About the Author

Amanda Brooks

I am a running coach with over a decade of experience helping thousands of runners to achieve their goals from running injury free to crossing that marathon finish line with a PR. I've run over 28,000 miles in my own running journey since 2002. Run To The Finish is my place to share that love and my deep dive in to researching all things running. I hold multiple run coaching certifications, as well as a personal training certification. But it's my ongoing desire to learn and progress as a coach that has allowed me to help runners from their 20's through their 70's! More ways to connect with me:

Amanda Brooks

Tuna Avocado Brown Rice Bowl: Quick high protein, dairy free, gluten free dinner

Feed me, now you crazy wench. We’ve all been there, right? Not someone calling you a wench, but your stomach screaming for attention! Running in the door after traveling or…

Eric Orton Mountain Running Academy

“Would you like to attend a running camp in Jackson Hole lead by Eric Orton, coach from Born to Run?” My initial thought was what a dumb question. OF COURSE…

The Happiness of Pursuit

No I didn’t flip the words…or maybe you didn’t even notice the order because you’ve been so accustomed to reading “the pursuit of happiness”. This is about how having a…

A Collector of Experiences – Minimalist gift giving

“The things you own in life end up owning you.” —Tyler Durden I don’t know when it happened. That moment where I went from craving gifts to seeking out experiences.It’s…

Could your pain be all in your head?

Race week injuries. We’ve attributed them to over training and “taper madness” for years, but we still believe something physically must be wrong. This post is going to piss off…

Race To Kinvara: A Relay Race Through Ireland

When life hands you a four leaf clover, hold on to that bad boy for dear life!! Especially if it happens to be on some of your favorite running gear…

It’s never JUST a half marathon {and injury update}

A triathlon…no a marathon PR…no my first ultra…wait no maybe…I …errrrr What am I planning to do this fall? What is my goal? I get asked weekly, so I feel…

Canal du Midi – Secrets of Le Boat life

Cars, planes, trains, buses, subway, bike, on foot…we literally toured the South of France by every mode of transportation possible! Except for those adorable Vespa’s that filled the narrow streets!…

5 Essential Experiences for the South of France

“Don’t forget to remove the magical France filter when you get home” — statement from one of my travel companions in jest as we all felt every photo seemed to…

Photo Tour – South of France

A picture might be worth a thousand words, but my brain is coming up with so many more than any image could provide…I love that they can capture a moment,…

Should you refuse to be sucked in to running a marathon?

Confused?! You should be after running 7 marathons and committing to another this fall, I definitely think it’s an experience worth having…except for all the times I tell people never…

Saucony 26 Strong Update and I’m Bart Yasso’s Girlfriend

I asked for someone to run a marathon…picked the lovely Jodi…then disappeared! Well that’s because I was waiting on details to be finalized before shouting from the rooftops some of…

Runner’s World Race Review: Heartbreak Hill Hat Trick

For someone who always wanted to be a writer and then fell in love with running, could there be a more fitting experience than a Runner’s World race?? I think…

Runner’s World Boston Experience

How do you sum up a weekend of being immersed in something that you love with great people in a beautiful setting? No really, how?! Do I now want to…

Cancer is a laughing matter at St Jude

You know how hospitals smell?? That weird mixture of antiseptic, air spray and circulated air that hits you full force when you step through those sliding doors? I braced myself…

Butternut Squash “Cheesy” Bake – Dairy and Gluten Free

What childhood foods make you think of spring? Immediately my brain goes to hot dogs and macaroni and cheese…yes the kind straight from a rectangular blue box. It was probably…

Walkin’ in Memphis – Literally

3 hours after leaving my hotel room, I wandered back in ready for a nap, but instead dressing quickly to head out to dinner at Flight with the St Jude…

Why I can never go home again

As the sweat started trickling down my back for the 30th consecutive 16 hour day traipsing door-to-door in the Atlanta heat, it hit me like a ton of homemade cookies,…

Complacency Will Kill You and other Lessons for Big Results

Sitting in a cold auditorium is how I might have started many nap stories during college, but in 2012 at a work convention I stumbled upon what is to date…

21 Sneaky Vegetable Recipes: They Won’t Even Know They’re Eating Veggies

The gold standard for fruit and veggie servings is 7 to 9 a day. I admit that upon first reading that my jaw dropped and I couldn’t fathom making it…

