MEET SASHA GOLLISH!
MEET SASHA GOLLISHThis week, we took some time to catch up with our newest Ambassador, Sasha Gollish. She just finished up racing at the Pan Am games, where she won a Bronze metal in the 1500m (with her shoe only half way on!). Besides being an amazing athlete, she is also working towards her doctorate in Engineering Education. Learn more about Sasha below! |
What are your favorite and least favorite parts of running?My favourite part of running is … ok I have a few favourite things. That feeling when you get lost in the trials on a run, you feel effortless, you feel like you could go forever. Or when you complete a really hard workout; yes, the workout is really hard, but there is something so satisfying when you finish. And doing something with your friends. Least favourite part of running is the amount of laundry you produce. Why can’t the white boxes, wash, dry and fold my clothes!How did you begin running and how long have you been professionally competing?I began running when I was about 9 in grade school. My little school had a cross country team and my goal was to be faster than everybody. Unfortunately, I fell that first race but I was hooked. I have only been running professionally for about a year now. I took a long break from running and racing and came back to it in 2014.How do you prepare for a race?My races tend to be at night so I have to wait all day. I have started writing down a schedule for the day, working back from when the race starts. I like to start my warm up at a certain time. I like to eat a banana 3 hours before. And I always like to start my day with a coffee and a bowl of oatmeal. I try to keep things simple. Races should just be like a practice. When your practices go so well why would you change anything?How did you choose your event?I think my event chose me. Well, maybe my coaches picked my event for me. I’m happy to be out running and at workouts. We have played around with different events from he 800 to 5000, but the blend of endurance and speed in the 1500 seems to play to my strengths.What are the most common mistakes made by inexperienced runners?Dealing with injuries. Too often I hear from new runners that they can ‘train through’ an injury. There is no such thing! The only way an injury heals is if you let it recover. Cross-train. Alter-G. Take a break. But let it your injuries heal. And related to that is the difference between discomfort when training and racing and orthopedic pain. Discomfort is that feeling you get when you fatigue, most people relate it to pain, but it’s not ‘real’ pain. Orthopedic pain is when you hurt yourself, like shin splints or an ankle roll.What are your goals in the next few years?Rio Olympics is the 2016 goal! After that it gets a little bit fuzzy. I would like to prepare for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo; I have a goal of running a marathon and trying to go after the Canadian record. But I am looking forward to running the 5,000 and 10,000 on the track and practicing on the roads some more. |
Catch up with Sasha on Facebook and on her Blog! |
