This episode we talk with María del P. Vázquez of Phoenix, AZ. Maria has successfully balanced a busy life raising 3 boys while single. She ventured in triathlons and ultra-running for a while but now she’s focusing only on ultra-cycling races.
Maria has conquered some of the most challenging ultra-cycling events out there around the globe; including The Longhorn 500, Hoodoo 500, Silver State 508 (‘Toughest 48 hrs in the Sport’), Paris-Brest-Paris, a grueling self-supported 750 miles race in France, and Tour De France, as part of an all-female team that for the 1st time in the history of the event completed all 21 stages a day prior to the Pro’s. She also set a record by becoming the 1st female ever to cross the state of Ohio in both directions (E-W and W-E) in separate occasions and still holds one of them. Some of these events gave her the title of 1st Puertorrican Female ever finishing or 1st Puertorrican Overall (male or female) ever finishing some of them.
As a cycling coach, Maria’s mission is to get more women in the sport and help athletes reach their goals and finish their races. She believes she can do a lot more and cannot only rise above being average but inspire others to do so with her inspirational story!
You can find Maria on Instagram at @coach_maria_pr
Disclaimer: If you take any advice or opinions from this podcast, you do so at your own risk.
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Music: Hip Hop Background Beat by Sugar Beats (used under license from PremiumBeat)
Contact: eric@nogimmicksjustsweat.com
People limit themselves so much um I don’t have time and you know I don’t have a support supportive partner and I have three kids and I have seven jobs and I do have all of that and I struggled through my entire life with a lot of things um I I can literally write
A book and and and I just want to make people understand no it was not easy for me back then it is absolutely easy right now um but not back then and I worked towards it and you know I was self-supported and you know nobody paid for any
In you are listening to the no gimmicks just swep podcast with your host Eric Logan no gimmicks just sweat is dedicated to hearing the journeys and unique stories behind an Athletes Training and what drives them get inspired to own your life and make the impossible possible if you enjoy the
Show please subscribe so that you never miss an episode also please take a few seconds to rate the show and drop me a review now let’s get started with the show Hello and welcome to this episode of no gimmicks just sweat and today we welcome Maria Vasquez did I say it right almost almost I’m trying I’m try I bunch of people’s names but that was very close very close thank you for having me yeah yeah and and and listeners we we did practice
Just 30 seconds I didn’t want to say that but now that you said it we just I was like wait a minute we just practiced well Maria thank you for coming on to the show thank you for having me really humbling and um thankful so thank you thank you very much all right
So with listeners that you know come on for the first time we with some nice question you this just this is be I promise I promise okay you know just to kind of let the listeners get to know you and I always knew about you know people even
Though even though you follow a person for a while there are things you go like oh wait I didn’t know that you know so it’s it’s yeah all right so you ready I am okay all right morning training or evening training morning training cardio training or string
Training cardio training okay ride on a on a trail oh a trail oh okay okay side with or without zift with with okay longest distance you’ve ever written uh nonstop was 750 miles wait what nonstop 750 miles 750 yes yeah we got to get into that conversation I make sure we talk about
That all right Shimano or Shram oh no um shr okay all right first thing you do after a long ride um oh wow that one oh wow first thing I do after a ride um probably smiling be happy I don’t know I have no clue that was a good one GL
Over h yeah maybe all right what’s your dream race or ride to participa in oh wow um in the future yes so I think one of them I got in which is um uh Leadville mountain bike 100 miles yeah um but probably road which is my main will be Ram Race Across
America okay okay all right if you can train with any celebrity or athlete Dead or Alive who would it be oh um wow uh let me think about that one that would um I I don’t know I think um I don’t know these might cause uh issues but probably Lance
Amstrong because I have tons and tons and tons of questions for him in general if you know what I mean not asking very specific questions for those yeah exactly so I have tons and tons of questions very curious about a lot of things all right last question dream
Location anywhere in the world that you want to go for a bike oh wow um that will have to be probably Amsterdam oh okay interesting that that’s an interesting answer I’ve never heard as that before okay inter all yes let’s get into who you are and always you know with each episode always
Kind of you know word in a way to kind of think of themselves as you know you’re a superhero or story The Cinematic Universe you know how you presented how do we see your transition from you know just you know ordinary person to the the super extreme superhero cyclist that you are
