By the time I turned 36 I was overweight and a pack-and-a-half-a-day smoking habit. Life was miserable and consisted of little more than work, eating takeout and spending my free time on the couch, surfing channels and the internet.
I woke up one August morning (the 14th to be exact) and decided that I was sick and tired of being sick and tired; I needed to do something about it. So I joined a gym and very tentatively got started on a treadmill.
I eventually worked up the courage to run outside and as of this writing, I’m an 19-time marathoner (PR 3:44:06), 47 time 13.1 finisher (PR 1:39:20) with four Olympic distance and five Sprint distance triathlon under my belt, and have competed in more 10Ks and five milers than I can count.
On average I run 30 miles each week (but that can ratchet up to 50 during peak marathon training) and between 50 – 100 miles on the bike. I’m a part time blogger and a full time endurance sports enthusiast living in New York City; my daytime job is in PR and marketing for a national animal welfare organization.
I’ve written and made videos extensively about the TCS NYC Marathon which, as of this writing, I’ve completed 10 times.
In October 2013, I was written up in Runner’s World magazine in the “How Running Changed My Life” column. I have been quoted in articles on running in the New York Post, New York Daily News and the Toronto Sun. I’m interested in the technology that accompanies endurance sports and love looking at the numbers after my workouts – if I’m not running or riding with my GPS device, it doesn’t count.
I’m also obsessive about researching and trying out new kinds of on-course nutrition, new clothing, different types of shoes, and all the accouterment that we “need” for endurance sports. I also love to run and ride with my GoPro (I’m still trying to figure out out to use it while swimming).
On my social channels, I discuss everything running, cycling and (rarely) swimming. From technology and music to nutrition and training to finding the perfect shoe, finding the right group to work out with every week or even the motivation to do so. I also review races and marathons I do (and some I’ve already done).
Dirty Old Sneakers can be found at:
Twitter.com/DirtyOldSneaker
Facebook.com/DirtyOldSneakers
Instagram.com/dirtyoldsneaker
YouTube.com/dirtyoldsneakers
Strava.com/athletes/741607
Here’s a quick video I made as an intro: