Most of you know that I have a very storied past with running and injuries. In my early days of running in college and the years following, I battled everything from bursitis to Achilles tendonitis to foot pain to a hamstring injury to hip pain and more. It was so frustrating that at one point [...]
Injuries
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5 Dynamic Stretches You Should Do Before Every Run to Prevent Injuries
October 12, 2020 { 15 comments } -
My Story with Chronic Hip Pain, Femoroacetabular Impingement and a Labral Tear
September 2, 2020 { 37 comments }In this post I am sharing my story with chronic hip pain, being diagnosed with a labral tear and femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) and how I’ve successfully reduced pain levels and avoided surgery for nearly a year post-diagnosis. THE BACKSTORY + ONSET My right hip started hurting at mile 16 of the Marine Corps Marathon in [...]
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Not The Weekend I Had Planned
July 20, 2019 { 49 comments }Oh friends…what a wild few days. If you follow me on Instagram, you are probably already in the know about what’s been going on but let me bring everyone up to speed. On Wednesday night I shared that I had dropped a very heavy metal and glass shower door on my left big toe earlier [...]
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7 Ways to Use Rollers, Balls and Sticks for Self Massage
April 19, 2017 { 0 comments }This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of HoMedics. The opinions and text are all mine. Raise your hand if you could be including more mobility work like foam rolling, self-massage and stretching into your self-care routine? Even though I’m a yoga teacher and a personal trainer, I’m over here waving both [...]
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Mid-Week Check-In + Dealing with the Emotional Side of Running Injuries
March 15, 2017 { 29 comments }I apologize if any of you were unable to access my blog this morning. It was down until around noon. My tech guru did his monthly updates and security checks late last night and apparently one of the WordPress plugin updates made my blog crash. He had to troubleshoot by going in one-by-one and activating [...]
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6 Ways to Deal with Calf Strain as a Runner + I Tried Dry Needling
March 14, 2017 { 25 comments }The name of this post should really be, “I got dry needled and lived to tell about it.” One of our teachers, Kari, is a physical therapist and has been doing quite a bit of dry needling at the clinic she manages lately. She has been encouraging me to try it for months now so [...]
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Band Assisted Hamstring, Hip and Groin Stretches {Video}
July 26, 2014 { 15 comments }Mobility work and stretching is an important part of what I do with my clients as a trainer and CrossFit coach. Each workout begins with dynamic stretching during the warm up and end with more static stretching and mobility work. I can’t tell you how much incorporating this into my own workouts has helped me [...]
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Four Pigeon Variations to Stretch Tight Hips
May 9, 2014 { 17 comments }A couple of months ago I wrote about 3 yoga poses for tight, rounded shoulders. The response to the post was great and I’ve received many requests for a version focused on the hips. If I had to identify two areas of the body where my yogis, CrossFit athletes and personal training clients are tight [...]
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Deep Stretch At MOGA Yoga
December 13, 2012 { 11 comments }I really enjoyed reading your responses to my “On Showing Up” post. They were very thought provoking and insightful. I will be responding to all of them and also writing a “Part 2” post because I have a lot more to say about the topic. I also appreciate the concern and kind words about my [...]
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On Showing Up
December 12, 2012 { 30 comments }I am currently under a blanket with ice on my hip. It’s really inflamed right now. It was feeling pretty okay despite the running I did last weekend until I decided to do a CrossFit workout yesterday consisting of box jumps, running and kettlebell swings. The last time I did a CF workout with a [...]
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Good Food
December 5, 2012 { 19 comments }While I’m sad to hear that so many other people are dealing with running/sports-related injuries, I am excited that so many of you are interested in focusing on mobility in December. I’ll try to share with you each day what I’m doing from a mobility standpoint and a couple of times a week I will [...]
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Focus On Mobility
December 4, 2012 { 64 comments }I try really hard not to whine and complain on my blog. Especially when I am fighting a long-term battle with something. That said, I’ve been in an epic battle with my body over its willingness to run. If you’ve been reading for a while you have probably noticed how little running and racing I’m [...]