Today um I’m going to make it short but it’s it’s it’s it’s a very long story um I was going through a very rough moment in my life in year 2008 if I’m not mistaken and somehow I ended up going to spinning uh to deal cope with it um I don’t even
Know if I got invited or if somebody shared that that would be a good idea I have no recollection of that but I remember that I started doing spinning and the girl that was my instructor was a mountain biker um I was the one not in the classroom in the classroom I will
See like way back but spinning I will see like right across from her like she I wanted her to see me and I wanted to see her and one day she just approaches me and says hey I’m loving the way you’re pedaling you should try you know
Pedaling outside and then she invites me to Pedal with them I had a very inexpensive mountain bike which back then I thought it was you know the coolest bike on Earth um and then um I went with them and it was very interesting and a very uh like a
Learning curve because they were basic pros and I knew nothing about bikes and I started doing some trails with her um and then you know I fell a lot um like on the ground like blood DNA on the trails and um after that I said well maybe I should consider switching
To Road and um I decided to go to a store and see what was out there I came across a friend that I still consider very very good friend and we were parents at the same school and he’s like hey what are you doing here do you ride
Bikes and I’m like well no I’m I’m I’m I’m getting into it and he’s like great cuz I have a an event and it’s all females and I will love for you to come I’m like great that would be great um and uh 3 months after we met I did my
First ever 100 Miler which back then was like a very long distance like 100 Mil miles for me back then was like whoo and that was such an accomplishment I was dead last and I still remember my biggest smile you know at the I had and I I I
Believe I still have that picture you know me my biggest smile I remember going to eat something and feeling like the world was coming to an end with all the pain that I had and it’s very interesting because yeah still like 100 miles might be a
Long distance for for a lot of people but for me now it’s just like a Sunday ride and back then he was like oh wow wow I did 100 miles um a couple of months after I was doing uh events like across the island in Puerto Rico I’m originally from Puerto
Rico and then one day I decided to go into Ultra cycling actually self-supported what we call Randon Nur um or Randon earing and I I don’t know why I think it was mainly because there were no women back then that many women at least uh you know in Puerto Rico doing
That and I’m like sure why not like I would love to you know do something that all other women can look and say hey she did it I can do it and um I decided go to randing which is self-supported very long distances and I went from like 100
Mile to doing this uh famous randing uh event which is called PBP Paris bre uh Paris and uh that’s 750 mil self-supported and um I think I qualified you have to qualify for it I qualified second year year I think I practiced the first year then the second
Year that was uh I believe uh 2011 I qualified went to France did it finished became the first Puerto Rican female to finish ever you know try and complete the whole distance and after that um I think there was another pivoting moment because somebody reached out to me a good friend and said
Hey I know someone who’s looking for females um they need to be good with or not good but like they they need to like doing long distances um I think they’re missing one person in the team um and I I want to know if I can give them your
Name and I said sure I mean I never asked anything I still I think I still don’t ask I I’m I’m that person who will say yes and then when she finds out you know what I sign off for I kind of like get scared but then I
Manage so I said sure I mean give him my name and I think that I thought it was a joke and about I don’t know 45 minutes after I Reed a call that actually changed my life um because I was given the opportunity to be part of a six
Female team that did the entire tour the France route all 21 stages and I yeah and I thought you know this is joke I I kept telling myself I I kept saying yes to everybody and and I thought it was going to be a joke and
And and it ended up being something very big at least for me um I think that for the female Community as well um and from there on I think that that was 2012 I believe and I haven’t stopped riding my bike and accepting big challenges and you know I look back and
I think that was a moment where my life completely changed like then cycling became my the center of everything in my life um and I did some running and I did some you know triathlons but cycling is the one thing that I’m just very very passionate about um but yeah that that’s
A the short story of [Laughter] it I’m I’m still astounded by the 750 and three months yeah I went ahead and did 100 miles so anything under 100 miles is just boring to you huh yeah uh well I mean would be like yeah okay yeah
