Genevieve Desuasido - San Mateo, Palo Alto & San Carlos Assistant Coach
- AFAA group exercise instructor
- Soccer and cross-country coach
- Physical education and anatomy/physiology teacher
When we asked AlaVie Assistant Coach Genevieve Desuasido why she decided to embrace fitness as a career, she told us “fitness actually embraced me first.“
“It's that thing at the beginning and end of the day that makes me feel good. My family does that, too, but on a personal achievement level, fitness and what I have learned and trained myself to accomplish gives me that feeling like I'm on top of the world. It's that 'fit' feeling that I hope to help others to find, “ Genevieve says.
A former cross-country, track and soccer player, Genevieve loves competing and being part of a team. Inspired by one of her high school teachers who was also her running coach, she followed in her footsteps.
“Because of her I went into teaching science, tutoring anatomy and physiology, and coaching track and cross-country. I grew up in an active family so we were introduced to many outdoor sports and activities. I feel like I've been reaching for fitness in so many ways all my life, and I've loved every experience. Some of my favs are snow and water skiing, ultimate frisbee, soccer, running, and white-water rafting. “
A mother of three children “that are as active as me, “ Genevieve's personal goal in fitness is a lasting body and mind that will allow her to be there for all her kids' adventures. She wants “to be that mom who is ready to run the race with them, not just sit on the sidelines.“
To that end, she gives herself a reachable goal and as soon as she reaches it, she makes another one. This upward movement becomes a habit, she explains. Training for and competing in her first half marathon was a real test of this approach.
“I set out with 12 weeks to train and never did so much running in my life, logging hundreds of miles in just three months. I know now that I should have cross-trained a lot more than I did because that would have prevented my knee injury during the race. I finished that race in two hours on that injured knee and fell into my Dad's arms at the finish line. I'm stronger for all of it and that accomplishment has helped me to set my sights on a full marathon and triathlon in the next few years, filled with lots of cross-training... “
As a coach, Genevieve thrives on getting feedback: “Whether it be verbal or physical, hearing how I affected or can affect someone's fitness goal is a motivator for me. Seeing the positive changes in people's lives and image of themselves after a long period of training is intrinsically rewarding. “
“All you have to give is your best, she says, But you're the only one who can decide what that is. “
