Tell us about yourself: What do you do for a living, where do you live, what do you do outside of work for personal passion projects, fun or anything else.
I am a wife to Aaron, mom to Mak (7) and Crew (2), professional triathlete, coach, IRONMAN commentator, and co-author of Life of A Triathlete. Aaron and our two sons live in Columbus, Ohio!
Triathlon has always been a true passion of mine - - for decades. It was initially my enriching hobby that eventually became my job and now career. I still pinch myself that we were able to make that happen in life. With this said, I have always had a full life outside of triathlon. It is most important for me to aim to be the best wife, mom, sister, daughter, friend, coach, mentor, and human that I can be vs. the best athlete. My family and friends are paramount to me and it's been pivotal to put them first before triathlon. This is when I am my happiest -- and a happy athlete is typically a more successful athlete!
Outside of work, I relish in quality time with my family and friends, learning to cook with more intention, spending time outdoors and pairing fine wine with delicious food!
What role does health and wellness play in your life?
Health and wellness has always been a marquee part of my life since I was a little girl. I was that teenage gal that would get up at 5 am to run or swim before school because it lifted me and made me feel alive...and healthy!
I have always been "obsessed" with the art of living a healthy lifestyle, if you will, yet my reasoning behind that comment was the thought that the word "obsessed is a word the lazy use to describe the dedicated." I am not as cutthroat as that sounds as, trust me, I also believe in a balanced lifestyle that gracefully includes cookies, french fries, and wine. I just embraced everything that being healthy entailed: exercising, playing sports, getting outside, moving the body, eating fruits and vegetables, drinking enough water, getting enough sleep, and so forth. I carried this mindset into my adult years and certainly as a professional triathlete and it continues to be the same ethos that I try to instill in my two young sons.
Tell us about your health protocol. What do you do to invest in your own health and wellness - be it your fitness and nutrition protocols, supplements, mental health or other initiatives that you employ to achieve your best self?
I have had the privilege of being an athlete and participating in sports since I was nearly 4 years old. Almost four decades later, I am still ticking along in athletics! I am forever thankful for having the 'get up and go' and the 'gumption' to try to excel from a young age. I can thank my parents for that perspective and also for not putting pressure on me to win. Instead, the lens they had me look through was to hone in on simply trying my BEST because: "as long as you try your best, that is all that matters." Again, this is an important life lesson I want my sons to embrace.
It was riveting to be a 4-sports athlete in high school and then head to Syracuse University for college on a D1 Athletic Scholarship for Field Hockey. Being a Division 1 collegiate student-athlete is still one of my most treasured memories. When I graduated college at 21 years old, I had a mid-life crisis because I didn't know how I was going to move forward without sport in my life! I did what any sane human would do and I used my college graduation money to purchase my first time-trial bike and I slapped myself in an IRONMAN triathlon (2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, 26.2 mile run) two weeks later -- gasp! I caught the bug of IRONMAN racing from that moment on and fast forward 25 years --- I have completed nearly 80 full IRONMAN triathlons and hundreds of half IRONMAN triathlons!
I train about 20-22 hours a week of swim, bike, run, and strength move time!
Anything else you’d like to share?
Health and Wellness is also very much about having a successful mindset -- a topic that I enjoy discussing! One of my most consistent mindsets is to always recognize the privilege of GETTING to do what we GET to do. There is no HAVE TO in this equation. Whenever life is challenging, it is important to continually remind myself that ‘I get to spend time with my sons’ or ‘I get to bike on the trainer for a couple of hours.’ This is a stark contradiction to when I hear someone say, ‘I HAVE to get this morning workout in’ or ‘I have to read to my child every night.’ There are plenty of instances when I have been injured, where I would have loved to get on the treadmill at 6 in the morning for even a few minutes but was unable. Another example is seeing the determination and joy of kids at a Challenged Athlete Foundation event as they run for the first time on their prosthetic leg -- this is something I will never forget. This is also what inspires me to ‘get to’ do certain things others may not be able to because of circumstances out of their control. In my opinion, having a successful mindset is what makes us all grow and thrive within the health and wellness arena -- and success CAN happen if we never give up!
