Tony Williams , Founder & Owner

Tony began running April 5, 1979. He was a 14 year old 8th grader at PS #5 in Patterson, New Jersey. He had run a mile in 5:38, which he thought was pretty good until news reached him of a girl in his school who had just run a mile in 5:28. She gave up the secret to her fast time and took Tony to the Silk City Track Club where he met Coach Ken Samra. The first day of practice changed his life forever. Ken asked Tony if he brushed his teeth every day. When the reply was "of-course," Ken simply replied "then you can run a mile every day."

The night before his first high school track race, at age 15, Tony wrote a note to his parents and hung it on his bedroom door. It read, "Do not disturb, runner asleep." It was signed " Always Running, Tony Williams." Since then Tony has logged over 70,000 miles in his running career with only 80 days missed during his first 20 years of running. He excelled as a high school, collegiate and post-collegiate runner, and was a two-time Jr. National champion. Tony graduated from Virginia Tech with a degree in Psychology in 1989. While attending Virginia Tech he won the NCAA Division I All-American honors in both the 10,000 meter and cross country events. Tony became a Nike sponsored athlete in 1984, maintaining that sponsorship until 1997. In 1996 he completed the US Olympic Men's Marathon Trials.

He has completed numerous races of all lengths. His various PR's are: Marathon - 2:22:00, half marathon - 1:05:05, 10K - 28:55, 5K - 14:10, and continues to coach others in reaching their goals while maintaining his training. Tony stopped competing on a elite level in 1999 but still runs 30-40 miles per week.

Lori Heagler, Trainer

Lori Heagler has been a lifelong athlete and brings her knowledge of strength training to Always Running.

Lori competed in fast-pitch softball at a national level through high school, and was a member of California State University Fullerton's cheerleading and dance squad in college.

Lori began weight-lifting with the men on her college cheerleading squad and went on to compete in body-building after college, winning several local and regional titles both in North Carolina and Texas before qualifying for Nationals by winning the overall title at a national-qualifying contest in 1995.

Lori has always kept strength training at the center of her personal fitness regimen. She still plays softball to this day and is served well by the strength she has gained in over 20 years of strength training. High on her list of "favorite things" is the look on an outfielder's face when she hits a ball over their head.

Lori’s philosophy is that strength training can be incorporated into any exercise regimen if it is properly tailored for that person’s specific goals and/or physical limitations. Basically, strength training is for everyone and there is never a downside to getting stronger.

McKinley Williams, Always Running Field Coach

As AR’s field coach, McKinley is passionate about running and teaching. Nothing makes her happier than to pull off a well-organized group run on a beautiful trail or help a client learn a new strength workout.

McKinley started running in the 8th grade, in PE class, just like Tony did 20 years earlier. Already a competitive swimmer, she resisted its pull until the 9th grade, when a friend convinced her to go for some trail runs around their Federal Way neighborhood. Those trails were all it took to get McKinley to trade in her swim goggles for running shoes for good. For the rest of her time at Todd Beamer High School it was so long swim team, hello cross-country and track.

McKinley continued her competitive career running for Western Washington University, where she got her degree in recreation. As team captain for WWU track and cross country, she helped the squad go from casual to competitive, becoming Western's first full women's team to go to NCAA Nationals.

McKinley really enjoyed seeing the team grow over those years and is proud to have been a part of it. The experience impressed upon her how important it is to be surrounded by people who support you and whom you support in return. Now McKinley enjoys putting that same philosophy to work at AR, where she loves to see clients make progress.

McKinley is indeed always running, whether it’s cruising her favorite trail in the Chuckanut Mountains, training with clients or just jogging down the street to Starbucks (coffee is another of McKinley’s passions).

New Jersey Girl, Always Running Mascot

Jersey is Coach Tony’s dog and the Always Running Team Mascot. Jersey is an integral part of the Always Running team and can be found playing in the Always Running gym with clients or getting a work out with Coach Tony on a long run.