"You give yourself your own life raft, and it feels so great to come up for air and think, jeez, that was a close call! But I'm here. And it's given me strength to go further and deeper than that next time."

Becs Gentry is a Peloton Tread and Strength instructor, and in March, she added another very impressive title to her fitness resume: 2:32 marathoner and Olympic Marathon Trials competitor for Team Great Britain. On this episode, Becs — who is from the UK but has lived in New York City since she took the Peloton job in 2019 — talks about what it was like being invited to compete for Team GB, and about what it took to finish fourth that day and to run a nearly five-minute personal best time. She talks about her training and how she prepared for race day, including how she balances her own training with teaching and how she survived a 22-mile run on a treadmill one day. She talks about the dark days and the tough runs, and how she got through them, and shares her own struggles with confidence both on and off the roads and treadmill. Plus, she talks about privacy and why she didn't tell her parents she was auditioning to be a Peloton instructor, and why she didn't tell people she was training for the Trials until shortly before race day. Finally, Becs talks about how she's learned to deal with the pressure of racing, whether it's an unplanned 5K (she did it once and says "never again") or an ultramarathon (of which she's done several).

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What you'll get on this episode:

• How the opportunity to run the Olympic Trials came about, and when it first became a dream for Becs (6:45)
• Where Becs was at with running when she found out she would be competing in the Trials (17:00)
• How Becs trained for the Trials (21:00)
• On confidence (24:15)
• That time Becs ran 22 miles on a treadmill (30:20)
• How Becs balances teaching at Peloton with her own training (34:20)
• What race day was like (47:00)
• On dealing with tough moments during races — and getting past them (1:03:10)
• How Becs recovered, physically and emotionally, from the Trials and from the 2019 New York City Marathon (1:05:10)
• Did Becs have any idea how big Peloton would be, and how well-known she would be? (1:13:00)
• Why Becs didn't tell her parents she auditioned for the Peloton job (1:16:30)

What we mention on this episode:

Jess Sims on Episode 261 of the Ali on the Run Show

Tunde Oyeneyin on Episode 311 of the Ali on the Run Show

Olivia Amato on Episode 344 of the Ali on the Run Show

Matty Maggiacomo on Episode 350 of the Ali on the Run Show

Follow Becs:

• Instagram @becsgentry

Follow Ali:

• Instagram @aliontherun1
• Join the Facebook group
• Twitter @aliontherun1
• Support on Patreon
• Blog
• Strava

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