STRENGTH TRAINING WITH
HEIDI JOHNSON OF THE METAL CHAPTER
Sign Up w/ Heidi -
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Heidi Johnson
M.A., PRT, CSCS, RSCC*E, CFT-2, M.ED
Director of Sports Science
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If you spotted Heidi Johnson in a crowd, it would be easy to ignore her. Save for the contagious smile, there isn’t much that separates her from any average female today.
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She is, however, deceiving.
Johnson came to High School being endowed through sports and academics since the age of 5 and influenced by different cultures of sports growing up in multiple states. As a matter of fact, this multi-sport athlete and honor roll student, in no way resembles someone who played football in the streets, shirtless and wearing cut-off jeans with her brothers until she was 9 years old. And her sparkling green eyes certainly didn’t reveal the trials she endured in childhood growing up in East Bakersfield.
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There is however, one look that her coaches and teammates know well. They’ve seen it when she hits the court, the track, or the field. “She is very intense,” coaches have been quoted to say, “her teammates have misunderstood her because she can get so focused.” Having that kind of focus is a quality she had from a young age. Living in a single-parent family with four other siblings – the youngest having cerebral palsy and her mother working until early hours of the morning as a bartender; life was challenging. There was never much money, but always lots of responsibility to have a house managed under these parameters.
Being the oldest girl in the home, Heidi had to make sure all the kids were up early enough to sometimes eat breakfast, and get dressed, and out the door on time for school. After school and practice, she came home, got dinner on the table and had to make sure it was done before mom left for work. At times, that meant get up before the sun to prepare food to be ready for dinner later that evening. The responsibility fell on Heidi to make sure baths were taken, homework was checked, stories were read, and young ones were tucked in bed all before her homework was started every night. There was always a vegetable garden in the back yard, and lots of canning in the summertime so the family had food later on in the year.
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Just being able to compete was something that gave Robertson a breath of fresh air outside of her role at home. She played just about every major sport that High Schooloffered: Volleyball, Basketball, Softball and Track & Field. A 4-way threat and a contributor to the history of girls’ athletics her High School, she loved her coaches and teammates and loved having the opportunity to play sports. In the four years being a North Star, Heidi was awarded almost every school, city and state athletic championship.
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Not much changed since she left high school. After being invited to run on the international circuit for USA Track & Field in 1990 and 1991 under the legendary coach Bob Kersee and Ed Jacoby, she migrated back to California and became a multi-sport athlete at Cal State Fullerton. For 3 years she was All-Conference in both Volleyball and Softball and was awarded Big West Scholar-Athlete of the Year 4 times. After her sophomore year, Heidi was featured in the Orange County Athletic Hall of Fame was and later inducted before her graduation in 1995. Being the second 3-sport Div I athlete since female sports were inaugurated into the NCAA in her final softball season, Heidi was an All-American hitting .844 in the National Championship tournament with 8 stolen bases and 16 RBI’s.
After college, Heidi served as an Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach at the University of Florida in 1997-1998. During her time in Gainsville, the University of Florida won 9 National Championship Titles, 2 second-place finishes, over 53 All- Americans and 28 athletes who retained multi-million dollar contracts from several professional organizations including NFL, NBA, WNBA, and International Volleyball Federation as well as multiple athletes who became Olympians.
Johnson’s short time as a Gator was due in part by being drafted a second time by Women’s Professional Fast Pitch (WPF). Heidi became a prominent player of 2-time National Championships with the Orlando Wahoos. In between playing in the WPF, Heidi went to pursue a multiple degrees in exercise science and education and within 6 months was subsequently hired as Director of Strength and Conditioning for Olympic Sports at the University of Kentucky. After 4 years at Kentucky, Heidi was moved back into competition and became the driver for sled number 3 for Women’s USA Bobsled & Skeleton in the 2006 Olympics. Unfortunately, an abdominal injury during a practice run wouldn’t allow her an opportunity to pilot a sled in Cortina, Italy. So, back to coaching and sharing Jesus and the word of God through Fellowship of Christian athletes. Since 2006, Heidi has had the privilege of being a strength and conditioning coordinator for 1 MLB team, 3 Cy-Young Award winners, 8 World Series Champions, 1 World Series MVP, over 100 NFL athletes, countless college and high school athletes and list continues to this day. It is through a wide range of experience that she continues to serve others through coaching.. Throughout all of her exhaustive responsibilities of coaching and competition, Heidi has remained consistent with her insatiable desire to investigate the boundaries of exercise science and postural health.