Menopause by 30 – It’s not slowing me down

Menopause. Oye, that word…it just feels OLD. Like something my mother and her friends should talk about while knitting {ok she doesn’t knit}. Not me. Not at 32. I admit…

Vegan Clean Eating Blueberry Upside Down Cake

A few weeks ago David’s boss gave us tickets to the Orlando Magic game…not just any seats, but club seats meaning we had access to a buffet of food! I…

Do Your Best, Forget the Rest: Tony Horton Book Review

“I’m a guy who got tired of being out of shape, miserable, stressed out and broke. I saw my Big Picture, I put together a plan, and I acted on…

4 min PR and 3rd place finish – Best Damn Race Orlando

I’ve already said I’m not a fan of race reports, so mostly I’ll keep this short and sweet with some details for me to have as a record for later.…

Vegan Broccaulikale Masher Recipe – Crazy name, great taste

Boerenkool is a traditional Dutch dish using kale and mashed potatoes, which is what I initially set out to make to go with our fish. Nothing against the good ol’…

Wallflower Friday: Time to Delurk

My analytics tell me that thousands of you are visiting each day…I have gotten to know about 10% of you through great comments, challenges and events. The technical term for…

Best Damn Race Safety Harbor – Half Marathon Report

I really hate race reports. Mine. Yours. Famous people’s. Two exceptions: People I’m coaching {woot go team} and really good friends who have just crushed a PR or done something…

Ab Challenge Exercises Demonstrated

Time for another one month challenge! I asked what you wanted and ab challenge was the clear winner. I get it, spring will disappear on us in a flash and…

Ab Challenge Calendar

Time for another one month challenge! I asked what you wanted and ab challenge was the clear winner. I get it, spring will disappear on us in a flash and…

Vegan Kale Slaw with Creamy Avocado Dressing

Did you know that lime, sweet potatoes, pumpkin seeds and chili powder are some of the defining elements of Southwestern flavors? I learned this after debating whether I should be…

LHR Training Revisited with MAF Method

Last spring I started the low heart rate training method {LHR}, popularized by Phil Maffetone. It’s been buzzed about it for years, but it took Miss Zippy sharing her process…

Clean Eating White Bean Chicken Chili – DF, GF

After two very long years and a move from Miami to Orlando, my parents were able to come visit us again! Knowing they were coming on Monday, I wanted to…

Fitness Trackers: Fad or Future?

Get ready to geek out friends. If you love tracking workouts or get motivated by seeing progress on numbers, 2014 is the year it’s all going to grow even more.…

CES 2014 – Making life more fun

I love to talk running. No surprises there. However, I didn’t expect to be chatting running with the COO/President of Sony this week! Let’s back up a little bit though……

Tofu Breakfast Scramble: A Vegan Protein Veggie Feast

I’ve tried making my beloved scrambled “eggs” and veggie breakfast in a number of variations since finding out I could no longer eat eggs. Not a single one has satisfied…

Running Year In Review – Surpassing 1600 Running Miles

Being a numbers geek, I probably should have gone in to accounting or something else along those lines…instead I became a runner which allows me to track all kinds of…

How Floridians do Ice

I hadn’t planned to post again after the fitness giveaway until Monday to take an official break…but our Christmas turned out to be quite lovely and I had to share.…

Asian Style Quinoa Salad

During the FitSocial trip, we made a stop at the Anschutz Health and Wellness Center where we got to workout and then eat!!! But of course this was a special…

10 Elements of the Successful Life

After you find the “intersection of your passion and your talent” here are 10 things you must do to capitalize on it according to Pat Williams. Some of you, like…

Photography and Food Weekend in Charleston, SC

If you follow me on Instagram, you already saw a few of my photos from this weekend…but since it was a weekend all about improving my photography skill {and umm…

Post 7 Day Juice Cleanse Thoughts

Thus far I am happy to report my marriage remains in tact after 2 full days of eating almost nothing but juice. I was surprisingly not HANGRY at all…had I…

Diary of a Juice Cleanse Day 3: Top 10 Juicing Questions

If you are considering a juice cleanse, review day 1 {the right way to do a juice cleanse} and day 2 {touted benefits of juice cleanse} as well! I was…