Whatever what yeah I know and and I I every time I share my story I don’t I don’t want people to think you know I’m bragging about it we I you know a lot of time I I try to embrace you know the the
The the greatness of what I do um but I don’t I just every time I share I I would love for someone to say oh my gosh he went from like zero to 100 to a 750 uh because I think that people limit themselves so much um I don’t have time
And you know I don’t have a support supportive partner and I have three kids and I have seven jobs and I do have all of that and I struggled through my entire life with a lot of things um I I can literally write a book and and and I
Just want to make people understand no it was not easy for me back then it is absolutely easy right now um but not back then and I worked towards it and you know I was self-supported and you know nobody paid for anything and so yeah but that 750 Mi I still look
Back and I’m like wo and I would love to go back now with all the experience that I have and and tackle it again to see the difference between back then cuz I was total rookie when I did that um and and I think there’s a benefit when
You’re a rookie because you don’t know that much and then you just go for it and um you don’t think too much but yeah that that 750 was something else yeah and I mean going from zero to something you know zero to you know 20 miles Z 50
Miles you know that’s something because everybody’s you know story is different correct so correct you know you know you you know you you started out and you kind of took that you know go big or go home approach yeah totally but or go big or go home somebody else go big go home
Might be a dir mile R exactly I have one athlete that went from zero to 12 and that was her greatest accomplishment you know yes and and and I think so that we look at what we’ve accomplished as individual and we of think that if I do I can do that you can
Do that but again everybody has they come from different walks of life yes so it may you know that might not want to particularly accomplish but they something that’s a little less than that and we have to be encouraging to them on that yep okay so with cycling and stuff and
And I’m G kind of go back you know you say you start out with spin you know I’m a spin instructor as well um and you know you like you said you sat in the back you know sit in the back sometimes hide but that kind of goes into let’s kind
Of into training so cycling long distance uh certain level of training have to have you know they kind of prepare for what does a week of training for you look like my training weeks have changed Through The Years um that person who will Thrive for more and who will you
Know try to if I’m not feeling comfortable with X and Y I will try to find something that will make me feel comfortable and and every person is completely different and at the current moment I have a very uh packed training so I’m basically training six seven days
A week which is something that I was not doing in you know uh I’ve been doing this for about two three months now I think three maybe um but I believe leave in short and intense with mindfulness of recovery um because you have to allow your body to you know absorb everything you’re
Putting it through and become better so at the current moment I’m I’m even though I’m a morning person and I answer you know morning or or afternoon training I’m morning training right now the the space I have in my day is during the afternoon after I come from
Work and I am doing strength training followed by my hour to hour and a half under trainer uh uh cycling training um and it’s more of a New Foundation workout that we’re doing plus trying to bring my numbers a little bit higher than before um which is you know sometimes
People don’t like the the beginning of any any training cycle I I love it because that’s you know that’s your base and nothing works without a great Foundation right so I I I truly focus on on on Foundation okay uh so self or do you have a trainer coach that
You work so I am a coach but I do need a coach I’m that person who needs to be told and who needs the guidance and who needs the feedback and support um also the accountability because if I make my own training I will be the one and I’m
I’m very honest about this I will be the one saying oh sure because I know I can say well I I don’t have to do it today I will do then tomorrow this and this and that and I will change it all the time
So I I do not coach myself I I do have somebody who coaches me okay I need that accountability all right so are starting 2023 um we’re getting three years past the pandemic and you know pandemic it doesn’t matter what type of athlete you were whether you run athlete Cy uh your training
Changed way or another you know some people they did less training you know in performance and some people you know they actually kind of pivoted did more training so what what did you kind of go with yours um I think that I think it there was a balance of
Both I think I think it it it pivoted um I I think the pandemic gave us a different perspective of things and I was going into that age group where we think a lot lot about a lot of things so yeah and and I’m not scared I can
