Run Eat Drink Podcast
Welcome to the Run Eat Drink Podcast! This is the podcast where we embark on exciting adventures, combining our love for running, delicious food, and tasty beverages. Whether you’re an elite runner aiming for victory or just starting your “Couch to 5K” journey, we’ve got something for you. Let’s dive into the three pillars of our show:
Accomplish (Run): Accomplishment is deeply personal. Are you eyeing a race series win, planning your next “run-cation,” or hoping to set a personal record in your next half-marathon? Each week, we feature fantastic destination races from around the country. Discover scenic courses, learn about the charities they support, and get inspired to lace up those running shoes. And when we’re not on the road, we share interviews, training tips, and insights from our own running journey.
Explore (Eat): Running and traveling go hand in hand. As we explore new places, we also explore local cuisine. We seek out hidden gems—the eateries that locals rave about. Bold flavors, interesting dishes, and passion for food—that’s what we’re after. After each race, join us as we wander the city streets, discovering post-race refueling spots. Whether it’s a gastropub, a food truck, or a cozy café, we’ve got dining options to satisfy your cravings.
Indulge (Drink): When the running is done, it’s time to unwind. We raise our glasses to celebrate our accomplishments. Local breweries, coffee shops, speakeasies, and watering holes—these are our destinations. From craft beers to artisanal cocktails, we explore the beverage scene. Cheers to a well-deserved drink after crossing the finish line!
Join us on this journey of accomplishment, exploration, and indulgence. Whether you’re a seasoned runner or a curious foodie, there’s a place for you at the Run Eat Drink Podcast.
Run Eat Drink Podcast
RED Episode 296 Featuring the Hosts of Pace Yourself... It's Just Cancer
RED Episode 296 Featuring the Hosts of Pace Yourself... It’s Just Cancer
SHOUT OUTS
If you want a shoutout on the show for you or someone you love, email us at info@runeatdrink.net or call us at 941-677-2733 and leave a message.
We have to mention it again because we are so grateful… Huge shout out to Greg and Jovanna, owners of Nice Guys Pizza. They have introduced their fall cocktail menu, and a drink is at the top of the list called “I Dream of Autumn Barbie.” $2 from each drink sold will go to The DONNA Foundation to support their mission to help those battling breast cancer and the support they give to ground-breaking research that will finish breast cancer.
We will also have an online auction next month for the DONNA Foundation… stay tuned for some great items for our Runcation Nation Community that are not so close to Cape Coral and Nice Guys Pizza.
Thanks to all our patrons and everyone in the Runcation Nation for your support and encouragement. Because of you, we have kept the show going over the last two years, so thank you!
Thank you to Dean Gerber, Associate Producer of our show, and Josh Ozbirn, Executive Producer of the podcast, too!
RED Episode 296 Featuring the Hosts of Pace Yourself... It’s Just Cancer
This week, as October comes to a close, we want to introduce you to two amazing runners who have been diagnosed with breast cancer and have started a new podcast that launched this month called Pace Yourself… It’s Just Cancer.
Meet Erin and Stephanie, who told us that their podcast will include their journeys battling this disease and host interviews with others fighting all types of cancer. They will also include other segments, not just limited to breast cancer topics. Find out what it is all about in this episode.
Please give them a listen and connect with them here:
https://linktr.ee/paceyourself.itsjustcancer
Contact the podcast
paceyourself.itsjustcancer@gmail.com
Facebook for Pace Yourself… It’s Just Cancer
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61566237441720
Instagram for Pace Yourself… It’s Just Cancer
@paceyourself.itsjustcancer
Instagram for Erin
@erin.just.keeps.running
https://www.instagram.com/erin.just.keeps.running/
Instagram for Stephanie
@runningthroughbreastcancer
https://www.instagram.com/runningthroughbreastcancer/
THAT’S A WRAP!
Thank you for listening! Because of your support, we are in our eighth year of the podcast! Don’t forget to follow us and tell us where to find you next on our website, Facebook, Instagram, and X. Also, check out our store on the website and get some swag, thanks to Pure Creative Apparel. Thanks to www.PodcastMusic.com for providing the music for this episode, too!
I'm Erin and I'm Stephanie, and we're the hosts of Pace. Yourself, it's just cancer.
Speaker 2:You are listening to the Run Eat Drink podcast.
