Moving Through with Heather Johnson Durocher

Hello, fellow Moving Through travelers! I’m writing to you this Labor Day afternoon from New York City, where I am visiting Emma for a few days. Later in the week, I’m heading to a writers’ retreat in Madison, Connecticut. More to come on both of these experiences in an upcoming newsletter!

Today, though, I’m excited to share a conversation I recently had for the occasional Moving Through podcast — a conversation I mentioned in my last newsletter about my cabin adventure up north and one that I know is going to resonate with you. My time talking with author and friend Dimity McDowell certainly is sticking with me, for many different reasons.

Dimity is the author of several books she co-authored with Sarah Bowen Shea, her co-founder of the popular inclusive women’s running community Another Mother Runner. Her latest book, however, is a solo endeavor. The 27th Mile: How to Smooth the Rough Transition Out of Your Running Years was released earlier this year, and it’s a book unlike any other out there. Here’s just one of many positive reviews Dimity’s book has received:

"So many titles exist about the joy of running or how to become a runner, but rarely has there existed a book honoring the choice and/or necessity to take leave of the sport. Not only does she pay homage to all that the sport has done for her and her community, but Dimity also takes time and space to honor her own body and spirit, inviting other longtime runners to offer their stories as well. When you are ready to make that decision, make sure to read this first." --Mirna Valerio, runner, adventurer, and author of A Beautiful Work in Progress

Here’s something important to know, too: The 27th Mile is about running, but it’ll touch you even if lacing up running shoes and hitting the pavement or trails haven’t been a huge part of your life. Dimity’s book “focuses on the time when running — or any other physical pursuit that anchored your daily life and self-identity — is no longer a healthy choice because of injury, chronic pain, or illness.”

I knew Dimity and I would have so much to talk about — our running journeys, for sure, but also much more, like midlife transitions, making friends during this time of life and finding ways to reconnect with ourselves through movement.

Dimity and I got to know each other when I started writing for Another Mother Runner in the early days of this website and women’s running community. (I first met Dimity’s business partner Sarah in Eugene, Ore. during an all-women’s half marathon I ran with a friend in 2010!) I, too, was early on in my days of Michigan Runner Girl, and eventually I would contribute an essay to their third book, an anthology called Tales from Another Mother Runner, and travel to Milwaukee for a book reading during which I read some of my essay in front of a crowd of women.

Moving Through is a reader- and listener-supported publication and community. To receive conversations like this one and to support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

It was pure joy reconnecting with Dimity, who lives in Denver and is behind Many Happy Miles. Whether you’re a longtime runner, someone who once ran, or you’ve never identified as a runner, I believe you’ll get a lot out of this conversation. Among the many things we talked about, we cover:

* Letting go of something after many years of it being a major focus of your life.

* Finding new passions, or unearthing things about yourself that have always been within you, and going down new paths.

* Building off foundations you’ve created earlier in your life – experiences that help you discover new ways of thriving in life.

* And why Dimity loves an 8 p.m. bedtime and how journaling in the morning has become an important part of her journey.

Dimity has been an endurance athlete nearly her entire life. First as a competitive rower, then as a lifelong (non-competitive) runner with plenty of triathlon, cycling, swimming, and big hikes mixed in. After years of injury cycles (and a little nudge from menopause), she learned the hard way that endurance alone isn’t enough.

Now, at 54, she’s passionate about helping active women stay strong, mobile, and adventure-ready—without burning out. She’s a certified personal trainer, running coach and fitness instructor, Girls Gone Strong Menopause Coaching Specialist and Chief Training Director at Another Mother Runner for 10 years. She is behind Many Happy Miles, which helps women in midlife move forward, feel strong, and stay adventurous.

I hope you enjoy listening to this conversation, and I’d love to hear what it brings up for you. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

Thank you for being here and for listening.

I’ll be back soon! Just keep moving and exploring.

XOHeather

Truthfully, I’ve been wanting to get to know today’s podcast guest—Jennifer Symons—for some time now.

