I signed up for Amy's services after my Portland marathon didn’t go how I hoped. Let me give you my take on what she did for me. The nutritional counseling was good, but my diet was already mostly there. Still, the tweaks she gave me were worthwhile, particularly in regards to upping my protein intake.
But the 15-week training program she prepared for me was a big deal. I thought I pretty much knew what I was doing, but there isn't a snowball's chance that I would have come up with what she gave me. I had two rest days when I would have run 6, maybe even 7. I credit her hill and track workouts, most of all, for my improvement. The variations she gave me, in speed, distance, etc., were nothing that I ever would have come up with on my own. I would have trained hard, maybe even too hard, but not nearly so smart.
Most of all, though, I give her credit for her encouragement, her enthusiasm, her prompt replies to my weekly training updates and whatnot, and her willingness to tweak the program. Plus meeting with her to go over form on strength exercises, checking on how I was holding up, and making a plan for Boise.
It worked. I managed to squeeze an extra minute and a half out of my legs during miles 25 & 26 and finished in exactly 4:45. Goal achieved! I even won my age group, finishing abut 8 minutes ahead of the 2nd place old guy. In only 15 weeks, no less, and I'm already looking ahead to #12 next spring. And I'm eyeing next summer's Iron Man 70.3, most likely with Amy's help, once again. It appears that, with the right help, old dogs can indeed learn new tricks. I wholeheartedly recommend Amy to help you get the best out of your bod, whoever you are, and however old you are.