Share my age if needed but um I I think I think that we realized a lot of people realized a lot of things through the pandemic um I don’t think I was doing more I just think I I had more time to think about specifics and okay I I
Wanted I was that person who always trained and did the races just to finish um and to share her journey so others will say okay she finish I can finish so I think it pivoted to where I said you know what I I think I can aim
For more I think I can aim for a Podium and I think I can aim to break a record or and and don’t get me wrong I do have a few records out there um I I just consider them more of personal records so I think it pivoted to
Where I realize you know what I’m I’m I’m getting older I think it’s okay to let go of I just want to finish and be aggressive in terms of I I want to get Podium and I want to do this race and I want to be the you know win my age group
Or you know my gender so I I think it piver it towards that to being more aggressive in terms of my goals and by default then my training would be more Focus um and and mindful like I was more mindful of it and I will not you know
Skip it or uh say no I’m tired or uh it doesn’t matter I don’t get paid for these so I think it pivoted towards me being a little a little bit more aggressive with u my goals okay okay so you know was kind of stay on the
Training um topic uh what about fueling yourself you know how do you fuel you know um for just general bike rides for your training and most and more specifically for you know current cycling you know because that’s something that you know at least in my area of the United States you
Know you know you know and we’ll talk about that more but just kind of how do you fuel you know keep that energy going I think that it’s it’s a very interesting question my my journey about food has been very very interesting um I I haven’t been one I’m I’m healthy
Overall speaking but I haven’t been W to not eat an ice cream because oh my gosh or not drink a beer because oh my gosh um and after um yes you have to okay let me let me let me start here by saying when you do 500 MERS for
Example you you’re training there’s no day where you’re going to go out there and go like oh sure today’s my 500 Mile practice and you know I’m going to figure my food out so there’s nothing like that um yes you do you go longer than probably for any other race out
There uh your training days there will be some that are longer um but with this sport you learn as you go through the races so your races are your trial and error and food has been something that I have been dialing in forever and I think I got into a nice
Rhythm but I would love for people to understand also that what works for me doesn’t work for everybody and maybe what works for you at some point might not work for you at your next you know age group for example so I went from like eating real food on the bike to
Wanting to be more um efficient and do only liquid food food and at some point we realized that it doesn’t work like 100% liquid diet did not work for me um you also have to keep in mind that also your body is not meant to be awake you know from 10 p.m. to
6:00 a.m. right at that at that time range your body should be sleeping and not eating so it takes a little bit of training to to do that as well and I was noticing that you know exactly from like 11: p.m. to maybe 3:00 4: a.m. my body
Was like nope we don’t even even if you’re working out even if you’re out there riding your bike we don’t want any food so again every raise we learn a little bit more and we try something different um I I mainly use liquid diet through the raise but I also have
Learned to identify for example temperature wise if um it’s super cold I defin cannnot I love my drinks to be super cold I I love using ice so if it’s too cold that’s something I cannot do so I’ve learned um I have also learned to
Uh when I start a race in order for me not to go to the bathroom right away I will go um solid probably an hour hour and a half before some real food in my stomach and that will give me an hour on the bike without me having to worry you
Know I have to drink or I have to do x amount of C iies um so and and then my pre-workouts and my post-work workouts are from the same brand um I don’t even know if I can share my brand but um uh they yeah that that’s that’s my pre drewing and post
And some solids because again you have to play around based on the temperatures and on sometimes even for example I don’t like eating solid when I’m climbing and if I do a race that has a lot of climbing that’s another monster so so it’s been a learning curve for me if that makes
Sense and and I’m still I think dialing it in so there are yeah if I have a loop I will carry you know the least amount of things possible and then when I come back to my pit area I will just grab what I need but it’s been a learning
Experience for me and and I’m still like dialing it in but um mainly liquid food um just to be efficient and and I think fueling is that thing that we all try to different things to find you know you might find something it works for a while then and
Then it doesn’t yeah exactly then it do you’re back in the search again try like okay that’s I gotta find something that’s yeah go ahead no so that’s that’s something that actually happened to me uh very frequently I will buy I will go through the supermarket before a raise
