Tanya Gandy, a client of mine, ran her first marathon, the San Diego Rock n’ Roll on June 2, 2013 and finished under 5 hours. What a huge accomplishment, considering she plays water polo and has not done much running in the past.  Tanya was a member of the US Olympic Women’s Water Polo training team,  4  time NCAA champion at UCLA,  2 time MVP for NCAA and NCAA player of the year during her senior year at UCLA. Tanya is an athlete and in great physical condition, but training for a marathon was completely different than what she is used to. She’s used to 6 hours of in the water training + weight lifting and no outside the pool cardio at all. She relied heavily on her mental toughness, work ethic and competitive drive to push through long runs and consistent endurance workouts however nutrition was a part of her training that needed much work.

“Lisa helped me with my pre- race meal planning, my nutrition and hydration during the race,  and my post run recovery plan.  I wasn’t sure exactly what I should be eating and how much I should be hydrating before the race.  With Lisa’s help I was able to run 26.2 miles for the first time in my life!  I felt strong for most of the race.  The last 6 miles were grueling, consisting of 2 miles all uphill.   I know I needed to keep fueling and hydrating my body, but i wasn’t sure when i should be stopping to drink water or eat a quick snack. I definitely believe that my dinner before the race and my breakfast the morning of was the perfect combination to keep me going. However, after 3.5 hours of running I needed a boost of support and advice throughout the finish. When my body did not feel like eating, Lisa knew what was best and provided me with the right fuel for my body. Lisa encouraged me to push myself with both my running and nutrition. (She actually ran the last 7 miles with me which was so appreciated) .   I honestly don’t know if I would have finished the race if I didn’t have her ongoing support and I cannot thank her enough for helping me accomplish something that I have always wanted to do!!” -Tanya Gandy

Congratulations Tanya!