hey, i'm mary
I'm a running coach, athlete, business owner and mama.
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one run at a time
I started running as a senior in high school and was hooked after one season. I certainly wasn’t the best on the team, but I loved that work yielded progress, and I also met the first coach who ever believed in me. I went on to row D1 crew at Fairfield University for four years and pushed running to the back-burner. I had dreams about continuing rowing at the sub-elite level after college, but those dreams never came to fruition, as I was rejected from all programs I applied to.
After college, I immersed myself in my work in New York City, first as a receptionist, and later doing fashion marketing. The Philly Marathon in 2010 was my first running race and I signed up because I needed a goal that extended beyond the four walls of my cubicle. I also started itsamarython (the blog) as a way for friends and family to stay updated with my training.
After running Philly in 2010 (3:44) and 2011 (3:36), I realized I could someday qualify for the Boston Marathon, so I hired a coach. After building strength and speed for 6 months, I qualified at the NJ Marathon in 2013 (3:22) and ran my first Boston in 2014 (3:08).
I had officially caught the distance bug. I continued to chip away at my goals, and had the fastest year of my life in 2016, running a 3:06 full marathon at Boston and a 1:25 half marathon at Hartford.
In between the training and races, I also decided to completely change my career path. After getting laid off from a job where I was miserable in 2015, I decided to enter into the world of coaching and wellness. I began coaching strength clients at Ranfone Training Systems (first as an intern…later as a full-time employee) and eventually fulfilled a longtime dream of becoming a running coach by joining the Mckirdy Trained team in early 2016.
I branched off in the summer of 2017 and created Lift.Run.Perform., which has grown beyond my wildest dreams. LRP is a community of 9 coaches + a dietitian. We support athletes all over the globe, from California to Australia to Switzerland and we believe in an evidence-based approach to programming. Most importantly: our coaching philosophies stress the importance of balance, health, and long-term development.
On a personal level, I hold both USATF and VDOT02 coaching certifications and I am a Functional Range Conditioning Mobility Specialist (FRCms). I have also gone through the Kinstretch Level I certification program and am currently slated to take the Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist exam (CSCS) in 2021.
Through running coaching, I’ve had the pleasure of coaching people to incredible time goals that range from 5 to 3-hour finishes. I’ve virtually helped people learn how to squat, bench, and deadlift. But most importantly, I’ve had the honor of cheering on and supporting so many incredible people, and I feel lucky to have earned the trust of so many athletes.
In July 2019, I became a mother to a baby boy, and my life will never be the same. Being a mother has made me realize the importance of accepting each season of life, and being okay with the journey – however that might look. Achieving presentness among family and sport is so hard, but something I strive for. Running isn’t just a passion for so many of us; it’s a way of life, and it’s something that we need to juggle in our lives among the crazy. And, trust me, I’m right there with you trying to figure it all out.
If you asked me on the starting line of the 1500 in high school (with my pink Nike Air Max shoes) if I’d eventually become a small business owner and private running coach, I would’ve given you a hard stare and laughed out loud. But through following my passion and through hours of research, education, and experience, I’ve turned what I love—what started as writing a blog back in 2010—into something that is my career, and I could not be more grateful.
1:1 coaching
Running coaching is available for ALL levels and paces. If you run, you are a runner. Hiring a running coach will help you to become stronger and more resilient – both physically and mentally.
