Meet FAP Athlete, Amy Guevara
Where you located? And who are you outside of your adventures?
Manhattan, MT - I’m a 40 year old, Mom, Wife, High School Teacher, hard core fun haver
What sports/adventures/races are you training for or did you train for?
I’m currently training for the Coeur d’Alene Marathon in May!
Why did you want to be a part of The Female Athlete Project? What were you hoping to come from the partnership of coach + dietitian? What was your overall experience like?
When I found the Female Athlete Project I was eating way to little and running way too much and frustrated with my performance and body image. Colleen is extremely supportive and knowledgeable, but she, The Project is more than that. The coaching relationship with Colleen also means she’ll (in the most loving way possible) call you on your bullshit. My relationship with food and my body, while not always perfect (which turns out imperfection is part the whole process) is much improved, and instead of judging each workout or calorie I’m celebrating what my body is capable of when fueled properly!
Tell us about your race or adventure if you've completed it. How did it go? What was hard? What was great? Did you hallucinate a leopard in a hammock like Courtney Dauwalter?
In October I ran Arkansas Traveler 100 without any crew or pacers (a first for me)! This was easily my best 100 performance; I felt good, and moved quickly through the night, taking in 90-120g CHO/hour for 28 hours! Compared to previous races where I felt like trash and could only handle 45g/hour. I saw a moose under a bridge that turned out to be a rock 😂 Arkansas doesn’t have moose!
If you feel comfortable, tell us about your nutrition experience and what you took away from working with a dietitian.
The thing that ultimately changed was my relationship with food and my body. I couldn’t figure out why I was having meltdowns and no longer found joy in running (among a cascade of other LEA/REDS symptoms like hormonal imbalance and losing my period). Making the connection that proper fueling helped my brain find joy in training was the ultimate lightbulb moment!
Do you have any sage wisdom (big or small!) for other athletes out there training their hearts out? (This can be in relation to training, adventuring, nutrition or all of the above - whatever resonates with you the most)
Joy Compass! If you’re no longer finding joy in what you love to do there’s a reason and it might have something to do with overtraining/under fueling. Find out why, and the most efficacious way to do that is to work with a female specific endurance coach AND dietician. PLEASE DO NOT use a social media coach who has no credentials or experience with female athletes… and dear god whatever you do eat the carbs!!!
What is your why? Can you share the process to discovering it and what it has meant for you? (This can be in relation to training, adventuring, nutrition, or all of the above! Take your pick - whatever resonates with you the most)
My body has done some really amazing things for me while grossly underfueled. While it sometimes feels like I’m starting over, I remind myself that growth is iterative. So I’m excited to see what this 40 year old mom/wife/teacher/runner/surfer/freediver can do while fueled and trained!
What’s your biggest dream race/adventure?
I want to run Ouray 100 in 2027, and someday surf a clean head high wave in the Mentawais.
If you were stranded in the mountains and came across a woodland witch that would feed you anything you wanted in that moment, what would it be?
Dang this is a good question! It would have to be a Boar’s Head Turkey Publix Sub (Pub Sub) with spicy mustard on Italian 5 grain. If you don’t know you haven’t had one, when you’ve had one you’ll know!