Jennifer, 37, and I live in the same area, in Michigan’s northern lower peninsula. We’re also both passionate about spending time in nature and believe deeply in the power of moving our bodies—Jennifer is a runner, hiker, walker and triathlete—and what it means for our mental health.

She also shares gorgeous moments from her outdoor adventures on her Instagram account; if you’re not already following her at Run Leelanau, I highly recommend you start.

And yet, for all the time we’ve known of each other, we’ve never met in person. Hopefully that changes soon—we made some plans for this.

But in the meantime, I am just so grateful to have the opportunity to sit with her and have this conversation I invite you all to listen to by clicking on the play button above or by downloading using your favorite podcast app.

In this latest episode of the occasional Moving Through podcast, Jennifer and I talk about mental health, grief and loss, how she continues to move through the experience of losing her dad in the last year, what the other side of her divorce looks like, her newer love of combining swimming, biking and running—she has some big races on her calendar this year—and so much more.

“I don’t have any sadness about being divorced anymore. I’m really happy to be on my own. I get to be my own person and I’m so grateful to have had the opportunity to learn about myself throughout that marriage … but to kind of take that growth to the next level now that I’m not in that marriage.”

I can’t wait for you all to meet and get to know Jennifer, a mental health clinician who is dedicated to helping raise awareness of better mental health through her involvement in the organization Still I Run. We talk about this Michigan-based, nationally recognized organization during the episode and you can learn more about it by listening to this previous podcast conversation I had with Still I Run founder Sasha Wolff below. Still I Run is the nation’s first nonprofit dedicated to promoting the benefits of running for mental health.

Thank you for reading and listening. If something you hear in this conversation resonates with you, I’d love to hear from you!

Another way to let me know you’re liking these kinds of conversations: please tap the ❤️ button below—this also helps others find Moving Through and I would love nothing more than to grow and strengthen this community.

And if you’d like to support my work here—and have access to the full archive of essays, interviews and resources—please consider upgrading your subscription.

My goal is to connect with as many of you as possible and keep growing this community, which means I’m sharing, for now, my new posts and episodes with all subscribers. Your financial support, if you’re able to give it, helps me do this.

I’ll be back here again soon—one more week until my UK writing retreat and I look forward to sharing with you all!!

Until next time,

Heather

2021 was a big year for Joanna Hogan, who was ready to try something new—something entirely outside her comfort zone.

This was the year that Joanna, a runner, professional fundraiser in west Michigan and mom of four adult sons, decided she would set a goal of training for and completing a triathlon.

What she didn’t know then, however, was just how much her life was about to change over the course of a year, and the years following. She would in fact eventually complete that triathlon, but other major life changes would also be part of her journey.

Four years later, Joanna says she is especially proud of how she took steps to learn more about herself (she’s a big advocate of taking solo retreats!) and ultimately to change her life.

“I did it for myself … I did it for me,” she says.

“And I think it’s important to check your motives and be sure you’re doing it for yourself—I think that’s the biggest takeaway over the last couple of years. Being someone who has for most of my life been so concerned with what other people think of me…you get older and you realize, ‘No one is thinking about me—they’re thinking about themselves.’ … I think we’re learning it’s all about us and our journey. It’s spending time getting close to the spirit within you, no matter what you call it.”

I’m excited to share this beautiful conversation with you. To listen to this episode of the occasional Moving Through podcast, click on the player at the top of this post or download the episode using your favorite podcast app (search for ‘Moving Through’ on your podcast app).

You’re going to love hearing Joanna Hogan’s story and how she is doing the work of building and creating the life she most wants for herself. It’s been a long, trying road filled with all the twists and turns that life has a way of dishing out, but it’s also been a gratifying and instructive path that continues to bring so much joy, hope and happiness to Joanna.

