Start Today
Amy Margolis
The pod train is stopping at Inspiration Station once again this week. My guest is Amy Margolis, a listener who reached out to me after my conversation with Krista Alderdice in Episode 17. Krista had interviewed Amy and her husband David for her Blue Collar Runners site, because they are the epitome of everyday people doing extra cool things in running - a concept I can obviously get behind!
Amy and David are triathletes, ultrarunners, vanlifers…. There are so many things that make their stories unique and interesting. But what I love above all about my conversation with Amy is that it all comes back to community, every time.
Amy was never athletic, and hadn’t been taking very good care of herself as she turned 30. She felt stuck in a bad marriage, and felt herself spiraling downward toward a place she knew deep down she didn’t want to land. But then she got herself over to her local YMCA. And if her story from that point on doesn’t light a fire under your butt for the new year, I’m not sure anything will….
There’s an old saying, ‘a rising tide lifts all boats’, and Amy’s story is this aphorism in action.
One of the many tragedies of 2020 is how the pandemic has stripped community away from almost all of us, in one way or another. While we’ve all been trying to reclaim what we can through socially distanced outdoor yoga or driveway beers or Zoom fly tying classes or whatever, many of us have found it extremely difficult to have the same level of motivation, inspiration, accountability, and support that we might have enjoyed before things went nutty in March. It’s so, so hard to get someone else’s positive energy to wash over and invigorate you when it has to pass through a mask or a computer screen first. Sighs all around.
But now let’s take a page out of Amy’s book and pivot our mindset. As she says, let’s just be happy to be out there. Let’s take an extra moment every day to feel gratitude about what we CAN do, whom we CAN see and spend time with, and how we ARE able to move our body. Let’s celebrate all of the opportunity we have, rather than focus on our lack. The light is at the end of the tunnel…. We may or may not be getting close, but it IS there and we WILL reach it.
You can follow Amy's adventures in running, tri, and vanlife on Instagram, @David_Amy_Mira. You can also check out Amy and David’s YouTube channel here, and make sure to watch Amy’s amazing 2020 ‘Boston Marathon’! (You’ll probably agree with me that Boylston street looks like it could use a repave…..)
Wishing you all a safe and happy new year - make sure you find a little time to get outdoors and get some fresh air before you start getting a little wild!
Some links to rock you into the new year:
America’s Most Beautiful Bike Ride (Lake Tahoe)
Light at the End of the Tunnel Marathon (Seattle, WA)
John Wayne Trail (renamed Palouse to Cascades Trail)
Unbound Gravel Race (Emporia, KS)
Laura Siebert of 180 Health recommending the SheWee)
And check out all the amazing ambassadorships Amy has in her arsenal of awesomeness! (and be awestruck by my alliteration :-D):