All products featured on Self are independently selected by our editors.
However, we may receive compensation from retailers and/or from purchases of products through these links.
Still, she keeps looking forward.
Lululemon / Amanda K Bailey
Modification is a necessity, as is honoring her bodyand her goals.
Heres how she balances it all, as told to health and fitness writer Pam Moore.
Running has always represented freedom for me.
So that mileage hasnt been happening as consistently as Id like.
One thing Ive learned along the way is that theres no one definition of success.
Before my lupus diagnosis, my performance was my primary metric.
Now, completing my training as planned or simply getting to the start line feels like a win.
Even before that, I didnt consider myself completely healthy.
I also haveHashimotos disease, an autoimmune condition that causes a decline in thyroid hormone production.
But I think my lupus first started to show up in 2016.
In other words, they had no idea what was wrong with me.
So I wasnt improving.
Then, in June 2022, I started feeling markedly worse.
I developedRaynauds disease, which caused my toes and fingers to turn white and blue and go numb.
For most people, cold air is a trigger, but I was having attacks even in 70-degree weather.
Its a common problem among people with lupus.
Within a few days of dropping out of the race, my rheumatologist diagnosed me with lupus.
The first thing I asked him was whether I could keep running.
Thankfully, he encouraged me to continue.
To manage my lupus, I take immunosuppressant medication to keep my immune system from attacking my healthy organs.
But Im not going to let my health force me into retirement.
In fact, Im focused on training for Further.
My goal is to see how much distance Im capable of covering over a six-day period.
As for how much Ive racked up in one day, my current record is 101.5 miles.
All of the competitors are women, so its really a celebration of our potential.
If I can be present with my Lululemon teammates and celebrate their achievements, Ill consider it a success.
But I just want to enjoy the heck out of myself while doing something that challenges me.
Track how you feel, and look for patterns.
I treat my symptoms like a science experiment.
Keeping track of all these factors helps me identify any possible correlation between my daily habits and my health.
Ive also seen a direct correlation between my symptoms and socializing.
I love people, but as a natural introvert, being on really drains me.
Experiment with nutrition (but try not to stress about it).
Theres no one diet that works for everyone with lupus.
So far, I havent landed on something thats 100% right for me.
Right now Im working with a dietitian.
I havent been able to tease out any definite patterns yet, and stressincluding about fooddefinitely exacerbates my symptoms.
Give yourself grace and lean into modification.
So I take a stab at bekind to myselfand just do what feels good at the time.
Maybe I cant do 10 miles, but I could do four.
Or maybe I jog alongside my horse or take a mellow walk with my baby mini donkey.
I know one workout is not going to make or break my performance.
Sometimes youjust need to rest, and thats more than okay.
Trust and honor your feelings and experiences.
Not every person with lupus has the same symptoms or responds the same way to different foods or medications.
But paying attention to your own experience and intuition will always serve you better than advice from strangers.
