Tag: training

  • A 5K Time Trial and a Surprise Win in Lowell

    I wanted to run a 5K this past weekend to check in and see if I’ve improved at all since the 15K I ran at the beginning of April and the weekly track workouts I’ve committed to since then. I didn’t want a big race or a big scene. I just wanted a good old-fashioned road race—something simple, low-key, and honest.

    Easier said than done. How does a person even find a road race calendar in New England these days?

    Read more: A 5K Time Trial and a Surprise Win in Lowell

    I miss coolrunning.com—remember that site? All the local races in New England, organized by weekend, one click and BAM, you could find exactly what you were looking for. That site was gold. I don’t even know when it disappeared, but man, I feel a little lost without it.

    Millennium Running has a solid calendar of events, but most of them are in New Hampshire—and while they’re incredibly well-managed, most of their courses feel like they’re uphill both ways. Plus, I wasn’t looking for a race where I might run into familiar faces. I just wanted something under the radar, no pressure, no comparisons—just me and the road.

    So I googled “5K races in Massachusetts” and found Mickey’s Run in Lowell. Perfect. It supported Team Mickey Ward Charities (awesome), and Lowell? Always yes. My heart will always belong to that city.

    I headed down to the Blue Shamrock in the morning to get my bib number for the 11:00 start. I went inside to use the restroom and boom—college memories hit me hard. Nights of dancing, laughter, and yes, more than a few beers in those downtown bars. It brought me back to a different version of myself—fast legs, wild nights, and endless energy.

    These days I am so different.

    I’ve been working to get faster again. Tryig to get in some speed workouts once a week. Controlled efforts. Smart goals. I know I’m 50 now. I know I’ll never run like I used to. And that’s okay. I’m learning to be realistic, to set goals that challenge me but don’t break me. This journey really started after my adrenal surgery at the end of 2023, and it feels like I’m finally gaining momentum.

    Heading into the day, I would’ve been happy with anything under 21:55—that was my time from November’s 5K when I was still just coming back.

    When the race started, I ran just behind the pack up front and quickly found myself passing another woman who looked strong. That move had me questioning myself for the rest of the race—waiting for her to come back past me.

    I didn’t check my watch at all. I just ran by feel.

    The course took us down by the riverwalk behind the dorms (more memories), then up to the University Ave bridge. That climb from the river up and over the bridge was tough for me. I slowed a lot. The little hairpin turns getting there didn’t help either—agility isn’t exactly my strength these days. I could feel that I slowed a lot in mile two.

    But I pushed. I kept pushing.

    We crossed the bridge and headed down VFW Highway, past the UMass Lowell North Campus that shaped so much of who I am. I wasn’t sure where the finish line was, and I caught myself holding back a bit—just in case we still had a long way to go. We crossed the Aiken Street bridge and I saw the cone where we needed to take a right back down to the riverwalk. Nice. We must me getting closer.

    Then, it was there. The finish line.
    I crossed it, and someone told me I was the first female finisher.

    What?

    That was unexpected.

    My official time was 21:22, and the course was just shy of 3.1 miles. So I’m guessing my actual 5K time would’ve been around 21:35-21:40. Still? Faster than November. A clear sign that things are heading in the right direction.

    I looked at my watch to see my splits and saw my first mile was 6:37. Yep—slowed down a lot after that. But I’m not mad about it. I ran strong. I ran with intention. And I gave myself exactly the time trial I needed.

    There’s a 1-mile USATF Grand Prix race in July, and I’ll keep working on my speed for that. One workout at a time, one week at a time, one effort at a time.

    For me right now, hings are moving in the right direction!

  • Back on the line.

    April 5th marked something big: my first Grand Prix race back with Whirlaway after more than ten years away. To be honest, I wasn’t just showing up to a 15K—I was stepping back into a world that had once felt like home, but now felt both familiar and foreign. The race atmosphere at a GP event hits differently, and I’d forgotten just how much. The buzz, the team, the old faces, the fast legs—it brought back a flood of emotions.

    I had a plan for this day. After everything—surgeries, setbacks, and slow rebuilds—I wasn’t there to prove anything. I just wanted to run smart: go out slow, find a rhythm, and finish strong. Nothing fancy. I even tucked myself back in the middle of the pack at the start to make sure I stuck to that strategy.

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  • The start of something new

    First, thank you—whether you found this page because you’ve read Misdiagnosed for Miles, you’re curious about my journey, or you just stumbled across it—I’m so glad you’re here.

    This blog is an extension of the story I told in my book, and as I sit here reflecting, I can’t believe it’s been nearly a year and a half since my successful adrenalectomy—the second of two major surgeries that defined my 2023.

    If you haven’t read the book, here’s the short version: I spent over 17 years battling brutal symptoms—chronic headaches, crisis-level high blood pressure, heart palpitations, extreme edema (among other issues)—and no one could figure out why. I saw countless doctors over the years, and while some ran tests and genuinely tried to help, they were focused on the wrong things. I was misdiagnosed (or brushed off in some cases) over and over again.

    In 2023, I was finally diagnosed with primary hyperaldosteronism, a rare condition caused by an adrenal tumor that throws your entire system out of whack. I had surgery to remove the tumor in October—and everything changed.

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