Rachel Nephew

Rachel Nephew brings advanced training in pelvic-specific biomechanics, a decade of coaching experience, and a former NCAA Division I athletic career to her role as Lead Programmer and Connect Coach — where she builds progressive strength programming and provides hands-on coaching to help women develop resilient, capable bodies while addressing pelvic floor dysfunction.

Her passion for this work is personal. After the birth of her first child, Rachel experienced persistent low back and hip pain that worsened with each pregnancy. Years later, as one of Dr. Caroline Packard's patients, she learned how her symptoms were connected to her pelvic floor, breathing mechanics, and the relationship between her rib cage and pelvis. That experience changed the way she moved, trained, and now coaches other women.

That experience is also what pushed Rachel to build real expertise around it. She's completed Alex Effer's Foundations of Biomechanics course, is PCES Certified (Pregnancy & Postpartum Corrective Exercise Specialist) and has completed Dr. Sarah Duvall's Pelvis Pro program, deepening the same pelvic-specific training that shapes the Connect method. 

A former NCAA Division I basketball player at Liberty University, Rachel began her graduate work at Columbus State University, where she served as a graduate assistant for the women’s basketball program, and earned her master’s degree from Grand Valley State University. She later continued coaching as an assistant varsity basketball coach after returning to Michigan.

She's been strength training since high school, completed ultramarathon events, and started racing dirt bikes at 40, winning a women's class championship.

Rachel believes resistance training is one of the most powerful forms of preventative healthcare available to women. She's especially passionate about helping women who feel intimidated by the weight room discover what they're capable of, watching them build confidence and realize they can do hard things.

At Connect, Rachel serves as Lead Programmer, appears in on-screen coaching, and continues to coach strength and nutrition clients personally — hands-on work that lets her apply the same principles she programs inside Connect, staying rooted in the same pelvic floor-informed approach Caroline developed: breath, pressure management, movement quality, and full-body strength working together.

PCES Certified (Pregnancy & Postpartum Corrective Exercise Specialist)
Advanced Training in Pelvic-Specific Biomechanics
NASM Certified Personal Trainer

Lead Programmer & Connect Coach