Her story is incredibly inspiring, and I am just so thankful Joanna’s path has crossed with mine—with all of us here in the Moving Through community. (Joanna and I haven’t yet met in person—we hope to soon!—but we met here, through this community, and I am so grateful.)

Enjoy our conversation and please share your thoughts here in the comments. I’d love to hear what you think about this conversation and what it brings up for you.

And if you’d like to learn more about Joanna and her work, visit her website Inspire-Generosity.com. You can write to her at [email protected] .

If you enjoyed today’s newsletter please let me know by tapping the ❤️ button below—this also helps others find the Moving Through community. I always like to read your comments, too, so please share your thoughts if you’d like to!

And if you’d like to support my work here—and have access to the full archive of essays, interviews and resources—please consider upgrading your subscription. My goal is to connect with as many of you as possible and keep growing this community. Your financial support, if you’re able to give it, helps me do this.

Interested in other Moving Through podcast episodes? A few more to listen to:

And if you missed hearing about my most recent outdoor adventure, you can read about my return to the 10K here:

I’m wishing all of us a good week ahead. May we all experience moments of quiet reflection and joy-filled adventure. I’ll be back again soon.

Until next time,

Heather

“I spent very little time focused on me. And because of that, often times I would just be stressed out and burned out and exhausted just trying to be who I was and or who I thought everyone wanted me to be … It's so liberating being in midlife and knowing just who I am, finally. I'm here. And you either like me or you don't. And that's really — I'm not going to say it doesn't matter to me, because I think we all still want to be liked — but that doesn't define me anymore.” —Laurie Reynoldson

Laurie Reynoldson, who lives in Boise and is a self-described “recovering attorney and former box-checker, people-pleaser and achievement junkie,” is Heather's guest and co-host on the latest episode of the Moving Through podcast.

Laurie and Heather have not yet met in person, but they had an instant connection when they first spoke about a month ago. Heather was seeking fellow midlife women to talk with for the podcast and one of Laurie's friends suggested she get in touch with her. From there, the pair chatted on the phone and set up a time to record an episode together (Laurie also is a podcaster; her show is called The School of Midlife).

This episode is long and juicy and Heather and Laurie cover a lot, from how they're adjusting to changes in their friendships and with their husbands, to figuring out what they want (and no longer want) for themselves, the ways we show up for our kids and other family members, the changes we’ve made in our careers, the dreams we have for the future and so much more. It felt like sitting down with an old friend and getting right into a deep, heartfelt conversation.

*******

Find Laurie Reynoldson at:

LaurieReynoldson.com

On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurie.reynoldson/channel/

Find Heather Johnson Durocher at:

MovingThrough.Substack.com

MichiganRunnerGirl.com

On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michiganrunnergirl & https://www.instagram.com/movingthroughpodcast/

This podcast episode, recorded live from the Michigan Runner Girl Winter Weekend Getaway Jan. 19-21, features host Heather Johnson Durocher in conversation with Jackie Fiegel, a life coach and certified Pilates and yoga teacher, and Dr. Tina Metropoulos, a physician and certified yoga teacher.

The conversation touches on going through difficult times in a long-term partnership (and what it looks like to come out the other side of this pain), parenting both young and older kids, getting to know ourselves so we can live the life we want the most, finding and nurturing our female friendships, and feeling connected to others in what can feel like a strange, disconnected and divisive world. 

This episode of the Moving Through podcast was recorded live at the Ralph A. MacMullen Conference Center on the shores of Higgins Lake in snowy, picturesque northern Michigan.

Please let Heather know what you think of this conversation by joining the Moving Through community at MovingThrough.Substack.com or emailing Heather at [email protected] . (If you really liked the show, please share a review and and subscribe to the show, which helps other people find the podcast.)

Follow Heather on Instagram: @MichiganRunnerGirl Find running resources and inspiration at MichiganRunnerGirl.comSign up for the free newsletter and read Heather's writing at MovingThrough.Substack.com

Hello, my fellow Moving Through travelers!

One year ago I decided to begin writing this newsletter and start the work of building a community in a space that’s come to mean a lot to me. It’s here, on Substack, where I have connected with many new readers and writers as well as re-connected with so many of you who have known me for some time but through other shared experiences, most likely my longtime lifestyle site and community Michigan Runner Girl.

However long we’ve known each other, I hope you feel like you’re getting to know me through what I am sharing—and that, hopefully, you’re learning more about yourself along the way.

This past year of writing has, quite honestly, been an awakening of sorts for me. I’ve returned to the kind of writing I like best—personal, reflective, connective—and it’s in doing this that I’ve felt inspired and invigorated, and I’ve discovered a sense of clarity around the direction I’m heading, professionally and personally.

Moving Through is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Paying subscribers receive more in-depth essays and other extras. I appreciate your support, however you can give it!

I’d like to delve deeper into all of this, how writing about the things that remain integral to who I am—moving my body, spending time outdoors, loving my people and others fiercely and kindly, unearthing ways to be the person I want to be—is in fact changing me in good and interesting ways. How stepping back, slowing down, and being more intentional better describe me these days (but aren’t always easy to achieve). How I’m feeling more at peace with myself than ever before, even while I’m also struggling with one thing or another most every day. We can experience all of this at the same time, is what I have learned. I’m getting comfortable with that uncomfortableness.

It’s late, though, and I think for today, my recorded words best explain things. I will share more writing soon enough. I love writing here, in this space and for you all. And, as I share in this solo episode of the Moving Through podcast, I am taking on a new challenge (nothing is changing with my job; I’m adding, not subtracting in this case!).

I can’t wait to share more about this as it all unfolds over the coming months. You can hear all about it by listening to this recording (find it at the top of this post), but I do want to say a special thank you to Daisy Alpert Florin of Girls with Feelings for not only writing one of my most favorite books ever—My Last Innocent Year—but also for introducing me to The Gateless Writing Academy, of which I recently was accepted and have just begun.

There’s so much to come.

Real quick: a big thank you to those who have become paid subscribers of this newsletter. It means so much to me and truly is helping me stay focused on this writing and continue building Moving Through. I know it’s not something all subscribers can do, and I completely understand this! If you are able to support the work here, know that your paid subscription helps me carve out time to write longer, more personal pieces.

Here’s what I have planned for all subscribers as this community grows:

* Personal essays on: midlife, parenting young adults, running and other forms of exercise and outdoor movement, marriage, and more.

* Interviews with: midlife individuals who run, midlife parents with older children, adult children of midlife parents, and parenting experts

* Lists I Love: Books, recipes/food, places in Michigan/Midwest, running gear/resources 

Some of my work will be for paying subscribers only, and will include:

* Deep dive, research-infused essays that are even more personal

* Special guides, like what to know if you’re interested in running and/or staying active outdoors year-round and trip itineraries for your next travel adventure

* Weekly-ish community threads or chats

* Access to my full archives

* Special savings on any event I’m planning (like this one!) and other goodies I come up with (like the new items I’ve recently added to my online store)

And something special for those of you who wish to become a Founding Member of Moving Through:

You’ll receive a one-hour call, just you and me, to talk about what you’re moving through. I’ll offer my expertise on a topic of your choosing, whether it’s about navigating a life transition, getting started (and staying) running, or finding your way as a writer. You can become a founding member by visiting your subscriber preferences.

Thank you for being here with me today. Let’s all keep moving forward and moving through together. It’s going to be so good.

-Heather

p.s. You may have noticed Moving Through has a new look! This revamped main logo, at the top of this newsletter and with its blue hues and softer font, feels more like me and all that I am sharing here and the community I am building. I hope you like it, too. Let me know what you think (about this and anything else you’ve read here or the podcast episode!)

Thank you for being here and reading—and listening! Moving Through is a reader- and listener-supported newsletter and community. Paying subscribers play a big role in making this newsletter possible and I am looking forward to continuing to build this community and share even more. However you have landed here, and whether you are a free or paying subscriber, I am grateful and happy you’re here.

