⁠Karen Kirkpatrick⁠ and I met originally on Instagram, but we've since met in person for this interview and for a run.

During this episode, sponsored by ⁠Goodr⁠, we talk about:

• Her Flying Pig Half Marathon recap — the hills, the soreness, the soreness going up and down stairs at work, and nearly PR'ing (seven minutes off!)
• Being a self-proclaimed "one and done" racer — she's done 28 halfs and almost never repeats a race
• The Disney Princess Half Marathon she did five times when she lived in Fort Myers, Florida — and how she's done nearly every RunDisney race on the calendar
• Registering for the Disney World Marathon from her laptop during a teaching conference and nearly screaming out loud when she got in
• Growing up in Columbus, Ohio, going to Bowling Green State University for photography and then education, and — surprise — playing ice hockey for the BGSU women's club team (she learned to skate to join)
• Her diagnosis journey: five doctors told her it was in her head before the sixth (a woman) took her hands and said "I don't think you're crazy"
• What it's like to live with lupus — the fatigue, the joint pain, the butterfly rash, the lesions, the immune compromise, and how it affects her every day at school
• Selena Gomez as a public face of lupus and why her story resonates
• Her mom being the reason she started running — watching her mom do half marathons for the Leukemia Lymphoma Society in her 60s (with a knee replacement) was the nudge Karen needed
• Her very first half marathon at Columbus in 2014
• Finding ⁠Carmel Runners Club⁠ through a ⁠Run(317)⁠ event in 2019 and the community she's found there
• ⁠The Rally app⁠ and how messages from her great-niece Evelyn and other family members carried her through the Flying Pig
• Training for her Disney World Marathon on the Monon — using the Jeff Galloway run/walk method
• Getting her Mickey marathon finisher ears — the thing she cared about more than anything else
• Her five dogs (Oreo, Morgan, Zelda, Milo, and Zoe) and one Flerken cat (Blondie from Captain Marvel, obviously)
• Flying Pig being her 28th half — and why she chose it
• Doctors now telling her she needs to stop at 10K distances, and what her final three races will be
• Being tested for multiple sclerosis on top of lupus — tremors, dizziness, balance issues, and what the next steps look like medically
• SWTHZ as part of her recovery — infrared sauna + 20-minute cold plunges (yes, 20)
• Her next two finish lines: the Indy Marathon at Fort Ben in October (for the veterans) and the Columbus Half Marathon to close it all out — with her mom hopefully waiting at the finish line to put her final medal on her

Previous Guests Mentioned

• ⁠Alex Baker⁠ - Episode 6
• ⁠Abby Anderson⁠ - Episode 133
• Rachel Sinders - Episode 8

Sponsor Details

• ⁠Goodr⁠ - Use code ALLYB for $10 off your first order
• ⁠Amazfit⁠ - Use code ALLYB for 10% off

Other Links

• Follow Karen on Instagram ⁠@lupuswarriorprincess⁠
• Follow me on Instagram ⁠@allytbrett_runs⁠
• ⁠Subscribe to Finish Lines & Milestones weekly newsletter⁠

This is a ⁠SandyBoy Productions⁠ podcast.