LEARN ABOUT smart strength

MEET Tom Sovocool.

Tom Sovocool (MS, CSCS, USAW)

Tom Sovocool is a husband, father, athlete, and the founder of Smart Strength. He has over 15 years experience as a personal trainer, has been a strength and conditioning coach to high school, collegiate, and professional athletes, and has coached Olympic Weightlifting at the local and national stage.

“Nothing brings more satisfaction than seeing someone plan for, pursue, and achieve their goals - no matter how big or small.” -T.S.

Tom saw a need to provide exercise programs for others that are individualized, functional and effective which led to his establishment of Smart Strength.

Originally from Pennsylvania, Tom’s own passion for fitness was developed through sports, to include college where he played Varsity Basketball. Tom has done sprint triathlons and competed at the local and national level in Olympic Weightlifting.

MEET JIN AHN.

JIN AHN (bs, NASM-CPT, USAW)

Jin Ahn has a wealth of knowledge developed over his 15 years as a personal trainer, and works exclusively out of our Fairfax, VA location.

(Rest of bio coming soon)

MEET THAD PALMER.

THAD PALMER (BS, CSCS, USAW)

Thad Palmer is a dedicated strength coach with a strong background in both athletic performance and rehabilitation. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology from George Mason University, graduating Summa Cum Laude, and holds his NSCA CSCS as well as a USA Weightlifting Level 1 certification.

Before joining Smart Strength, Thad worked as a Physical Therapy Technician, where he instructed patients through therapeutic exercise and collaborated closely with physical therapists to support progress and recovery. He currently serves as an Assistant Strength & Conditioning Coach at George Mason University, designing and coaching programs for the Wrestling, Swim, Dive, and Tennis teams. Thad also trains active-duty and injured Fairfax County firefighters and police officers, adapting programs for injury rehab and return-to-duty performance.

A former USAPL powerlifting competitor, Thad is now training for triathlons—having already completed a sprint event and preparing for an Olympic-distance race in 2026. Outside the gym, he’s a big movie fan, with Spiderman: Into the Spider-Verse at the top of his list.

MEET JON Sovocool.

personal training

Smart Strength offers in-person personal training at both our Fairfax, VA location and on site in Washington, D.C. and Arlington, VA. Our Fairfax location is a private studio is a carefully thought out space equipped with a diverse selection of top of the line equipment. In D.C./Arlington, we provide personal training services at your office building, apartment/condo, or home gym.

VIRTUAL PERSONAL TRAINING

Not able to make it out in person? Our popular Virtual Personal Training sessions offer the convenience of working out wherever you are with whatever equipment you have. Virtual sessions are done via Zoom or FaceTime.

Online TRAINING PLANS

If you feel that your knowledge and technique are good enough to work out on your own, but want the guidance of a professional exercise program, Smart Strength offers personalized exercise programming. This provides you with structured, individualized workouts that adapt as you progress. The online training program is a shared google sheet between yourself and your coach, and is supported with videos from our YouTube exercise library.

JON Sovocool (MS, ACSM)

Jon Sovocool has over 20 years experience as an exercise specialist. For over 15 years he was the balance expert at a senior living facility, with an impressive track record of improving residents’ overall health.

By implementing a fall prevention program focused around exercising major muscle groups and training the vestibular and somatosensory systems, Jon’s training quickly became popular with his clients.

He now brings his knowledge and experience to Smart Strength in an effort to help even more folks achieve their highest well-being into their golden years.