Guest Blogger: Alix Goddard

Who Inspires You?

         Forget about Run like a Girl. Run like a 40 year old! I’m still chasing you. Almost a year with Moxy now, and you are still not in my sights. I want to keep getting faster but I don’t even want to catch you, I just want to keep chasing you. I’m not only talking about Rita (superstar), it’s all of you. It’s not just you who inspires me though. It’s every girl that gets out of bed, despite dark, cold, lack of sleep and aching muscles. Seriously, yack trax and headlamps so we don’t miss a run? I didn’t even know that people did this crazy stuff, until I met all you crazy girls. I am inspired by the Brackett teenagers, and their beautiful mom. In fact, I’m inspired by all the moms and grandmoms. I’m inspired by my 52 year old friend Carrie who always out-hikes me and continues to fend off MS. I’m inspired by my sister Tara who defies the idea that women lack upper body strength and slays pull-ups in crossfit! I am inspired by Dana and Denise, who I like to think of as the MVP sisters, always working hard. And I am inspired by myself. I am proud of my spirit and I am impressed with my improving strength. I want to get a lot faster and stronger and better. But as we all know, the really good things in life take hard work and dedication. As Kel said, it’s not always about bikini bodies (or out-hiking all the male fire fighters I work with). Admittedly, I want to feel good about the way I look, I think that is an inspiration for many of us. We are out here doing more important things than decreasing our waist sizes though. We are increasing our life expectancies, we are decreasing our chances of ever getting diabetes, heart disease, and certain types of cancers. We are putting good fuel into our bodies so that when we ask them to perform they don’t hesitate. When I was young my parent’s friend told us kids that our bodies are palaces, and to treat them accordingly. It took me awhile, but now I really get it. All of our bodies are amazing, and we are all very lucky to be mobile, strong, and inspired. So it’s good that we are out there taking advantage of our health, improving ourselves, and inspiring each other. I love the friendships I have made in Moxy. I love seeing another Moxy girl in town and feeling like we are part of a secret club, cause whatever we did that morning was pretty awesome. And the thought that at some point along the way I might inspire another woman to get out and get fit, well, that is inspiration in itself!