The first time I ever had my back go out on me was about 15 years ago. I reached around to the back seat of the car, pulled some kind of muscle and grimaced like a lemon-sucking baby. Later that day, I was standing up to… read more
Ted Spiker
Ted Talks: The Consequences of Comparison
As I was getting dressed at the gym the other day, a fellow locker room attendee sat in the space next to me. He sat only in his boxers, still panting (after de-panting). He looked relieved. And ripped. He was… read more
Ted Talks: Time to Flex and Stretch
Of my many bodily deficiencies (see Pants, Tight), one has been protesting louder lately. I’m creaky. I’m tight. I’m about as flexible as a granite countertop. I can feel it when I walk, when I run, when I wake up… read more
Rethinking Resolutions: Let’s Try Something Different in 2022!
I like to say that I’m not much into Jan. 1 resolutions, but the reality is that I spend the days leading up to the new year dreaming about goals, setting up spreadsheets, wondering if this year will be the… read more
Ted Talks: 5 Health Phrases That Should Be Banned Forever
Spending more than 20 years writing about health, reading about health, and doing battle with peanut butter cookies means you come into contact with a lot of words about health. These are the five phrases I've had enough of. "No… read more
Ted Talks: The Physical of the Future?
While I’m not especially proud of slipping into the hard-headed aging-male stereotype of avoiding an annual physical, I have some friendly amendments for how we could conduct our checkups. Why? Maybe there’s an opportunity to improve the experience, the quality… read more
Ted Talks: The Agony of Victory, the Thrill of Defeat
I believe in New Year’s Resolutions about as much as I believe in small-size bowls of queso. Why? Same reason you hear over and over—a one-time declaration (“I forbid fondue forever!”) generally won’t stick. That said, I do think that… read more
Ted Talks: Devoting 2021 to Small Victories and Sun Salutations
My relationship with yoga is a short one: I took a few classes some two decades ago. I had a trainer mutter 32 expletives when he tried to stretch me and felt how tight my muscles were. And I once… read more
Ted Talks: The Year of a Bodily Buffet!
A Little Bit of This, a Little Bit of That... I went into 2021 without a massive declaration — no dream race to run, no ideal weight I must hit (though that number has had a three-decade occupancy in my… read more
Ted Talks: What the Hill Was Wrong With Me
Because of some of the work I do with Runner’s World magazine, I had the opportunity to run the Big Sur International Marathon along the California coast about a year and a half ago. Though I trained steadily, my mashed-potatoes… read more
