About Me

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Boulder, CO, United States
From Minnesota to Maine to the sunny land of Boulder, CO, I have been competing as an athlete all my life and been working as massage therapist for six years now. Helping athletes with greater recovery, bounce back from injury faster, and helping one's body perform at it's best is what I aim to do. My love for sport, training and helping a body feel good and perform at it's best has driven me into a career in massage therapy. I strive for nothing less than the best...let me help you reach greater heights.

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

A transition from one side of sport to another



I have considered myself an athlete for as long as I can remember.   I have made biathlon my career for the past ten years of my life.  A sport that is like few others, drawing on your ability to physically push yourself  to a place that just doesn't feel very nice,  in addition to requiring calm and focus.  Ah biathlon, never a dull sport.  It is one of the best ones if you ask me, although I may be slightly bias.  

My life has revolved around my biathlon training and racing for almost as long as I can remember.  It felt right.  I love to train.  And I love to race even more, well, most days anyways.  But I have reached a point where I am ready to branch out a bit more in life.
While racing for the past six years I have also been working as a massage therapist.  It is work that I have enjoyed a great deal.  My curiosity for how our bodies respond to things, whether that be training, body work, the food we eat or the place we live in, is endless.  Working with others to help their bodies feel better, reducing stress our bodies hold from training, working and everyday living is extremely rewarding.  I am also left with a desire to learn more in ways in which I can help people to feel better and perform to their best ability   Treating your body to better health, that is what I have always strived to do in my massage work.  So as I have reached this point of transition in my life, I am putting more time and focus into my work as a massage therapist.
This transition of mine has included more that a slight change in focus, it has also involved a move across the country, from the great North of Aroostook County, Maine to the mountainous Boulder, CO.  Settling into the West has been great, although I am still working on the altitude associated with the move, but I am hoping I will eventually adapt.
My role in Boulder now includes helping coach the Boulder Junior Nordic Racing Team, which I have enjoyed thus far and am even more excited to get on snow with everyone and really put the summer training to the test.  I am also very proud to have a the opportunity to be working with the U.S. Paralympic Biathlon and Nordic team, helping to coach and doing some massage work with the team.  All of these athletes have given me a different perspective on the sport that I have been so focused on myself for the past ten years.  This new perspective has sparked new excitement in me for the sport that I love.  I couldn't be more excited for the snow to fall!
In between practice with the BNJRT and camps with the Paralympic Nordic team, I am  working on establishing my own business as a massage therapist, providing the greatest bodywork an athlete can find, here in Boulder.  All of these changes in my life has lead me to spend a lot of time coming up with new goals to work towards.  Bringing greater bodywork care to every level of athlete, is now at the top of my goal list.  Along with this goal, I am launching a new blog to follow my progress in reaching this goal of mine.  It will also be a platform for me to share ideas and thoughts on bodywork, skiing/biathlon, a means to schedule your own massage with me.  Check it out at:  B.A.M.bodywork.blogspot.com.  Yup, BAM: BethAnn Marie.
Changing up my priorities doesn't mean I won't be out on the trail this year.  I'll be putting a race bib on and throwing my rifle on my back as often as I can. I will just be juggling it with a few other things this year. And could not be more excited about them all.
Hope to see you all out on the skis trail or perhaps on the massage table sometime soon!  Until then, keep working on that snow dance! You can never do too much.

cheers, BethAnn