And I will grab a little bit of everything I thought I would crave right and then by the end of the race or through the race I will crave completely opposite to what I had in the car in the follow vehicle completely opposite so I started then doing you know like okay
Let me think about crunchy salty sweet um uh soft so I started to do more of the uh buying based off on on texture instead of like okay I’m craving M&M’s or whatever other stuff so I did a lot of texture um uh when when I was buying
So yeah everything it’s like you said like you it changes it changes you may crave something warm one day and then there’s another race where you’re craving everything you know cold so it’s it’s a challenge and then you know my my regular food I I try not to
Deprive myself from a lot but um I again h uh with age for us women uh comes like a lot of mindfulness about it when the hormones start playing a role and um yeah it’s not the same so so now I’m a little bit more mindful um so yes for
Those of you who think oh she writes you know 500 miles a week she doesn’t she can eat whatever no I can’t I actually need to be mindful so and it doesn’t hurt me you know it doesn’t hurt me to be mindful about it all right so let’s kind of talk about
Ultraendurance cycling you know and you know from my experience I knew that there were you know rides that were super long distance and stuff but you know here in Georgia you know you know 100 milees the most I’ve ever seen a 30 60 and you know 100 miles but
When you start talking about you know I’m just going to say 750 miles and I’m trying to picture 750 Miles because I’m thinking like okay so my house to Orlando about 400 so see you can do one from your house to Orlando and back and that’s why
I’m like okay yeah that’s that is a trip to my house to Orlando and back when I think 750 miles so kind of talk about you know urant you know for those who might not know you know about the sport it’s well like you said long long distances that’s the
Best way to to describe it I promise it sounds heavier when you talk about it than when you do it okay I I like driving and I have been part of a lot of teams helping the athletes you know part of their crew and I think in my brain at
Least maybe that’s what I’ve come to believe you know through the years but my brain my cycling 500 miles it’s easier than driving 500 Miles um it’s a lot of I think it’s more a mind over body kind of thing I mean it’s not don’t get me wrong it’s not
Like you can say oh sure I’m gonna go out there and ride 500 miles I I can do it yeah that that’s the that’s the attitude you need but I think it it’s more you know once you put up the training it’s more like um a
Mindset um you have to be open to fail uh fall and stand up and you have to be able to um adapt as you go because you may have the best training you may be super ready you may have all the miles under your legs
And first 40 miles just to give you an example with that 750 miles I will never forget 45 miles in I still have how many to go 705 um my garming died so yes and that back then I’m I’m back then things were not as they are now so
Back then we had you know RQ cards that had all the you know where you have to turn so I’m grateful that back then was that that way now you’re gring dies and you’re like um what do I do now so I don’t know endurance it’s more I I will
Say it’s more of a mind over body or or mindful thing than anything else um but I think that people get scared over the distances and and anybody that wants to try it I mean I will encourage them to do it because it’s just one of the
Most every time you finish one of these races whether like you said it’s a 75 mile or 100 or you know 200 and 300 you can start building up to that it’s just it feels like you can take on anything out there in general you know with your life
So I think it’s just writing a lot training a lot and having you know training your mind as well um but yeah Ultra cycling it’s I don’t know it’s giving me purpose I guess but yeah it’s a lot of miles so that’s the easiest way to describe it a lot of miles and
You’re you’re also a cycling coach so what inspired you to be aach after I did that race that PBP race the self-supported 750 um and then I was called for the you know group that did this uh through the France 21 stages everybody started approaching me back then I was already a spinning
Instructor and I was a personal trainer and everybody you know started asking me and I’m like it wouldn’t hurt I mean I love helping people so um I was ready already writing with some and I just decided to give back to this sport through you know
Being a coach and it’s just I mean it’s just amazing to you know I think that the best way I can put it is I enjoy the the the smiles um whether you know with the personal training or the spinning or and and if you’re a spinning instructor you’re
Probably feel the same way um it it’s just a smile on people’s accomplishments whether again just something super small or something huge um yes yeah so I think it’s just it’s just that I’m I’m that person who loves to see I’m I I smile a lot I laugh a lot so I
Think being able to put you know that smile or or or make somebody happy I think that’s that’s what just fuels me and and made me go for it okay okay and talking on a topic of inspiration you know what inspires you you know what or
Who inspires you to kind of continue and keep um it has to be and and I think we were talking about this a little bit earlier um Ordinary People um there’s so many stories out there and you know we see we commonly see the stories of pros
And you know athletes that get paid for it and kudos to them I mean they’re doing something that they like and you know they’re they’re putting a lot more work than probably we do but I think that Ordinary People I think they’re just special because I
Mean when I every time I find that somebody did X or Y and you never thought about about it it ju it just blows my mind y so has to be that I mean there’s so many stories so many stories and I it just blows my mind when you’re
Just friends with someone and all of a sudden they share something that you never thought you know about that person and and it just blows my mind that that’s something that I just I don’t know it I I’m I’m lacking words right now because it’s it’s just that ordinary
People out there you know making their dreams come true I guess people are amazing you know a lot of the amazing of orinary people sometimes gets overshadowed and you know when you hear those things you know you you know it does kind of bring that yeah I can
Probably do that too or I could do something close to that level so it’s that you know it gives you that kind of inspiration yeah okay so here’s a question you know you’re a cyclist what type of bike you got gota ask that question I I do have less bikes than
Before by the way but I I’m telling you a aging it’s a thing that was how many bites do you have um well I oh my gosh I shouldn’t say I only have but but based on my personal experience in the past at the current moment I only have
Four one of them is the commissioned guess it’s the one that I use for the tour and I will never have the heart to sell that bike or anything so it’s just there as a reminder of that big thing that I did um okay when you know I
Thought I was going to die five days into it and then I survived 21s even with a car accident so that one is the commission the commission and then I have my time trial bike I have my what I call my climbing bike because I usually
Take two bikes with me for every long race and I have now my mountain bike um yes and and I’m trying to find a way to make an excuse to get a gravel bike now you you you’ll figure out one I know right I I know we always
Do but yeah mountain bike my climbing road bike and my time trials are the ones that are active right now and um figuring a way to get my gravel bike is there is you there some people one BR well I think that the bikes speak to you I think
That um I and and I hope that if anybody gets anything from this show would be again what works for me doesn’t work for everybody and what works for somebody else will may not work for me and it’s a lot of trial and error and yes at the
Current moment the bikes that I do they’re all tracks so track is a current bike or it’s a bike that at the current moment I’m I’m feeling inspired with um it it’s it’s a bike that I feel comfortable with um and and you know there are a lot of bikes
Out there that I have tried and sometimes you get on a bike and you feel like you know so everybody can understand you feel slow and then you get on the same bike maybe it’s another brand and then all of a sudden you’re you know great with that bike so I think
That the bike that makes you feel empowered for whatever reason uh it’s the bike that you should get oh I but yeah I’m I’m that person I’m that person that will just if I like a brand I will have you know all the like the road and
This and the mountain bike and the time travel from that brand I’m I’m that person all right so this is a two-part question here so the first part of the question is what is your proudest as a cyclist and the second part of that question is what is your worst moment or
Biggest mistake you’ve made as oh wow um I proudest moment I I have a lot um of moments I were like whoa but I think that that 100 mile back in 2008 or 809 or I I don’t I don’t remember when it was it was between 2008 and
2011 probably finishing that 100 mile what’s the first thing that popped up when you asked the question like the smile on that picture it’s something that I will never ever forget um I mean I can say you know finishing the 750 when I was in a foreign country by myself surviving for 89
Hours a country that had another language so I mean I have I have a lot but I think that probably finishing my first ever 100 mile will be whoa I can actually do this um yeah I I think so I know that out of all the things that I’ve done uh yeah that
That um I don’t know maybe yeah there was a a 500 Mile where I thought I was not going to get to the Finish Line on time and I made it sparing like 2 minutes that that can be another proud m where where I was super sleep deprived I
Had been pedaling for 40 whatever hours and and I made it with you know I I did like I pushed and pushed even being sleep deprived and tired and hungry and I had a little bit of um I I had my first episode of um shmer
