve.
Austin recently asked me what are my goals. I told him I wanted to ride horses & sail when I’m in my 90s. He laughed & said “I meant what are your lifting goals!”
Even though most around me are much younger & lifting 300-500 lbs, I’m proud of what I can lift for my age and just want to be stronger as I get older so that I can continue to do all the things that I love. That is my goal. Friends my age are getting weaker and have to stop doing things they use to be able to do.
Also….Austin coaches my 97 yr old mother who also began SS a year ago when she could only box squat with a 5lb plate. Today at her session with Austin she did triple dead lift @ 80 lbs!!
Because of Austin’s immense knowledge of coaching, patience & intelligence in all aspects of strength training my mother & I are getting STRONGER as we get older! How many people can say that?
Austin is a great coach!
Austin is deeply knowledgeable about strength training and how different muscles and tendons are involved in different movements. He has an intuition for what exactly helps each individual. His guidance has helped me get stronger, recover from injuries, and adjust my form to suit my specific anatomy. He never hesitates to push me to achieve my potential and then a bit more. With his keen eyes watching my reps and his knack for providing well-timed appropriate cues to correct my form, I know that doing that extra rep or lifting a bit of extra weight won’t injure me.
I must also say that Austin is a philosopher-coach in more ways than one! He has knowledge of philosophy, of course. But more than that, his specific approaches to coaching, injury rehab, personalized form correction makes me certain that he has a well-formed philosophy of strength training. In my experience being coached by him, Austin clearly believes that individuals are often stronger and more resilient than they think they are and competent personalized coaching helps them realize this while overcoming all types of resistance to get stronger. I have become a lot stronger than I ever was, and that is proof to me that his training philosophy works very well!
Austin has taken my lifts to another level. Not only have they gone up numbers wise but I’m not beat down the days following. We talk weekly about how I’m feeling and if I have any questions or concerns. He’s one of the best if not the best coach in the starting strength network. The attention to detail is maybe one of the best things about him, he doesn’t leave any stone unturned. In the end if you choose him to be your coach, then you will be better in the end.
I freaking love working with Austin. From our very first session together, I could tell that he knows what he’s doing. He watches my videos with a close, observant, and expert eye and is able to zero in on exactly the right tip or cue to share that changes everything for me.
He also knows how to motivate me. It’s clear he has spent a lot of time thinking deeply about what needs to happen in someone’s mind for them to lift a lot of weight, and he’ll give sharp & effective advice about how to internally orient myself towards my workouts.
Not to mention that he’s just a super nice guy who I enjoy interacting with. Highly recommend!
Solid dude with a lot of knowledge. He’s always willing to let you pick his brain and answer your questions. You can learn a lot by just following him on IG and reading his training re-caps and listening to his short videos.
Austin is a passionate coach who’s deeply invested in his lifters. I came to Austin for help because I was stalled on my lifts, overtrained, and experiencing crushing tendonitis. Austin taught me that I need to put more value in the recovery process. We heavily worked on technique in the barbell lifts and he created a program structure that prioritized recovery.
In the little time that I have spent working with Austin, I have massively improved my technique in the barbell lifts and as a result of better technique, prioritized recovery, and better training; I have PR’d nearly all of my lifts and have never felt more confident approaching a heavily loaded barbell.
Austin is humble in his approach and willing to accept feedback and criticism. He enjoys debate, and will be brutally honest when needed.
I plan on continuing to work with him and have little doubt I will be making invaluable progress in my lifts as a result of it.
I strongly recommend Austin as a strength coach. He helped me with remote coaching to make best use of my time to reach significant strength numbers on the bar, against all odds in my life!
I particularly like his support in working with my busy schedule as well as health issues – I am 38 years old, have 80 hour work weeks as an entrepreneur, with lots of travel time and sometimes lacking gym environments, a baby and wife at home and I had a few set backs due to injuries and illness as well.
Austin tailors the program to my needs and time constraints, always setting me on the path to fastest gains (linear progression as long as possible, more sophisticated programming after that).
I have always had problems with my back and I get the flu every now and them, with his help I can confidently bounce back and keep up intensity while lowering volume just enough to keep making gains and be fully back at it after times of illness or back-pain.
He also has eagle eyes in analyzing my form, he has a good sense of humor and walks the talk himself (for those of you who are still in doubt, he is a freaking beast…).
Thank you, coach Austin!!
I came to Austin as a coach after an unsuccessful NLP which was self guided. I only been working with Austin less than a month and I’m already back at my previous weights and they are all moving smoother and easier than when I was doing it on my own. Austin attention to detail and explanation of form and technique is amazing it took him showing me once and I know which cues to focus on when he reviews my lifts. Great coach, super passionate and full of knowledge 10/10. And referring all my friends to him if looking for a coach!