Meet Alicia!
Alicia is one of my athletes, and we have been working together since August. She came to me wanting to get fit and build some endurance with her running. She has been running for several years and previously lived in Hawaii! (So jealous!) I am trying to convince her to run a race, but in the meantime she has been working hard to improve her gait, nutrition, and maintain a healthy life-long running career!
My husband and I are from the Midwest and our families still live there. We left after college and headed west in search of mountains and then chased a job up here to Alaska. Our big lab mix and little ginger tabby moved with us. I am an agricultural engineer and my husband is a contractor.
I started running when I was 13 for the junior high track team. On my first day I wore sketchers skate shoes and clomped my way around a track. I was very gangly and didn’t think I was particularly athletic but that first run felt so good! And then I felt a zing of pride when the coach nodded in approval at my decent mile time. I was hooked! My dad took me to buy running shoes that night. I ended up running track and cross country through high school and kept up ‘joy jogging’ though every move until Alaska. What I love about running is that you just lace up your shoes and GO. Every time I go to a new place for vacation or to live, running helps me get to know it. I similarly love running old and a familiar routes because they are comfortable and allow me to let go of everything else. I guess that’s my main motivation for running, to give my mind a break and enjoy the world around me.
I have definitely experienced some strange/weird/cool things while running. One that sticks with me is when I was a kid running out on a country road and I came upon a big pasture where there were a few dozen cows with their new calves. A handful of the calves looked up at me as I approached and then just took off in their frolicking way, meeting me at the fence and pacing me across the entire field. They were so playful and seemed to cheer me on even when they reached the end of the pasture and I kept going.
My running goals are to be really fit and get faster. I pursued Michelle as a coach because I want to train smart so I can do this for the rest of my life. I took a year off of jogging when I moved here and have noticed a huge difference in my overall health. My big dream goal is to always run and be fit enough to do whatever I want – backpack, ski, etc. – and age gracefully.
My pup is older now and can’t run with me so my reward at the end of a run is a big joyful greeting from him as I reach my driveway. He’s proud of me no matter how far I run or how mismatched my winter running outfit is!
If you are interested in online, one-on-one coaching, check out my Coaching Page. I love working with people of all abilities, so shoot me an email if you are interested. What a great way to achieve your 2018 running goals! Hands-down the best thing I did for my running was hire a coach!
