I started as a runner in high school and through college. While in college, I lost my athletic scholarship in a bicycle accident. I was told I would never run a 4 minute mile again and would never be able to compete at that level again. I was pretty crushed. It took years to run again, but by then I was in the Army and eventually on to a career and family. While I continued to bounce in and out of endurance sports, my lifestyle was focused on my career and I let myself get terribly out of shape. By the time was in my 40s, I was near 200 pounds (at only 5'9") and my doctor told me that my cholesterol was too high and I was headed for a diabetic condition if I didn't do something soon. In just under a year, I started running again, dropped the weight to around 180 pounds and all health markers were looking good. I found my stride again, joined a gym and started exercising and training regularly. I was introduced to triathlons around the same time and was absolutely sure I wouldn't be a good swimmer and should even try. I was eventually talked in to it and while the swimming was definitely tough, I was able to get out of the water, on to the bike and then to the run. I fell in love immediately! My next 3 races were 2 x 70.3 and then a full Ironman event. I like the short distance races (sprint and Olympic), but I LOVE the long course events! Since then, I've run several marathons, qualifying for Boston in each; I've completed 2 Ironman events and at least 5 half Ironman events. I typically compete in at least one or two 70.3 races each year and I like to get in at least one marathon each year. Next year, I'll knock off Boston and NY from my bucket list of marathons.

Through the course of my training and love for this sport, I realized that I also loved learning the ins and outs of the training and why my coach was scheduling certain training sessions for me. As I learned more, I shared that knowledge with fellow athletes in the run, cycle and triathlon clubs I trained with. Eventually, I realized that my passion was in coaching so I completed my Ironman Coach certification, run coach certification, swim coach certification and started my personal trainer certification. Along the way, I also realized how important my nutrition was. I was learning about how nutrition impacts my weight, my daily training sessions as well as my recovery. I decided if I wanted to coach endurance athletes, I also needed to understand more about nutrition and I became a nutrition coach and now working on my level 2 nutrition coach certification. Everything I learn is in an effort to improve the performance of my athletes. I look forward to sharing what I know with you!