Neck and and and making it to the Finish Line after that you know with two minutes to spare that might be another like wo moment for me yeah um worst moment or biggest mistake um might be the the same race actually um the the one that that I had you know
Like two minutes to spare I think that I wanted to tackle one of the like the longest climb and I think I started climbing at night I had been pushing my body already for like I don’t know how many hours and I know I was uh I was already a little bit
Dehydrated back on my food intake everything was kind of like off and I just wanted to get tackle that 20 mile climb and get it over with and and I think I could have stopped maybe um take a little break like everybody was doing yeah and
Um and I I don’t know bring my numbers back up and I I think that’s the one that comes to my mind uh as my oh wait a minute this is not how I was supposed to do it um I I just wanted to get it done with and
But the entire climb I was you know nauseated we we were at altitude I was already behind you know with my calorie intake and I was nauseated and I was stopping thinking I was going to throw up for the longest time I mean it was a
Brutal brutal climb and I just wanted to get it over with so um but now I probably if I do the race again which I for I will never do again but you know you forget about it like in three weeks um so I I think that I would
Either try to make it earlier to the climb and and tackle it or if I know that I’m behind you know calorie wise or feeling awful I will probably okay let’s stop let’s just [Laughter] reassess um get our things together and and you know go for it so I I think that
Might be that might be the one okay that moment I think and you learn from you know and we always have thing back I want to do it again see if I exactly it’s still SC scares me I mean don’t get me wrong the the the the race
Still scares me but yeah I would probably like to do that one again to see the difference all right so you know a lot of people when I started you know running and cycling I was in my 40s um and that’s something that you know I kind of
Took kind of push myself to do for me all right y but what if you what message would you have for someone who you know 40s they’re in their 50s or even older and their mindset is H it’s too late for me to start this yeah I do I do have somebody close
To me now I recently met I’m 51 by the way and um she’s yeah so I know we’re in that beautiful age for us women might be a little bit more complicated and you have to deal with a whole new set of things yeah but it’s it’s another learning
Curve and um yeah that’s another different topic so someday you want to talk about menopause and hormos I’m your girl girl but anyways I even forgot I think no I didn’t forget the question okay so um I hear a lot and I heard a lot in the
Past uh everybody telling me you know oh but I’m so out of shape I’m like well that’s why you’re starting like so right I I don’t think that there’s a perfect age to start um I don’t know maybe you start at 20 and then you just don’t do it anymore
Until like you’re back 50 so I I think I’m I’m reassessing my whole I don’t know 10 years 11 years and starting like basically from scratch because I want to do even more epic and I want to now go for goals and podiums and whatever or not so I I I don’t think
There’s an age limit and and the one thing that I really really need to people people to understand is that’s why you will start training that’s why you for example hire a personal trainer or or cycling training or running I mean uh uh cycling coach or a running coach because if you don’t
Know how to do it you don’t know what you’re doing you need that guidance I don’t think there’s there’s an age I mean I heard the other day on another podcast a story of these women started doing irom man than at what 48 or something like that I’m like whoa wait a
Minute so I don’t think there’s an age I mean people limit themselves too much and and I think it’s just because we’re as humans are you know overly thinking everything I just think people should just go for it find somebody who can help you and just go for it the worst
Thing that can happen is I don’t know maybe you thought you wanted to do 300 mil races and you just want to do now like I don’t know 25 or 50 or maybe you want to go for 1,000 so I think it’s just taking that first step like don’t
Be scared seriously like any of you are call me I’m GNA give you a pep talk because yeah I mean I I I seriously this year I thought it was over for me and in June and I was like no I still hear like stories from people that are 76 and 86 and
92 yeah yeah I enjoy talking athletes that in their 70s and 80s because if you watch them even though they might be dead last there yeah people need to understand that if you’re going to go into something goow in it for personal reasons not
To I don’t know be like you have to I always race against myself I don’t consider myself competitive even though people say I am if competing against myself all of a sudden brings me into the fight for you know third place second or whatever then
I’m going to go for it like a mad woman but but I’m always competing for my goal my personal goal or beating my same time like the year before and the older I get the more I try to do that because you know people say no maybe you won’t be
