Our Team
Our goal is to promote longevity, foster an exceptional community and make exercise fun. We are all committed to ensuring you have the best experience possible, and are constantly learning, researching and improving our knowledge to offer you the best approach to fitness, wellness and nutrition. If you are interested in coaching at Sanitas, learn more here.
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Dwight Upshaw
Head Coach & Programming Director
Dwight is an incredible coach with over 15 years of experience helping people get stronger, move better, and feel their best. He brings a rare combination of strength and endurance expertise, drawing from a lifetime of sports including D1 rowing at UC Berkeley, national champion in triathlon, football, track, and swimming.
He’s also the lead programmer for PRVN, the global training system founded by CrossFit legend Tia-Clair Toomey, and followed by over 600 gyms worldwide. At Sanitas, Dwight adapts that experience specifically for Boulder athletes — creating seasonal progressions designed around your goals, lifestyle, and performance needs.
He lives in Boulder with his wife, their two young boys and his dog Penny. His coaching style is focused, positive, and rooted in helping you make long-term progress.
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Sara-Marie Ellis
Coach
Growing up on the East Coast, Sara-Marie spent 15 years as a competitive gymnast. Her gymnastics journey was cut short by a career ending injury. However, that challenge opened the door to a new love—coaching. Sara-Marie found immense joy in helping others reach their potential, emphasizing the importance of good movement and technique for safety and injury prevention.
In September 2023, her cousins brought her to there “bring a friend” week at there CrossFit gym and within 15 minutes of taking her first CrossFit class, she knew this is exactly where she belonged. In October 2023, Sara-Marie moved to the West Coast seeking new adventures. She immediately signed up for the L1 course before becoming a member at the gym and earned it just two weeks after joining CrossFit Sanitas. Coaching is my passion. I’m dedicated to helping others achieve their goals, pushing them to be their best while ensuring they stay safe and strong
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Zac Chavez
Coach & Strength Program Lead
Zac is the kind of coach who’s done it all — wrestler, national-level MMA fighter, CrossFit athlete, and world-record-holding Olympic lifter. After 8 years competing in MMA and coaching fighters, he found CrossFit as the perfect complement to his training. By 26, he had fully transitioned into CrossFit as both an athlete and coach.
Today, Zac runs the Sanitas Strength program, blending his deep technical knowledge of Olympic lifting and gymnastics with his passion for movement and mindset. In 2023, he completed the rare Masters Weightlifting Grand Slam — winning Nationals, Pan Ams, Worlds, and American Masters — and set an American clean & jerk record in his weight class along the way. But what really sets him apart is his ability to coach athletes of all levels with intensity, humor, and care.
He lives in Longmont with his wife (who he met at a CrossFit competition) and their three daughters.
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Lori Cooper
Coach & Business Manager
Lori Cooper was raised in Buffalo NY and moved to Boulder for graduate school and more importantly, to play in the mountains. She met her husband at CU and they started an endurance lifestyle together. They started with marathons and then competed in their first mountain trail ultra marathon in 2003. After her two beautiful girls were born, the Cooper family moved to the East Coast and then on to Europe. Lori fell in love with CrossFit and coached in the Netherlands for over 3 years.
Lori's believes that the CrossFit methodology can help all achieve their fitness goals…from those looking to keep up with their grandkids to those athletes forging the competitive path. She is passionate about helping others on their fitness journey and believes that we are stronger together.
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Erica Giovinazzo
Coach
Erica Giovinazzo is a registered dietitian and CrossFit coach with 12+ years of experience. Originally from New Hampshire, she spent more than 20 years living in New York and Los Angeles, where she built her virtual private practice, Erica's Edge Nutrition & Training. Craving a return to nature, she relocated to Boulder with her goldendoodle Leo, drawn by her love for the mountains, hiking, camping, skiing, and more recently horseback riding/jumping.
Erica’s athletic background is in martial arts, tennis and as a collegiate fencer. In NYC, she started teaching yoga but discovered her true calling with CrossFit. Finding it transformed her perspective on fitness, showing her the power of strength and that our capabilities are limitless.
