Yesterday, I ran two Strava segment records.

Well, actually, I ran more like eight segment records, but only two are really relevant. One for the five-mile stretch up one of our local mountains here in Chattanooga, and one for the five-mile stretch down.

*Side note* If you are not a huge Strava nerd, Strava is the training app that most runners use. It is almost like social media for runners (cyclists, triathletes, etc.), where "likes" are called "kudos," and in this world, segment records (or getting into the top 10) are highly sought (and sometimes fought) over. They're not something that drives me, but for many runners, they're a big motivator to train.

As it's the most common trail running path here, running segment records on those two five-mile stretches is a big deal, and one that really shows me where my fitness is at. The paces and times I ran for those are, to me, scarily fast, especially on trail. The kind of fitness that makes me feel nervous about losing it. The kind of fitness that tiptoes into 2016 territory (but in a new way, I am in no way 2:36 marathon shape!), and is easily lured in by a fear of failure as a driving force to keep going.

I know fear of failure all too well. It was what caused me to quit running in 2017, and I have worked hard to grow through that, and learn who I am as Tina. To learn that I am not my results or my performance. It took me over six years to reach the point where I could have a healthy relationship with pushing myself as a runner again.

It was only during my Achilles recovery that I rediscovered the desire to seek my limit. This time, in the same way I had originally begun, back as a 14-year-old, to challenge myself, see what I could do, for me.

It became about the days. The individual runs. The building fitness and the feeling of my fitness building. Of layering the bricks.

That is where the magic is. That is where the growth is. And yes, that is where the enjoyment is.

Far from what it was back in 2017, about the final result, what the house looked like at the end. Back then, those runs were just a means to an end. Something I had to do to get to the moment where everyone was cheering my name and saying how amazing I was.

Sad, but true.

Now I am so much happier, and enjoying my training. Enjoying almost every run, rather than suffering through almost every run.

So the kind of fitness I am moving into, well, now we step into a place where it's easy to want to protect it. To avoid technical trails "in case I roll my ankle," to not play a game with my kids "in case I tweak something." To live in fear of losing it.

But amazingly, the body has a way of telling you that each run is a gift, each day is a gift.

The night before I ran those records, I had terrible toothache. I barely slept.

A few hours after that run, I went to the dentist for the second day in a row, unfortunately reporting that my tooth was not better than the day before (after the dentist did some work to figure it out). Ninety minutes later I walked out with a numb mouth, but hopeful it was figured out.

Last night, again, bad enough pain to take some painkillers.

As someone who had two children without any pain meds, it's not something I do often.

Today, who knows. Hopefully, my tooth was just angry from the work over the past few days and is calming down.

Or maybe I'll be in New York, straddling the world of having the best time with people I love in a city I consider some kind of second home, while at the same time, dealing with toothache, one of the worst pains there is.

I share that for a few reasons.

First, because if you looked on Strava and left it there, you would think, Damn, she's just crushing it. You would think my body is doing so well. And it is, but Strava doesn't tell the whole story.

Second, to say that two seemingly contradictory things can be true at the same time. I can be physically fit AND dealing with something painful. I can hold both those things, and while it's not what I would wish for, it is life. Life is not meant to be comfortable all the time.

And finally, to say that I can either look at this toothache as something that spirals me downwards, Of course this happens to me right before I go into my favorite weekend of the year. Or I could say, yep, toothache sucks, and I may have some bad nights of sleep, but I am so grateful for my body and the other ways it is doing so well.

This weekend I will run the TCS New York City Marathon, my fourth. Which makes it the marathon I have run more than any other. While London will always have my heart as my home, this is such a special one. Especially considering that a year ago, I was celebrating running the entire 5k without walking with my best friend.

I will be celebrating out there, toothache or not.

On Friday, I am hosting what is usually the biggest plogging event of the year, from the NYRR RUNCENTER. I am excited to meet my NYRR Team For Climate teammates (there will be almost 200 of us out there on Sunday!) and others who want to do something positive in the community.

If you have never been plogging, and have been curious to try it, this is the best one to start with.

See you there?

Our team has been hard at work building out my new website, and it looks SO good!

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Wanna run a race (yes, some majors!)for Racing For Sustainability in 2026? Fill out this form below to tell me which races you would like to do, and I will get started on getting you a bib.

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Runner's World put out an article about why you should consider carrying your own bottle in your next race. As you can imagine, I agree.

“We only get to be in our bodies for a limited time, why not celebrate the journey instead of merely riding it out until it’s over?”

-Jen Sincero

Thanks to our partner, AG1

I’m packing today, and the first things that always go into my suitcase are my travel packs of AG1 and, as of six months ago, my travel packs of AGZ. Honestly, AGZ has been such a needed gift in my life through all the packing, moving, settling into a new city, and training chaos.

I genuinely look forward to my mint chocolate (yum!) AGZ at the end of the day. It’s a sweet treat that helps me fall asleep and stay asleep. (Well… except for the last few nights when a brutal toothache kept me awake. It’s not that miraculous!)

Now I start and end my day with AG1 and AGZ, and I know they’ve got my back no matter how many things I’m trying to cram into a single day.

If you’re someone who struggles to shut your brain off at night, try pairing AGZ with a no-phone-in-the-bedroom rule and a few pages of a good book (I’m currently reading Kiera D’Amato’s). It’s been a game-changer for winding down and actually sleeping well.

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Be kind to one another, yourself, and this beautiful planet of ours.

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