MINI FEATURE | Mary Higgins: Q+A
Mary Higgins started training with Boulder Underground, in Boulder under Matt Hensley, in the fall of 2018. She has her doctorate and is a 2:55 marathoner.
How did you find the Boulder Underground?
Matt was my housemate for a few months. #OWTC
After almost PRing in the crazy 2018 Boston weather, Matt started asking more and more questions about my training and running goals. Right before the London (or maybe Berlin - idk some world major international marathon), Matt was living with a friend about 1,000 ft higher than Boulder and I was dog sitting in the same house. He convinced me that week that if I let him coach me, I could break 3 hours in the marathon. I think he also made me pizza? Sarah Marie Design’s quote “Feed me and tell me I’m pretty fast” accurately describes my life motto.
What was on your mind before you met with us for the first time?
Ever read First Day Jitters by Julie Danneberg? Shout-out to all the educators and moms reading this! I was anxious and excited! I remember planning out my outfit the night before and having my bag ready to go!
What were your expectations?
I was excited to be training with a group rather than running solo workouts or meeting up with friends that shifted our individual training plans around just to run with each other. Matt explained that BU was more than just a group of runners meeting up. Matt described the group as having a sense of a common purpose and mentality of striving towards improvement. I was expecting this, because Matt is one of the most sincere and honest guys I know. However, I did not expect to LOVE this group as much as I do.
Did being part of the group meet your expectations?
Above and beyond my expectations! BU has become my Colorado family and I have made life long friends in the process. I am working on being more open about my own mental health journey and I know that this group has helped me develop a more positive outlook on running and life.
How do you like being coached by Matt?
Love it. Matt’s coaching style considers our lives outside of running. He knows we all have passions that often intersect with the running world and others that just don’t. He can give me one look and know that I need a hug/more sleep/or a day off. He also seems to always know when I need an opportunity to show myself what I was capable of.
What’s your favorite part of being in the group?
Working towards my running goals with life-long friends that encourage and inspire me daily!
What do you have to say about training with all of us women?
We the baddest bitches I know. We love and support one another to the max in our professional, personal, and athletic pursuits.
What took you from a 3:15+ marathoner to a 2:55 marathoner?
Patience, Grace, and Grit
While I had only worked with Matt for 6 months prior to running a 2:55 marathon, my 17+ minute PR was a culmination of years of training and racing. I had an unfortunate amount of poor racing conditions, but I kept showing up. I gave myself grace when things didn’t go as planned - Like when I ran a marathon in the midst of my comprehension exams (Think 5 literature reviews on top of your regular semester graduate courses. Literally. Hell. ) or running a marathon days after spending the night in a Canadian ER with food poisoning. Finally, I’m a boss as bitch and you gotta have a lot of grit : ) #lizzovibes
You've had some pretty demanding jobs, will you talk about work/life/training balance?
I am definitely not an expert at the work/life/training balance, but I do have a lot of experience with attempting to balance all three. With my previous school administrator position, I either had to run at 4:00 a.m. or run after work which often meant 7 p.m. at night. It was not glamorous. At first, I was frustrated because of the insane demands of my job, but I learned to focus on what I could control during work hours.
I focused on drinking water, wearing comfy shoes, and preparing/eating healthy snacks & lunches. I even jumped into gym classes to do a few minutes of yoga, stretching, or trampoline jumping to get my heart rate up.
What growth have you seen in the last year?
I am stronger both physically and mentally. This past year has been tough. I ended a committed relationship, moved into my own apartment during the COVID-19 March lockdown, resigned from my job. However, I also traveled the East Coast, added an adorable vizsla puppy, Sutton, to my life, and learned more about myself in the process.
What has been challenging?
No official races. Not sure when I will officially get to line up again, but having our monthly BU time trials is definitely helping with this challenge. A few of us like to decide on a theme and coordinate our outfits.
What are you looking forward to over the next months and year?
Hopefully finding a marathon and breaking 2:55!
You can follow Mary and her running stories on Instagram @merrgorun.