Fears are something we all have in common, maybe not the fear of the same things, but we have all felt fear at one point in our lives. I recently had the opportunity to do something that I am pretty afraid of. As much as I love to ride my bikes, I am terrified of
Let me start by stating I am NOT a registered dietician; however, I have studied nutrition for many years, including courses taken at University of North Florida. One of the things I have learned is people should eat to train and not train to eat. For endurance athletes, this can be a difficult concept to
Some people have a difficult time believing in addiction, but most people could never fathom being addicted to exercise. Is it even possible to be addicted to exercise and exercise too much? When exactly do you cross the line from being healthy to being addicted? I may have been accused of being slightly addicted to
Chances are you are either a morning person or you hate morning people. Well maybe not hate…but you are slightly annoyed by them. Does it matter whether you work out in the morning or evening? Is one better or worse? That is the question I often get asked so I thought I would address it.
It is January, the time for resolutions and getting fit…Again! Right now everyone is on the bandwagon to eat healthy and do whatever it takes, at least for a while. I love the focus and determination everyone has in January; however, I wish it lasted throughout the year. I understand that motivation is a tough
“It’s not personal, it’s business.” That is the line Tom Hanks said to Meg Ryan in “You’ve Got Mail”. Yea, it is a chick-flick and you may not have seen it, but that scene has always resonated with me. Sometimes, for me, it is difficult to separate the two. Over the past four years that
I talk a lot about balancing life and endurance training all the time with our athletes. It is by far one of the most difficult challenges I see people struggle with on a daily basis. Sometimes I feel like I juggle things pretty well, but when a tragedy occurs, you rethink everything. Last week, my
The ruthless scale! Is it our friend or enemy? I suppose it depends on the day you are using it and what you did the night before. There is plenty of debate on whether you should weigh every day, once per week or not at all. Some say weighing every day is bad because your
I have always been fascinated by the human body. More specifically, what the human body is capable of doing. As I have been watching the Olympic Trials, Tour de France, and Wimbledon, it has been so inspiring to see how hard athletes train for one event. For many of these athletes, they have one opportunity,
Being injured sucks! There is no other way to say it. I have gone through dozens of other opening lines for this article, but nothing else is as true and appropriate. Now with that said, I am going to make this as positive as possible while I am in pain icing my ankle. This is
Over the past 11 years I have coached and worked with all different levels of athletes; from beginners to advanced, and everyone in between. The one thing they have in common is they are all athletes. Some of them say to me that they are not an athlete, but that is where I disagree. Everyone
Alcohol, it’s the favorite drink of many. Try convincing one of its many fans that it’s the wrong choice and you’ll find just how touchy of a subject it is. People love their alcohol! So, I am not here to tell you to stop drinking. Really, I’m not. However, there are a few basic facts
As a coach, I tend to see two types of athletes. Those who under train, and those who over train. Today I am going to talk about those who over train. The over achievers, the ones who love to work out and the ones who feel like if they take a day off, they will
While running down Monument Road this morning, I decided to take a short cut through a neighborhood where I had lived after high school. I started thinking of all the areas of Jacksonville I knew so well from the 40 years of living here, and really began to appreciate this city more than ever. As
While running down the sidewalk and pushing the BOB stroller with my 3 year old, I started running through a crosswalk while I had the right-of-way, and a car not only almost hit me, but the driver also started yelling at me. If you are a runner or cyclist I am sure you have a
A year ago I was riding my bike on the trainer and watching Phil Keoghan’s documentary, “The Ride”, where he biked across the country on his 40th birthday. I knew then, just turning 39, that I wanted to do something really big for my 40th birthday. It is still a little hard to believe that
To persevere, Webster’s defines this as: “to continue in a course of action even in the face of difficulty or with little or no prospect of success.” As endurance athletes we hear these words often, “persevere”, “go the extra mile,” and “keep your eye on the prize.” They are the words and phrases that help
Sometimes even the best athletes get a little complacent. When your day in and day out routine consists of swimming, biking and running, you can become overconfident and even forget your short term goals. This seems more prevalent when training for a longer distance triathlon. When you have a shorter distance or a “B” race,
Sometimes it takes being pushed off the cliff to make the hard, and sometimes scariest, decisions. I had never considered starting my own business and didn’t think I had the entrepreneurial skills to be successful. However, three years ago, the company I worked for, Lifestyle Family Fitness, was bought out by L.A. Fitness. We were
Most people who know me, know I am slightly competitive. Even the smallest chores in life become a competition to me. So when I see that same competitive drive in an athlete, I thrive on it and push them to their limits. I want to see what they are fully capable of and how far
6/1/2014 As a triathlete, I have a hard time NOT training. As elite athletes, we feel like we need to push ourselves harder and harder to get faster and stronger. Unfortunately, this is how we end up getting injured. As a coach I have to make sure I do not allow or encourage my athletes
1/1/2014 The New Year is upon us and if you are like most people you are in the process of making resolutions about things that you are going to change in the New Year. The problem with resolutions is not when we make them, it’s do we keep them. In the December and January months
10/1/2013 Congratulations on your new baby! What a wonderful and exciting time this is for you and your family. Of course this is also an exhaustive time for you as a mom, so many things to do or hold or wipe. I am sure that out of all the things you are juggling, exercise is
