Who we are

Founded in 2021, Project Fortius is a collective of seasoned coaches with over 50 years of combined coaching experience. We are dedicated to improving lives through strength, conditioning, and nutrition education. We specialize in delivering premium coaching services in person and remotely, taking the whole person into account. We meet people where they’re at and progress them toward specific goals, outcomes, or desired behavior.

We help people unlock their potential.

@MikkelNg

Mike Ng

@mikkelng

Mike has a talent for random factoid tangents in classes. He’s a self-professed gym rat who is most at home among the fluorescent lights and rubber mats with a barbell in his hands.

Mike started lifting weights at an incredibly young age. At the age of 18, he immersed himself in the sport of Olympic Weightlifting which began his competitive and coaching career.

After completing a degree in Business Administration at the University of Washington, Mike spent a number of years helping run a small construction company. He soon realized that a desk job was not in his future. At that point, he started his full-time coaching career under Senior International Weightlifting Coach John Thrush, training Weightlifters and other athletes. Eventually, he found himself working for the first CrossFit affiliate in the world, teaching CrossFit classes and learning the finer points of working with “everyday” athletes. 

Mike has over 20 years of coaching experience and has worked with thousands of people from all backgrounds. His trainees have ranged from a 2012 Olympian track athlete to a 70+ year old coming back from open-heart surgery. Mike is passionate about helping driven people unlock their full potential and become the most badass version of themselves.

When he’s not coaching, Mike enjoys lifting weights, stumbling around pretending to do Muay Thai Kickboxing, skateboarding, and watching cat videos.

Co-Owner & Coach

Mike has a talent for random factoid tangents in classes. He’s a self-professed gym rat who is most at home among the fluorescent lights and rubber mats with a barbell in his hands.

Mike started lifting weights at an incredibly young age. At the age of 18, he immersed himself in the sport of Olympic Weightlifting which began his competitive and coaching career.

After completing a degree in Business Administration at the University of Washington, Mike spent a number of years helping run a small construction company. He soon realized that a desk job was not in his future. At that point, he started his full-time coaching career under Senior International Weightlifting Coach John Thrush, training Weightlifters and other athletes. Eventually, he found himself working for the first CrossFit affiliate in the world, teaching CrossFit classes and learning the finer points of working with “everyday” athletes.

Mike has over 20 years of coaching experience and has worked with thousands of people from all backgrounds. His trainees have ranged from a 2012 Olympian track athlete to a 70+ year old coming back from open-heart surgery. Mike is passionate about helping driven people unlock their full potential and become the most badass version of themselves.

When he’s not coaching, Mike enjoys lifting weights, stumbling around pretending to do Muay Thai Kickboxing, skateboarding, and watching cat videos.

@aulrickson

Leigh Ann Wolfe

@wolfeonthehill

Leigh Ann describes herself as an endurance athlete with a “strength problem”. She grew up playing team sports and transitioned to individual mountain sports as an adult.

She specializes in working with various types of mountain athletes who want to improve their performance and longevity in their sport(s). From skiing and alpine climbing to hiking and trail running, she focuses on an individual’s needs in relation to their sport. Leigh Ann values the role that strength plays maintaining a high quality of life, in longevity, health, and in sports performance.

Leigh Ann has been coaching a wide variety of people from all different backgrounds for over 13 years and understands that each person has individual needs and isn’t one-size-fits-all. From post-surgery and return-to-sport folks to a competitive athletes, including a nationally ranked Youth Climbing Team, and those struggling with sleep, nutrition, and well-being.

As a National Board Certified Health & Wellness Coach (NBC-HWC), she uses a holistic approach to help people meet their goals. She’s a strong believer in working with a team of professionals and works closely with physical therapists, MDs, dietitians and mental health professionals. In addition to coaching individuals and small groups, Leigh Ann develops strategic wellness programs, lectures, webinars, and short-courses for organizations.

Additionally, Leigh Ann has a strong commitment to community. When she’s not at the gym, she’s a full-time Seattle Firefighter and avid volunteer with Seattle Mountain Rescue (SMR) and The Mountaineers. She teaches avalanche curriculum as an AIARE Professional Avalanche Instructor (PRO 1) and develops snow training and curriculum for SMR.

Leigh Ann spends her free time in the mountains all year-round mostly peak bagging, alpine climbing, and backcountry skiing. If she’s not in the mountains, she’s usually planning her next adventure.

Co-Owner & Coach
@aulrickson

Andy Ulrickson

Back in his twenties (a long time ago) Andy got the hair-brained notion that he was going to learn how to surf and snowboard. Most sensible people would have gone out and taken a lesson, or four, from someone who knew what they were doing. Andy decided he would figure it out on his own. So, he went and bought some gear and ventured out - first to the mountains, and later that year, into the oceans. To say there were some glorious falls would be an understatement. What he did learn though was that each fall was an opportunity to learn, an opportunity to try something just a little bit different the next time around. With that, and being a touch on the stubborn side, he got his skills up to where he was riding in the backcountry and having fun when the waves were overhead.

This, and his 10 years spent working in middle and high school science classrooms, has largely shaped his coaching style. He's not an "I'll just tell you what to do" type of coach. His clients get the captain's chair. He's more of the navigator. He'll ask "where do you want to go?" and then help his people chart their own course on how to get there. And when the inevitable stumbles and falls come he's there to help them figure out something just a little different.

Andy has worked with clients all across the fitness and performance spectrum. He has helped his people return to action following knee replacement and back surgeries, while others have gone on to complete events like the KXT IronMana (a very cool event that involves multiple ocean sports) and lots of great stuff in between.

Co-Owner & Coach

Nicholas Liwanag

Bio Coming Soon!

Coach

Mike has a talent for random factoid tangents in classes. He’s a self-professed gym rat who is most at home among the fluorescent lights and rubber mats with a barbell in his hands.

Mike started lifting weights at an incredibly young age. At the age of 18, he immersed himself in the sport of Olympic Weightlifting which began his competitive and coaching career.

After completing a degree in Business Administration at the University of Washington, Mike spent a number of years helping run a small construction company. He soon realized that a desk job was not in his future. At that point, he started his full-time coaching career under Senior International Weightlifting Coach John Thrush, training Weightlifters and other athletes. Eventually, he found himself working for the first CrossFit affiliate in the world, teaching CrossFit classes and learning the finer points of working with “everyday” athletes.

Mike has over 20 years of coaching experience and has worked with thousands of people from all backgrounds. His trainees have ranged from a 2012 Olympian track athlete to a 70+ year old coming back from open-heart surgery. Mike is passionate about helping driven people unlock their full potential and become the most badass version of themselves.

When he’s not coaching, Mike enjoys lifting weights, stumbling around pretending to do Muay Thai Kickboxing, skateboarding, and watching cat videos.

@aulrickson

Sydney Ward

Bio Coming Soon!

Coach

Who we aren’t

Project Fortius is all about the long-haul and not about cutting corners. We don’t focus on making you sweat or “busy” work that isn’t productive. We pride ourselves on smart progressions, not on providing distractions. With Project Fortius, you will learn how to tune in, not tune out.