Erica holds a Master of Science in Clinical Nutrition from NYU. She specializes in optimizing body composition, athletic performance, and functional nutrition, she combines her expertise with her passion for coaching to empower others. Her mission is simple: to change your life through food and fitness.
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Justin Ferland
Coach
Justin has nearly 10 years of CrossFit experience. Born and raised in Boulder, Colorado, Justin has always had a strong connection to fitness and athletics. He earned a degree in Sociology with a focus on athletics and sports science, which has helped shape his approach to coaching, emphasizing physical performance, injury prevention and longevity. He also studied art history and has three years of experience doing theater stage management.
Beyond CrossFit, Justin has a diverse background in distance running, swimming, Muay Thai, and mountain biking, which has let him bring a broad range of knowledge and experience to his coaching. His goal is to help others grow and improve in a supportive, encouraging environment, guiding athletes of all levels to reach their personal athletic and fitness goals.
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Sydney Rechtzigel
Coach
Sydney hails from Detroit, Michigan and has continued to up her game as an athlete. She works as a full-time nutritionist and is returning to school to become a registered dietician. Sydney enjoys surfing, travel, and watching movies with her kitties.
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Nashley Banister
Nutritionist
Nashley has been an athlete all her life and has a masters in Nutrition Science. Before finding CrossFit, Nashley was a personal trainer and professional dancer performing with Concert Dance Inc. Now she is hooked on CrossFit and wants to help others improve their nutrition and lifestyle habits to reach their goals, whether those goals are better performance, leaning out, adding muscle, or just feeling better.
She takes a holistic view of your overall health focusing on nutrition, exercise, sleep and hydration to help you build the best long-term habits. She has worked with 100+ active clients over the years.
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Dr. Hannah Lally, PT, DPT
Doctor of Physical Therapy
As a former CrossFit coach, kettlebell instructor, and yoga teacher, Dr. Hannah Lally brings a deep movement background to her work as a physical therapist and personal trainer—making her a natural fit for the CrossFit Sanitas community.
Hannah began her career in 2011 teaching yoga in a CrossFit box in New Hampshire. That experience sparked a passion for functional fitness and performance training, which led to nearly a decade of coaching and instructing before earning her Doctorate in Physical Therapy from the University of Colorado.
Today, Hannah blends clinical expertise with a coach’s eye, supporting individuals at every stage of their athletic journey—whether they're dealing with nagging injuries, looking to hit their next PR, or getting started in the gym for the first time. She specializes in working with runners, cyclists, CrossFit athletes, and anyone training for healthspan and longevity. She is also trained in pelvic floor therapy and enjoys helping individuals improve core and pelvic floor function for better performance and quality of life.
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Melissa Roza
Owner & Operator
Melissa has been running CrossFit Sanitas since 2013. She discovered CrossFit while seeking a more well-rounded exercise program than trail running following the birth of her twins. With four kids, Melissa experiences the real-life time challenges mothers face every day. She has found CrossFit to be the most efficient form of exercise to fit into her busy lifestyle.
Melissa is a CU grad, reformed investment banker and silicon valley tech professional. CrossFit Sanitas is her second entrepreneurial venture after running a desination wedding planning company in France and Italy. Currently , she is the Executive Director for the Vertile Foundation focused on helping abandoned and orphaned children in Haiti. Her fitness journey has included running, mountain biking, swimming, triathlons, yoga and dance.
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Eric Roza
Owner & Operator
A lifelong fitness nut, Eric discovered CrossFit in 2008 after a running injury and high-cholesterol diagnosis had him wondering if age had finally caught up with him. Within six months of CrossFit, he was in the best shape of his life, and both problems were a thing of the past!
He also serves on several boards related to health and wellness, and prior to his role at CrossFit, Inc. he was CEO of Datalogix (a data marketing company) which was acquired by Oracle. During his time as CEO, Datalogix/Oracle grew to 2k+ employees and emerged as one of the country’s fastest-growing technology companies in Colorado. It was also named a top 100 company to work for by both Fortune and Outside Magazines.