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Follow The Feel Good
March 25, 2012 { 17 comments }I traveled to Asheville this weekend to attend a workshop with David Williams at Asheville Yoga Center. Let’s start with a quick background on David. In a nutshell, he brought ashtanga yoga to the United States and trained many of today’s well-known teachers. David has practiced ashtanga daily since 1971 and he travels around the [...]
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Status Update: My Running
November 9, 2011 { 10 comments }Wow, look what happened this afternoon! I ran. Don’t get too excited though…it was only two miles. It was a beautiful fall day and I couldn’t resist the urge to get outside and run. The bonus was that my friend Sarah joined me so the run was more about chatting than pounding the pavement. We [...]
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It’s Been A Year
September 9, 2011 { 8 comments }Hello and happy Friday. This short week has kind of thrown me for a loop but I feel like I’ve definitely crammed five days’ worth of activities into four. Though my week has been busy, busy I cannot complain because it’s been full of really good things…that I’m looking forward to sharing with you soon. [...]
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Are You Overtraining? Two Easy Tests
August 25, 2011 { 40 comments }It’s no secret that I’m not currently in intense training mode for anything (although I definitely have the itch now that I’m running pain-free again) but I know there are many of you training for fall races. I am a huge advocate of following training plans when preparing for races – anything from 10Ks to [...]
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The Patience to Heal
August 4, 2011 { 29 comments }I’m not very good at slowing down. In case you haven’t noticed, I have a tendency to pack my days full of as many activities and commitments possible. I like to stick to a schedule and have a routine. And to be completely honest, I get a little anxious if something gets in the way [...]
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Saturday
July 16, 2011 { 14 comments }Happy weekend. I’m sorry I have been MIA…lots happening right now – it’s been a weird couple of days. Quick check in…Saturday started with an early 90-minute yoga practice followed by a massage appointment for my hamstring. This was so not the relaxing kind of massage but rather very focused on recovery and rehabilitation. I [...]
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Staying Busy
July 12, 2011 { 19 comments }I really appreciate your support and encouraging comments regarding my running hiatus due to my nagging hamstring injury. Sometimes I feel really guilty that I can’t give you all as much of the “runner” part of PBR that I’d like to. Trust me, I want to be out there running and racing so badly…but I [...]
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Positivity and the Pool
July 11, 2011 { 36 comments }I hope your Monday is off to a great start! Recently, I’ve been all about committing to starting my week with a positive attitude. Instead of looking for things to dread about Monday and the work week, I focus on all the fun and exciting things I get to do. These things can be as [...]
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Comfort Food
March 31, 2011 { 15 comments }Well, before we get to comfort food I feel the need to address this crazy show I’m watching on TV, Mobbed. “Host Howie Mandel puts a hidden-camera spin on the “flash mob” concept. Mandel and hundreds of strangers will help special guests plan extraordinary surprises for friends, family members, loved ones or co-workers. These unknowing [...]
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Foam Rolling 101
March 6, 2011 { 64 comments }I took advantage of my low-key weekend to finally work on Foam Rolling 101. I know I promised this several weeks ago so thank you for your patience. My schedule has been just a little crazy lately. Before we launch into the how to, let’s talk about what foam rollers are, where you can get [...]
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Fun and Un-Fun News
February 17, 2011 { 27 comments }FUN NEWS Fun news #1: I’m teaching my first yoga class tomorrow!!! My supervisor at the Y asked if I would like to sub a class and I decided to go for it. At the Y, you just have to be in the process of getting your 200-hour RYT (registered yoga teacher) to teach so [...]
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Valentine’s Dinner and Honeymoon Memories
February 15, 2011 { 28 comments }Good morning! I hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine’s Day! Before I launch into the Valentine’s recap, a quick update on how I’m feeling after my face plant. I was in a lot of pain when I woke up yesterday. The left side of my lower back hurt so much that I couldn’t bend forward [...]
