ETS Sports Performance
MENOMONIE (May 29, 2017) - Former UW-Stout athletes Ryan Englebert and Heidi (Schultz) Englebert have fond memories of their days at UW-Stout. Both graduated from UW-Stout in 2007 with business degrees and now will open a business in Menomonie - ETS Elite Sports Performance, Chippewa Valley.
Ryan was a hard charging two-time all-WIAC running back for the Blue Devil football team from 2002-06 and is currently fourth on the Stout all-time rushing list with 2620 yards, tallying 24 touchdowns while averaging 4.85 yards per carry. Heidi earned first team all-WIAC honors in 2005 as a midfielder, scoring 12 goals and adding 23 assists over the course of her four-year career.
During Ryan's second year at Stout, an automobile accident in the fall of 2003 put his football career in jeopardy after doctors told him he would never walk again.
"That adversity motivated me to push harder, longer and with more intensity than I ever thought possible through rehabilitation," Ryan said. "With faith, perseverance and determination, I was able to get back to playing football."
Ryan returned to the football field for the 2004 season, but was injured again in 2005, playing in only two games that season. He returned for his best collegiate season in 2006, rushing for 913 yards, earning a tryout with the Cincinnati Bengals. Heidi, meanwhile, was a four-year contributor for the Blue Devil soccer team, starting all 74 soccer games during her career. During that four year stretch, the Blue Devils won 44 games, matching the best four-year run in school history.
Rehabbing from injury, Ryan became more interested in the way the human body performed, in particular how the athletic human body performed.Â
"I became fascinated with performance and how the body performs," Ryan said. "I started to look outside the box."
The couple were married in January 2008 and moved to Grafton, where Ryan worked with Parisi Speed School.
The accident, the rehabilitation process, getting back on the field, "sniffing time in an NFL camp" and working at Parisi all played a part in Ryan developing what he calls the Englebert Training Systems (ETS), a system he rolled out in 2010, setting up shop in Woodbury, Minn.
"The non-traditional rehabilitation, training and research that were necessary for me to overcome the odds ended up being the biggest blessing I have experienced in my professional life," Ryan said. "I discovered that in order to reach the pinnacle of this profession, I would need to design, develop and prove a better way of training and developing athletes. Not simply from a physical standpoint, but psychological as well."
A second location opened in Lakeville, Minn., and now the Engleberts are bringing ETS Elite Chippewa Valley to Menomonie when they open at 541 North Broadway, across from the Menomonie Public Library. Targeted opening day is Tuesday, May 30. They are also opening a location in Holland, Mich., this summer.
"We build a customized program for each individual," Ryan said. "We do a full evaluation of strength, upper body, mobility. We evaluate every athlete. Everything is individualized. We train a football player differently than we train a basketball player or a hockey player."
With locations in the Twin Cities, ETS has attracted the attention of many athletes at the University of Minnesota, including Adam Thielen, Thomas Vanek, MarQueise Gray and Zach Line. Thielen is currently with the Minnesota Vikings and Gray with the Miami Dolphins. Vanek is currently with the NHL's Florida Panthers. Former UW-Stevens Point pitcher, JP Feyereisen, a native of River Falls, Heidi's hometown, trained with Englebert and is currently in the New York Yankees farm system.
ETS offers programs for athletes as young as eight-years-old up to professional athletes, but each individual is treated similar.
"We sit down with them, give them recommendations of what fits best for them," Ryan said. "We will meet with the parents (of minors)."
The athletes will sign up for sessions offered throughout the day with a three-month commitment and train as groups, but will always get the one-on-one attention.
"Our sessions are capped and we will have a 4-to-1 or 5-to-1 ratio, but you will always get 1-on-1 attention," Ryan said. "It is individual programs, but working together in small groups."
"What we have is unique," Ryan said. "While we want to reach optimal performance, it is not all athletic. We do a lot of character development."
"We saw a lot of cookie-cutter programs out there and here we design our own," Heidi said. "We have seen a number of athletes go Division I. They have more confidence and the impact goes beyond the athletic field."
Ryan graduated from Stout as a business administration major. Heidi came to Stout as a graphic design major and changed to business administration, and is now involved in much of the behind-the-scenes part of the business such as marketing, design work, promotions and the financial aspects.
"Heidi's work allows me to do the training," Ryan said.
The Menomonie location of the business will be operated by Michael Blizel, who also has a UW-Stout connection. Blizel transferred to Stout in 2010 and began training at ETS with Ryan, where he developed a passion for sports performance.
The Engleberts envision not only working with local athletes, but see an opportunity to employ students through an internship program.
"We bring that added dimension that we can utilize student interns," Ryan said. "This is a good funnel for students to get their feet wet."
The Engleberts intend to bring some of their professional athletes to Menomonie, allowing local athletes to observe as the pro goes through their training program.
Also on the docket is a program geared towards adults who may no longer be involved in playing team sports.
"This will be a chance for them to get into shape if they don't want to go to a traditional gym," Ryan said.
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