Were you the small and scrawny geek in school that always got picked last for sports?
Were you picked on because you were limited in athletic prowess?
Well, I was!
I had to accept that I really do not have an athletic bone in my body and that I am definitely missing that athletic gene in my DNA.
Only through pure determination have I been able to complete marathons, obstacle courses and the mother of them all…
the IRONMAN Triathlon.
My Story
After years of being a work-a-holic, my blood counts were taken and deemed to be a little worse than normal. My good cholesterol was down, my bad was up, my triglycerides were through the roof and so on. I decided to start taking a boot camp class twice a week, and after some time I added a yoga class, and a little later a boxing class, and a little later I started running with a group.
This all came to a halt when I herniated my L5/S1 disc in my lower back. The Orthopedist and neurosurgeon both said my long distance running days were over and that I might be able to run a couple of miles slowly as a warm-up, but anything more than would be painful.
Well, that was numerous 5ks and 10ks, 40 half-marathons, 25 marathons, 32 sprint triathlons, 12 olympic triathlons, 15 half Ironman distance triathlons (70.3) and 4 Ironmans ago.
This came after extensive research in biomechanics, anatomy, and physiology, testing my theories and then applying them. Obviously, my formula for reducing the impact on my back worked.
6 weeks after I completed my first Ironman Triathlon, I ran the Walt Disney World Goofy Challenge which consisted of a Half Marathon one day and a Marathon the very next day. After that, a client of mine, Tara Belfi, named me the Iron Goof.
I continue to train and run races whenever I can, but due to my successes, I now coach running and triathlon privately, for running and triathlon clubs, Tampa General Hospital, and running stores. I am a USAT Level I Certified Triathlon Coach, a Healthy Running Certified Running Coach, a Lydiard Level II Certified Running Coach and an RRCA Certified Running Coach.
My clients tend to be new runners and triathletes, age groupers that are looking for that first podium finish or just want to get better. I get such a high watching clients, and friends, cross that finish line with smiles on their faces knowing they just conquered their goals.
It has come to be my passion to help people challenge themselves using endurance sports for health, fitness, and fun.
I am committed to helping people in their fitness and also using running and triathlon to help local charities. My Personal Charity is the Children’s Dream Fund, which helps terminally ill children and their families in Tampa with special wishes. They try to grant anything from Trips, to bringing family to them whom can’t afford it to getting them an iPad or Laptop.
I also support a number of other charities including the Polycystic Kidney Disease Foundation, the Leukemia Lymphoma Society , the Alzheimer’s Association and Team RWB.