Speaker 3:Welcome to the Run Eat Drink podcast. We feature destination races from across the country and after the race, we take you on a tour of the best local food and beverage to celebrate. So whether you are an elite runner or a back-of-the-packer like us, you'll know the best places to accomplish, explore and indulge on your next runcation. On this special edition of our show, dana, we have to rewind to International Podcast Day because of Milton and Helene.
Speaker 4:Yeah, hurricane season messed us up this year.
Speaker 3:But we have recovered and we welcome today the co-hosts of a brand new podcast. Of course you know her and love her from the We'll Run For podcast, erin, and introducing to the Runcation Nation her co-host, stephanie, of a brand new show two episodes out in the feed so far called Pace Yourself, it's Just Cancer. So welcome to the show, ladies. Thank you, we are so glad to have you and thank you so nice to the show, ladies. Thank you, we are so glad to have you and thank you so nice to be back. Thank you for coming back on. We didn't scare Erin away. And, stephanie, thank you for being willing to come on, even though you don't know us and our antics and our craziness here on the show very much.
Speaker 2:All part of the fun, isn't it?
Speaker 3:All part of the fun. All part of the fun. Some of the best people that you meet for the first time are runners. Yeah, a hundred percent.
Speaker 3:That's all I'm going to say, so just as a review. And then we like to do introductory notes first. So can you? We'll start with Erin and then, if we could go to Stephanie, reintroduce yourself, Erin for the Runcation Nation. Tell them a little bit about you and who you are, and you don't really have to say what you're drinking, like we normally do on Lives. But yeah, kick it off and remind us of who you are.
Speaker 1:All right, I am Erin and I am the co-host, as you pointed out, of the We'll Run For podcast, which I can't believe when we were talking about this recently. We've been on the air for almost five years. We're four and a half years old, almost five years coming up. It's been an amazing journey, meeting the community and the people and getting to podcast with fellow podcasters like you and some other of our favorites. But yeah, I've been running. I'm a runner. I've been running since 2013, 2014, ish, regularly. So I'm yeah, I'm just about at my 10 year runniversary. I'm just about at my 10 year runniversary.
Speaker 1:What else I was diagnosed with breast cancer in December of 23. And my goal and my I don't know, I guess ambitions are to continue running through cancer treatment. I'm currently on chemo, so I am running and trying to enjoy life to the fullest. I'm now retired officially from, I'm out on disability, which is, I guess, I'm just calling it retirement at this point. But yeah, I don't know, I guess I like it.
Speaker 3:I like retired, I like retired. So now we can get you all the gear for the retirement shirts that say I do what I want, I'm retired.
Speaker 1:I don't have to. Yes, it's why I've been able to jump into your coffee morning chats now.
Speaker 3:Which I love and I'm going to get back to doing more often. I really miss.
Speaker 3:I really missed it during the hurricane and all the madness I got to jump in this past week with you guys, with you I this week yeah, yeah, I'm so happy to have you back and I just have to tell you that one of my favorite parts of the world run for is the inside the runner studio and I feel like this is like an inside of the runners, inside the runner studio although we won't do the james lipton questions because we're here to talk about your new podcast but I feel like we are being introduced inside the Runner Studio, inside the Runcation Nation studio. To Stephanie Tell us a little bit about you. Introduce yourself to the Runcation Nation.
Speaker 1:I feel like we should do the James Lipton questions for Stephanie, because she's never done them on our podcast yet.
Speaker 2:Oh, so I'm getting hazed by both podcasts at the same time.
Speaker 4:Yes, yeah, you jumped in the deep end of the pool.
Speaker 2:Good thing I can swim Super twin powers activate Something like that, something I don't know. I don't know.
Speaker 3:Anyway.
Speaker 2:Yes, let us know who you are. I'm Stephanie. I also had breast cancer. I suppose I'm in remission at this point. I started doing Run Disney races in October of 2013. It was one of the last tower of terror 10 milers. That was at nighttime and it was on my birthday. My husband and I had a bet who would finish it faster and technically, while he did finish faster. While he did finish faster that's what she said, Sorry, Technically, while he did finish the race faster, I could still walk at the end and the day after. So I still maintain that I won, Winning Exactly.
Speaker 3:You're finishing strong yes, finishing strong, and you're able to live your life afterwards.
Speaker 2:Absolutely, Because I had an amazing after party at Hollywood Studios following that and he was miserable and I'm like this is great.
Speaker 3:And like the second day after the race, how, like when you I guess I should call it do squats but not visit the restroom, and how are you?