Able to be as fast or as you know I’m like well let me try to prove you’re wrong um so yeah I I don’t think there’s an age um and and I think that people need to be less scared and just go for it because seriously this is this will
Sound as a very like a cliche but life is short for real and the more you keep thinking about stuff the the more you know I don’t know the later it be exactly y yeah I get to it one day yeah I get to it yeah and yeah and all a sudden you’re
Like oops right exactly what is a noncycling thing or fact about you that no one knows at this point I have forgotten every other skill I had um I I had a creative slash artistic side and I used to play my uh I used to
Play the piano and I used to sing a little bit and um I used to be creative with my hands like I did jewelry I I I bet nobody remembers that or if somebody knew I don’t know maybe nobody knows that about me but I used to do um yry um like handmade
Like yeah I have that creative side on me and all of a sudden like cycling came across and I’m like oh okay nice all right so before I let you go what’s next for you you know are you training for anything are you getting
Ready for any major event yes I am um I recently and I don’t think I shared this before with you but I recently um I decided to get my name in the Leadville Lottery and I got an email a week ago saying congratulations you are in
Awesome and I was going to do a different race this year um I had my calendar I’m doing my first 24-hour mountain bike wise in February like two uh I think it’s three four weeks from now which is another accomplishment for me I’ve I’ve I’ve
Done 6 hours 12 hours um it’ll be my first 24 on a mountain bike so after yeah after yeah that would be another monster for me but um after that I had a few things that i’ I’ve done in the past but they were not big for me like in my
Brain I they were not like fueling me me um so I had plans of doing a road race and I’m like I might leave this for the for 2024 so I was still trying to figure out um what to do you know the second
Half of the year so I decided to get my name there and um yes I’m going and um I was super excited when I found out and then I started watching videos and I’m like oh wait a minute what did I just sign in for yeah you know and and I invite
People to do that if if you commit before you know it just it’s it’s a different I don’t know perspective maybe like you will just train like I don’t know it’ll give you a purpose I think um and I do that all the time I I will just
Commit without finding out and then when I found out when I find out I’m like that was crazy I should have not done that but now I cannot go back so I forc myself to do that um and yeah this this will be in August and I’m looking
Forward it’s it’s a very hard race so um I’m going to try to you know beat the odds I guess so oh you get I’m talking about it and I’m getting a little bit anxious here I’m like oh my gosh all right you have any last words
You want to share with the listeners before you go um I I think that believing in yourself uh there’s a lot that happens in life um and if you wonder if you’re the only out there please give me a call I’ll share my entire life with
You um I think people should never ever ever quit like give up um life happens to all of us all of us and you know I think Ultra has given me the tools to work with life the same way as life has given me the tools to work with you know
Ultra um I I just think you have to quiet your brain you you have to get out of your main Circle everything that might be negative or pulling you to the wrong direction and don’t be scared to do that I I remember me being very scared of that and now I’m not scared
Like if you’re not adding to my life if you know a thing or a person is not adding to my life I I will not be rude but I will just you know nope I cannot that let that in my inner circle and I think you have to be selfish with
Yourself when it comes to you know your mental state and your physical state you do you and you believe in yourself and you don’t let anybody tell you otherwise yes th those are great last words Maria thank you for being a guest on the show I really appreciate you
Thank you for having me seriously it was a blast so if people or follow you online how can they do so um so uh Instagram um and I have you can find also my coach profile uh uh on Instagram is coach Maria PR and then um you will find there the
Link to the web page but the web page will be be better coaching Services um be better yeah that’s awesome um so yeah those two ways um Instagram again coach mariacore PR and you will find there at the B better Coach service um.com Maria again thank you for coming on the
Show I really appreciate thank you for having me thank you thank you all right you have a great day you too all right bye bye thank you for listening to this episode of the no gimmicks just s podcast we really appreciate everyone who Tunes in each week if you enjoy
Today’s show please support us by subscribing reading and reviewing this show wherever you listen to podcasts and remember to tell your friends about the no gimmicks just sweep podcast so we can continue to have awesome conversations with everyday athletes just like you until next time have an amazing week