Why run your journey with me?

Mindset

What has shaped my own journey predates my running. I started playing tennis competitively at the age of 6 for 10 years. I’ve been performing an individual, mind-centered sport for my entire life. The mental toughness, me vs. me nature of tennis became a powerful toolkit when I started running. Much like in any endurance sport, you put in hours and hours of practice and training to then compete with so many factors outside of your control. How you deal with them in the moment is your mindset. My goal is to unlock that power with you.

Adaptability

Everyone has a story and a unique background. Everyone has a choice to keep moving forward. The way I approach every step in my life is looking back with gratitude and moving forward with grit. From moving to a new city knowing no one to taking a leap of faith and changing careers to starting my life from scratch again, the lessons that running has taught me have been eye-opening. To be able to run is a gift that keeps on giving. Adaptability is the only way to keep one foot in front of the other.

Experience

After being a pacer for the Bandit half marathon and marathon training programs for 4 seasons, the impact and growth I saw in just 16 weeks on hundreds of athletes each season was incredible. I knew I wanted to continue to give back on an even more deeper, personalized level. Along the way, I also co-founded a local run club, Wall Street Runners, to create space for runners in the Financial District community to run easy miles and grab coffee on a Friday morning. From leading track/tempo workouts and long runs to hosting workshops on race day strategy, I am always finding ways to support others in their own journey. No matter where I am in my own training block, what matters to me the most is the people I am surrounding myself with: mentors, friends, coaches, supporters. The journey is your own, but you don’t have to do it alone!

Running History

Running cross country 5ks in high school was where it all began, but 2020 COVID is when I started to push myself towards a new challenge. I trained in my local neighborhood to run my first “virtual” half marathon in Miami. The following year, I set out solo-trained and completed my very first official race, the Miami Half Marathon. Then, my next challenge. I signed up for the NYC marathon lottery. Unfamiliar to the running world and not really understanding how difficult it was to get in, I became an anomaly. My life would forever be changed. It wasn’t until I stumbled inside my local running store in Miami, iRUN, that unlocked a deeper passion for this sport. Community is what powered me through my first full marathon training cycle and one I’ll never forget. It’s deeply ingrained in my philosophy that we are stronger together. Despite it being an individual sport, there is nothing more rewarding than going through the journey of a training cycle together, learning from each other, and sharing each and every experience, hardship, setback, and accomplishment together. Community is what keeps us coming back for more. I moved to NYC the following year and felt like a whole new world and power of community was unlocked. 7 half marathons and 5 marathons later (with a 1:33 and 3:31 PR), I know I am just getting started.

Longevity

Most important of all is longevity in this sport. As running continues to be a powerhouse industry, we cannot forget to respect the distance. While having performance goals are fulfilling, my main priority is to keep you healthy, safe, motivated, and energized for more. I too have experienced setbacks: a torn ACL in high school kept me sidelined from a whole season of tennis and track, a stress fracture detected a month out before running the Berlin marathon, and plenty of race day struggles in all-time high temperatures. Though what keeps me grounded in this sport is the ability to react with positivity, grace, and grit. For all my goal-oriented individuals out there, the truth is: you are already a superstar. This sport rewards those who have patience. It’s not a sprint. There are highs and lows. But what I am most inspired by is that this sport welcomes you in all walks of life. If you create a sustainable practice, who knows where that can lead to in the next 10, 20, 30 years? The body and mind are so powerful, yet we are all so different, so listening and nurturing is the best way to run your journey.