June Athlete Spotlight - Stephany Castruita
- Mark Saroni
- Jun 4
- 3 min read
Meet this month's Athlete Spotlight -- Stephany Castruita! tephany is a recent PhD graduate, newlywed, and soon-to-be Assistant Professor whose triathlon journey began with running in 2019 after a weightlifting injury. What started as a half marathon goal quickly grew into a love for multisport. This led her from casual bike rides to sprint triathlons, Olympic-distance races, relays, Ironman 70.3, and a full Ironman-distance finish. Steph's favorite part of the Paragon community is Track Tuesdays and Winnerval Wednesdays.
Age: 38
Who is your coach? Coach Amy AND Coach Mark
Occupation: Recent PhD graduate and soon to be Assistant Professor
How long have you been swimming, cycling, running, and/or doing triathlons?
I started running in 2019 after I injured myself weightlifting. I had never run more than 5k but met a friend who got me into running and thinking I could run a half marathon. I did run my first half that year (San Antonio RR) and loved it! Immediately signed up for the next one, a Nike women’s only half in LA. But thge race got cancelled because of Covid. I kept running but got bored and afraid of getting injured so I would mix some bike riding (I got a cruiser bike from target, because, well, who didn’t during Covid right)? I would also swim occasionally. One day, a friend said to me, “you are already doing three different sports you should try golf next.” Jkd, he said, “maybe you should look into triathlon.” I had just finished my first year of PhD and was having a hard time with it so adopting a multisport as hobby sounded like the best option ever! The next day, I went to UTSA and looked for a club. Coach Mark happened to be coaching! I went from not owning a road bike and never having done open water swim to racing sprints, olympic, relays, Ironman 70.3 and an Ironman® distance in the span of 5 years and here we are.
What aspects of training and/or racing do you enjoy most?
I survive the swim and race the bike and run.
What has been your favorite training or racing event and why?
There are two weekly training sessions I will not miss for anything (unless I am on my honeymoon), these are Track Tuesdays at Walker Ranch and Winnerval Wednesdays. I love the social aspect of training and having people around you to get inspired. And my favorite event so far has been l’etape 25mi bike race because I won first place women overall.
What is your favorite post-workout or race meal?
Before a race I will have a peanut butter and banana toast with two of Alyssa’s healthy vegan cookies and after a race pizza.
What is one recent accomplishment you are proud of?
I just graduated from the PhD and got married. Last year I ran my first marathon and completed my first Ironman. And I cried at every single one of these events.
What do you want to be when you grow up? (We're all still kids at heart ❤️)
A Boston marathon qualifier.
What is something no one knows about you?
I already started looking for a triathlon club in Des Moines, Iowa and I hate the feeling. I don’t like change.
Why do you race/train?
A little philosophical, but some people race for family, others to redefine themselves or chase down old demons, others because of lovers or friends or spirituality -- what's your reason?
I will question my decisions and life choices regarding a race from the moment I start packing for it until I am about to cross the starting line. After that, the noise in my head goes away and I know exactly why and how I am going to get through it. I race because I like the feeling of being aware at that moment of all the things my body can do. I train because I want to be strong and healthy and a bit faster.
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