Speaker 4:Yeah, whenever you have to sit down for any reason.
Speaker 3:For any reason. Getting up is special.
Speaker 4:We've seen that race take out a number of people. I still contend the reason they don't do it anymore is because I've never seen more people go out on medical at a race than I have at Tower of Terror.
Speaker 1:10-Miler, really yeah.
Speaker 4:The nighttime, humidity and the heat in Florida that people don't expect in October would get people all the time in October, would get people all the time. At the end of the race you would just see the lawn out there by the tower filled with people cramping, retching, getting attended to by medics. And I've said it, I do not. I think the reason they canceled that race is because of that.
Speaker 3:They just Well, I mean, it hit me every year. I cross the finish line and I'm in the bushes and you don't need to see what happens over there, with me retching and puking and yuck. It's disgusting. That's a fair point.
Speaker 4:Yeah yeah. Nothing quite like the trauma bond of talking about the horrors of running, but your show that you ladies have started is unique. Talk a little bit about why you started the show, who you hope to reach and what you two want to accomplish with it. And, stephanie, why don't we start with you and Erin after?
Speaker 2:Sure. So I was diagnosed with breast cancer in August of 23. I had a mastectomy October of 27, october 27th of 23, 23, 23. And then seven days later I walked the wine and dine races and Riley Claremont had me on the jumbotron and his jaw, and Clarissa's his jaw and Carissa's jaw and John Pelkey's jaw just absolutely just dropped on stage. Like you, I'm sorry, you did what? How? Seven days, yep, seven days. I still had all my drains in. So the amount of people that stopped me on the course to share their story with me and tell me how inspiring I was. And then same let's see with Wine and Dine, then Marathon Weekend they didn't update on me on the Jumbotron and even more people. Just, you're so inspiring, I kept thinking about your story and that kept me going and training. So then come print marathon.
Speaker 2:The day after the 5k or the day of the 5k, I went to the va hospital and I started radiation and then the 10k went to the hospital afterwards started radiation, had 25 sessions of radiation Monday through Friday. Princess comes around. I was still doing wait, princess. No, donna, marathon comes first. So I'm doing Donna half marathon Week after Donna, I finish radiation and then I do Princess. A week after Princess, I go and have a complete hysterectomy. So I'm sharing all of this with the Run Disney community and the amount of people You're so inspiring. And so, finally, sometime in February, I started my Facebook page, or my Instagram handle, of running through breast cancer Extremely creative. You're welcome. It's on point.
Speaker 3:It's on point.
Speaker 2:It's on point, it's straight to the point. It's on point. It's on point, it's straight to the point. Yeah, that's just me, just right there in your face. So I just people kept saying you're so inspiring and I don't think that I am. Maybe I'm finally getting to the realization that people see me that way, but maybe I'm just being hard at it because I will. I refuse to stop doing what I'm doing when I have the ability to do it, just because I have a diagnosis of something. Everybody has a diagnosis of something. If I can still do something while I have a diagnosis, why don't you?
Speaker 2:Why can't I? So I started that and then Erin received her diagnosis in December and I just heard it in her voice on her podcast there's just I said it in another podcast, I think ours and also on the runs. It was like a silent siren, like only cancer people can hear it, that cry for help, that cry of I don't know what to do, I don't know how to feel, I don't know how to express it. No one else understands. I feel so alone. And I heard that in her voice and so I kept reaching out to her on Instagram and at first she was like who in the hell is this person? Who's this crazy person? And so, finally, one day I never thought that by the way.
Speaker 4:Just for clarification.
Speaker 1:I never actually thought that to myself.
Speaker 2:But I was in the shower one day and I just kept thinking why don't I see if Erin wants to start a cancer podcast, like running while going through cancer, and because I just heard that she was going on retirement and I'm unemployed? I've been unemployed since October of 22 and had a job lined up and that fell through in April of 23 and I was in a dark state of depression because it was like my dream job and then the cancer came. I'm like that's like on the back burner now. So I messaged her and she's like let's do it, game on. So here we are. We are more clarification. She didn't really know who I was and I was trying to say hi to her a springtime surprise but she completely ignored a warthog who wouldn't but now what do you mean?
Speaker 1:ignored a warthog, but she was dressed as a warthog and I was at the Toy Story bathrooms and I was with Diana and they run the Rise and Run crew was coming out there.