In my most recent newsletter, I wrote about being a few days out from an annual winter retreat I help organize (among other thoughts I shared about making a recent life transition).

This weekend event, which for the first time sold out with more than 50 registrants, brings women together for a weekend in northern lower Michigan, in the woods and on the shores of a large, beautiful inland lake. One of our guest speakers, traveling Saturday afternoon the hour it takes from Traverse City to the lodge, may have summed up the scenic surroundings the best: “I haven’t seen this many pine trees in a long time!” The long-overdue snowfall we received the night before the event got underway painted an even prettier wintry picture.

As I write this, a week after this 5th annual winter weekend getaway, as we call it, I am still on a high from its success. And by success I mean the amount of soul-filling and heartfelt interactions I experienced firsthand and witnessed throughout those three days and two nights. This weekend felt especially meaningful to me, for a number of reasons I’m still unpacking, and I believe many, if not all, of the women who were there would probably agree it was a significant weekend, transformative even. Getting away from our everyday routines, taking a breath and exhaling, spending time in nature and with other women in a safe and welcoming space, has this effect.

It’s a lot of work (and yes, a whole lot of fun!) to organize, taking months of coordinating, and I don’t do it alone; my great friend Pam is my co-planner and we partner with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources to make it all happen each January. As I shared with the women this past weekend, this mid-winter event is my most favorite of all the events Michigan Runner Girl has created over the years, to include a spring women’s retreat at a high-end resort and spa, live podcast evening with elite runner and Olympian Des Linden, and a Leelanau Peninsula trail race—these also were amazing, unforgettable events, but this winter weekend is simply … magical. The cozy main lounge with its fieldstone fireplace (and up north/old school woodsy artwork), not-too-rustic and quirky-while-lovely sleeping lodges, the onsite meandering trails, the always-friendly and accommodating staff that knows us and our group so well now—all of this adds up to the most peaceful and restorative mini-escape for everyone.

Moving Through is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

We pack in a lot over the weekend, while also doing our best to allow for ample downtime. We leave it up to each woman to decide what they need and want from the weekend. Every activity, from the Friday evening and Saturday morning runs to the Pilates and yoga sessions, afternoon trail snowshoe hike, and Saturday speakers and evening chair massages all are optional.

More often than not, though, most everyone is participating in the planned activities. We just don’t want anyone to feel pressured, and I will say that seeing a small group of women gathered in one of the lodges, just talking and hanging out, or finding someone curled up on the couch in one of the lodges common areas, a book in her hand, gives me a lot of joy.

Among the things we do on Saturday of the weekend is host a live podcast recording. This year, having launched Moving Through, I figured this was as good a time as any to record a podcast for this community here. I’m incredibly excited to share the conversation I had with my best friend, Cassy Stone.

Cassy and me during last weekend’s Michigan Runner Girl Winter Weekend Getaway near Roscommon, Mich.

Also featured in this episode, which was recorded in the lounge in front of a packed room, the fire crackling in the background, are stories from several of women there with us. Their bravery and honesty was—and is—beautiful.

I hope you enjoy this first episode of the Moving Through podcast. I look forward to sharing more of these conversations and I would love to hear what you think about this one.

p.s. Here are a few more photos from this weekend. And, in case you are wondering about the future of this winter weekend (I was asked about this more than once during the weekend), we plan to keep it going! Though I am in the midst of figuring out how Michigan Runner Girl will look and continue, I know this for sure: connecting with other women, through movement and in the outdoors, and through vulnerable and honest conversations, is sacred and essential to me. I think you’ll see just how much this means to me, and to these women, when you listen to this episode. (You can listen here by clicking on the player at the top of this newsletter or by using your favorite podcast app. Search for “Moving Through”; you might have to add my name, too).

Thank you for being here.

Until next time!xoHeather

Moving Through is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.