Courtesy of HOKA
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Becs Gentry knows it might be impossible to find balance
The runner, mother and Peloton instructor shares that she tries to find the right handle of things in her life and partnership
She talks to PEOPLE about her running, coaching, and new position as Global Brand Ambassador for HOKA
Becs Gentryknows there really isn't such a thing as balance. The Peloton instructor, ultra-marathoner, mother and partner uses air quotes to describe that word, but tells PEOPLE there are a few things that can help people get closer to finding the right steadiness for them.
"Balance, I use it as air quotes because it doesn't exist. There is no equilibrium really when it comes to these things. You just have to be okay with certain things maybe being watered down for a while and other things having to flourish," Gentry, 39, shares while discussing her partnership withHOKA.
One of the things that Gentry shares helps her with her goals, and in return she helps him with his goals is her partner, Austin Curtis, whom she refers to as her "rock."
"We flip-flop between one of us doing something that we've wanted to do and completing one of our goals. It's about just being there for what your support crew can give you. If you want that one thing to flourish, you've got the passion for it, then it, it's going to go there and that's okay because it's temporary," Gentry explains.
Courtesy of HOKA
Curtis, with whom she shares daughter Talullah, was one of the motivating factors for her to complete seven marathons on seven continents in seven days. Both Curtis and Talullah came out to support Gentry when she was completing her marathon goal.
"It's important we do maintain an idea of balance when it comes to these things. Even if it's not literal. It just keeps us floating on that good path of like, okay, I'm not pouring 99% of my energy into this one thing when I've got five other things that really need more than a 1% share. As long as it's making you happy and you genuinely feel content with what your balance currently looks like, then roll with it," Gentry shares.
One thing that she and her partner use is the steadiness of support between the two of them, especially when they're working through their respective goals, and knowing there's a literal and metaphorical finish line to each of their goals to balance out that foundation.
"It is also really useful for people because I think relationships and not just partners, but any relationship of a support network, suffers when it's just this like never ending stream of like, 'Yes, but I need to tick this off for me,' " Gentry says.
Gentry shares that Curtis knew that one day there would be a time where she wasn't training for a race or the Olympic trials.
"That gave a really good break to this, like, striving for one person to have this huge successful balance and the other person being like,' Okay, I'm balancing all these other things,' " she says. "Making sure that their end goal for the other person is there too helps that the balance feel better for both parties or more, however big your support network is."
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While Gentry admits that she stacked all her races together when completing the world marathon challenge, she understands that there still needs to be a balance between training for a race and taking time off.
"Please just take some time off from competing and scheduling. Remember what it's like to just go for a run because you actually enjoy running, not because your coach told you to do it. Take your races into like six months or nine months if you must. And the other three months of the year just get out there, leave your watch, leave your wearables at home and just go run," Gentry advises.
She shares that people need to sometimes "remember to really enjoy the sport."
"It lets you sit in the moment of success as well, or, alternatively, failure if you didn't get to your goal or you didn't finish the race, it allows you some breathing time to get through those emotions, those highs, there's lows, whatever they are, and reset," the coach shares.
Courtesy of HOKA
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In February, Gentry was announced as the Global Brand Ambassador for HOKA. She shares that the brand is one she's "always been super interested in."
"I've been running for such a long time now and it's been really interesting going through different experiences with my running from trail racing, long racing, to Olympic trials and then having a baby and resetting what running is to me,' Gentry shares.
She adds that "HOKA is a brand I was really honored and thrilled that they reached out and asked if I'd be interested in working together with them for this chapter of my running life. And right now, it really does align to where I am in my career."
"It's a brand that obviously truly values performance, but it celebrates the everyday runner and the power of community, which is a huge part of what I stand for as a mom, a runner, a running coach, and in general I think. So it felt like a really good alignment," Gentry says.
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