600 Yard Dash Girl

I started reading Kathrine Switzer’s Marathon Woman, one of several books about running I ordered not too long ago. I’m only up to the section on her childhood, and I’m enjoying it so far. I love how she got into running: as a teenager, she told her parents she wanted to try out for the cheerleading squad, which she only wanted to join for the popularity aspect. Her father encouraged her to try out for field hockey instead, telling her it was better to be in the game than on the sidelines. He told her if she ran a mile a day until tryouts, she’d be guaranteed to make the team.

The Sprunging of Spring

Spring is in the air, as it was a deliciously balmy 44 degrees Fahrenheit this morning. I didn’t even wear a hat or gloves on my run. In fact, I rolled up my sleeves. Incredible. Especially after this past winter. If you ran outside anywhere within the continental U.S. or Alaska (sorry, Hawaii) at any point during these past few months, you know what I’m talking about.

A Run Down Main & A Plan for My Knee

I ran 4.96 miles this morning and I can’t stop thinking about how much I wish I had just held out for the full 5. It’s hard to justify when I feel short on time – I like to be in the shower by 7:20, and by the time I was done running, it was 7:21. At the same time, it doesn’t really matter. I’m just being anal. The fact that I can run at all is a damn miracle.

The Necessity of Indulgence

I can’t remember the last time I ate a bacon cheeseburger.

I had half of one when I lived in L.A. Once. It was sometime in 2015 or 2016. My roommate and I split one at a restaurant. It was very good. Come to think of it, it might not have even had bacon.

The Grateful Alive

The snow that came down on Wednesday and Thursday was insane. I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen that much snow fall from the sky within a 24 hour period, at least on Long Island. It started Wednesday morning on my way into the city and didn’t stop until after I got up before dawn the next morning and was outside for half an hour shoveling a path I’d already shoveled the night before that had gotten covered by what looked like two feet of snow overnight.

My Favorite Fitness Blender Workouts

[Salt-N-Pepa voice] Let’s talk about strength-train-ing!

Is that reference too old? If so, wonderful.

I’ve been doing a lot of strength training, HIIT, and cardio workouts over the past few weeks to make up for the running I haven’t been doing. Weights, lunges, burpees, squat jumps, boxer shuffles, deadlifts, and ab work have dominated my mornings as of late.

Two Miles

After getting what wasn’t necessarily a “go ahead” but more a “relax, you’re not dying” note from my orthopedist yesterday, I decided to clear myself for running again. I am happy to report that this morning, from 6:46am to 7:06am, I ran two delicious, refreshing miles. [Michael Stipe voice] And I feel fiiine.

Nothing is Terrible

This morning, less than 12 hours after posting that very stressed out entry last night, I heard back from my orthopedist about my MRI results:

“The MRI didn’t show a stress fracture or torn cartilage. There is some minor wear-and-tear stuff but nothing terrible. The symptoms are likely a combo of muscular abnormalities and some inflammation.”

YES.

This Too Shall Pass

Last week I started a blog post about my favorite indoor workouts. I haven’t finished it yet. It’s long. I didn’t mean for it to be, it just became long as I was writing it, because I tend to overwrite, and also sometimes I write super long sentences that could easily be broken up into several smaller sentences but it’s fun to draw them out without an end in sight and I do it because writing can be whatever you want it to be.

Be Still My Leg: My MRI Story

My knee (specifically, the inner right joint) is still being an asshole, so I got an MRI on Monday. This was my first ever MRI. Aside from bouts of childhood bronchitis and, later, periodic eczema that always seemed to sprout up during times of stress (it was worst in my 20s, almost nonexistent now), I have always been pretty healthy. I have never broken a bone, had surgery, been hospitalized, or had a major disease (unless you count bronchitis). I’ve also never worn glasses, smoked a cigarette, had an addiction problem, or been pregnant. When I go to the doctor, I always feel like they’re secretly disappointed I’m so boring.