Ted Spiker

Person running on the beach

Ted Talks: Blistering Pace

Health is hard enough—so it stinks when you make it even harder. “How far do you want to go?” my friend asked. “I’m game for 5,” I said. I mean, why the heck not? We were at the beach, the… read more

Is a Deadline the Best Motivator?

Almost 10 years ago, I started a Facebook group for people who wanted to run a 5K under 30 minutes. The group—called the Sub-30 Club, which now has nearly 7,000 members—quickly changed its focus: We wouldn’t just center around 29:59.… read more

Tips For Staying Healthy While You Travel

For so long, I always believed that “healthy” and “travel” went together about as well as chocolate and toothpaste. After all, where’s the fun if you can’t have the pizza and wine carafe(s) in Italy, the paella in Spain, or… read more

Humorous Side of Health: Food Fight

As much as I’d love to have flung marinara-dressed noodles across a cafeteria once or twice in my life, I’ve never had a real food fight. Unless you count these battles: The bloody nose I got after wolfing down 12… read more

Ted Talks: Hobby Shopping

Typically, I like to make decisions thoughtfully and quickly. I don’t hesitate over simple choices (tonight it shall be merlot!), I try to use a mix of logic and emotion to come to conclusions, and I don’t like to linger… read more

New Year New You

Ted Talks: New Year, New You

The season of resolutions usually brings about mantras of motivation and fist-pounding declarations that this year — THIS YEAR! — will be the one in which we [stop smoking/lose 25 pounds/give up bacon-cheese fries]. For good reason, too. Coming off… read more

Ted Talks: Will I Win the Food Fight?

At a recent gathering of friends and former colleagues, I caught up with some people I’ve seen only once or twice since the late ‘90s. Amidst the conversations, the reminiscing, the beer, the wings and an Oreo dirt concoction that… read more