It all begins with an idea.

“It all begins with an idea”… is what Square Space starts with in their pre-filled text to encourage and inspire future subscribers. I was not sure if I was going to use this space to start an athletic blog. I am overwhelming with imposter’s syndrome. So much it took a friend to introduce the language to me to even consider that over looking my long running and coaching history as “not enough” to invest in a website.

My idea for my coaching company is simple. I want to have a dialogue with athletes that are looking to have it all. I am not a miracle worker than can find more hours in the day, stop time, or allow be in two places at once. What I can do is have honest conversations about priorities, training, and rest. Real life is… well, real. Physical activity of our choice, a pillar of healthy living and longevity, should not be at odds with real life, but woven through out it.

I have a career I am passionate about, friends and family I love, and other hobbies that are unlike marathon training. There is that moment at the beginning of a marathon training cycle where I have to sit down with a calendar and map my next 3 months to make sure I have it all. It takes planning, prioritizing, and time management. For marathon training this has looked like prioritizing social group runs into my training plan and planning routes for mileage terminating at brunch with friends (pancakes taste better after 15 miles). With my new passion for biking I configured a measurement of timing and effort on a mountain bike to swap for low miles days.

2024 was my year I prioritized rest. Rest from max effort track work outs. Rest for exhausting work weeks with long hours. Rest from taxing travel days. Research has suggested that we are not overtraining as much as we are under-resting and nder-recovering. A dear friend of mine just asked about training after a fourteen hour workday as a hospital nurse. My professional answer is rest. An adaptive training plan must consider the life and lifestyle of the athlete, in my humble opinion.

That flicker of respect and response to an athlete holistically was my idea that started Vista Runners. There is a space. Maybe a small space for a certified running coach, with 10 years of experience coaching, yoga teacher to help those athletes train and live.