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Face Plant
February 13, 2011 { 21 comments }Let’s address the title of this post first. This morning there was a bit of an incident involving practicing assists and my face smashing into the hardwood floor. My arms were totally bound in this pose… (source) Unfortunately, I somehow ended up face planting into the floor instead of being lifted up. My right cheekbone [...]
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The Reasons I No Longer Wear High Heels
February 3, 2011 { 34 comments }I’m settled in on the couch with a bowl of ice cream and some hot tea (to help with the fact that it’s 30 degrees and sleeting outside and I’m eating ice cream ;)) and I’m ready to talk feet. I mentioned in Sunday’s post that I gave up high heels when I was training [...]
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Last Long Run, Next Stop Marathon!
October 16, 2010 { 9 comments }This morning I ran my LAST double-digit long run of Marine Corps Marathon training. Next week I will run eight and then the next weekend is the race! The 16 weeks of training have been a journey but I can honestly say that it has been an enjoyable one (despite the two-week hamstring hiatus). New [...]
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The Race is On
September 28, 2010 { 17 comments }I apologize for leaving you hanging last night with the running news. Honestly, I didn’t even know whether it would be good or bad news until today. I’m sure some of you have been wondering about my plans for Marine Corps Marathon given my recent hamstring injury. I have been trying not to stress about [...]
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Jumping for Joy
September 24, 2010 { 9 comments }This post could also be titled “The Power of Rest and Medical Care” because a week of rest and therapy has paid off. I just ran a 5k with minimal (seriously, hardly any) pain. When I got home I was jumping for joy (and let’s take a second to appreciate the former cheerleader coming out [...]
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Back on the Mat
September 22, 2010 { 5 comments }I set my alarm for 5:30 this morning with plans to go to a yoga class before work. When the alarm went off I decided to sleep until 6:15 and test out my hamstring with an easy run instead. I set out with Sullie for an easy, slow three-miler…and I’m sad to report that I [...]
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Fun with Shaksuka
September 21, 2010 { 9 comments }I am lucky that my husband is totally willing to try crazy ethnic vegetarian recipes that I put on our weekly menu plan. We may struggle about my desire to go 100% vegetarian but at least we’ve come to a good compromise and only cook meat/seafood at home a few nights a week. This week’s [...]
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Everything Has Changed, Absolutely Nothing's Changed
September 18, 2010 { 14 comments }The words of the brilliant Eddie Vedder sum up my situation perfectly. “Everything has changed, absolutely nothing’s changed.” This song popped up on my playlist today while I was walking with Sullie and this line really resonated with me. Yes, I was walking Sullie and I have no long run to update you guys on [...]
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Lulu Love
September 16, 2010 { 12 comments }And I’m watching the Rachel Zoe Project again. This is seriously a problem – I’m obsessed. She’s trying to cook in this episode and she’s clueless. I’m loving it! It makes me feel less bad about having no fashion sense! ;) I went to ashtanga this morning for all of 20 minutes…and then I rolled [...]
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Obsessions and a Tempo Run
September 15, 2010 { 12 comments }Some news (nothing life changing, don’t get excited)… I am officially obsessed with The Rachel Zoe Project. How have I never watched this show before last night? It has been constantly playing on On Demand since I found it. I love Rachel, I love her husband and I love her “gaggle of gays.” (I’m just [...]
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Tempo Run + Hot Yoga = Sweaty
August 12, 2010 { 7 comments }Good morning! I usually post my updates in the evenings but last night I worked on Bakin’ and Eggs and then crashed. Before turning in I made the decision to skip ashtanga this morning so I thought I’d get up early and work on this blog instead! My lower back is still feeling a little [...]
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Big Toe Trouble
June 2, 2010 { 2 comments }So my morning started out bright and early at Y2 for a hot vinyasa class. One of the perks of making it through a hard yoga class is that most instructors will give foot massages while you’re in savasana. Well, after class this morning my teacher pointed out that my feet are ridiculously tight – [...]