Speaker 1:So we saw Greg and we ran up to Greg and started talking to him and Allie our friend Allie was over there. A couple other people that listened to our podcast were standing there. So we're saying hi to all of them and apparently Stephanie came out and she was dressed as a warthog and I did not know who she was or recognize her, so I didn't say hi to her. So now she says that I just ignored her because I'm an a**hole.
Speaker 2:You're not an a**hole who?
Speaker 1:would talk to a strange warthog. That's just safe. I would definitely talk to a strange warthog. It's not don't talk to strangers.
Speaker 3:It's don't talk to the strange warthogs.
Speaker 1:Exactly. It's not don't talk to strangers. It's don't talk to the strange warthogs, exactly. To just tack on to what Stephanie said yeah.
Speaker 1:I don't know that. I feel like it was like a silent cry, I think for me it was. I didn't want to turn the We'll Run For a Podcast into a cancer podcast, so like I would start to say something and then I would feel like it was not the place to put some of the like heavier stuff and we've talked about heavy stuff. On the Well Run for Podcast we have an entire episode, the Emotions of Running, which to date is, I think, our most listened to episode outside of a marathon weekend recap.
Speaker 1:But the amount of people that have connected with that episode and the emotions that you have whether it be what you talked earlier about injuries, dns is like all those things that we don't talk about that are really difficult for runners, because Instagram has taken the world into a place of social media in general, has taken it into the world of accomplishments and like all the happy stuff, the highlight reels, so people don't really talk about as much the hard stuff.
Speaker 1:So it's not that our podcast isn't a place to talk about those things, but it is not a cancer podcast and cancer is a totally different type of feeling and emotion and only a person who has been through a diagnosis can really understand it. There's caretakers who understand it in a different way, or people who have been through watching a loved one go through it. There's caretakers who understand it in a different way, or people who have been through watching a loved one go through it, and I have experienced that. But having someone tell you you have cancer, I feel, is a very different journey even from that, and so I just felt like, while I wasn't shy about sharing my journey, I also didn't feel like I wanted to let the Will Run For podcast become that, because if you listen, you know that we're just the most ridiculous humans that have ever existed on Earth, talking about the dumbest stuff ever.
Speaker 3:And I wanted.
Speaker 1:I still like that's. Ultimately, that's what the will run for a podcast is, where a light fluffy where your friends chatting in your ear while you run, and that's what I wanted to keep that. So I think what Steph was hearing was just my constant hesitation to want to bring that into that podcast. And so when she approached me about this because I am a person who definitely believes in sharing all of the hard things in life and the bad, the ugly- yeah.
Speaker 1:If whether it be divorces or marriages being difficult, or miscarriages or infertility or like all these things that happen in life, people don't talk about them enough. Cancer diagnosis Like I just I wanted to be able to allow a space for people to come and talk about those things with us.
Speaker 2:And we knew that there was a need for it, because when we were both diagnosed, we and I know of another person that with cancer that there's the running community is so small, and then the subset of those with cancer in the running community is a lot smaller too. And I'm in a triathlete in hiatus. I say too. And I'm in a triathlete in hiatus. I say so. I went into my triathlon group one of the triathlons groups I'm in and I asked what those that had reconstruction had after were you?
Speaker 2:able to ever get your freestyle back, the motion of pulling with your chest, if you had reconstruction with implants and not the fat. I call it the bastardized mommy makeover implants and not the fat. I call it the bastardized mommy makeover where they move fat from your belly to your boobs to make boobs. It's a bastardized mommy makeover If you're able to still pull and have good chest muscle strength without any deformities because the implants are underneath the muscle. So I reached out to one of the triathlon Facebook groups I'm in and asked if anyone that has had breast cancer reconstruction with the implant under the muscle if they were ever able to get their freestyle back and how long it took and crickets Maybe. One person said, oh, I had reconstruction but it's over the muscle, because I didn't want to deal with that. I'm like that wasn't my question.
Speaker 2:And then I went into a breast cancer group the only one I'm in because then it just basically becomes an echo chamber of oh yeah, this sucks, that was hard, I threw up and so, anyways, there's too much negativity and I just I want to do my journey my terms and not have it influenced by anybody else. So I went in that group and I said, hey, any runners or triathletes in here and after reconstruction, with the implants under your on their chest muscle, how long did it take for you to get back into it and have you been able to do pull-ups or pushups? Because I would love to try out to become the be in the Indiana Jones stunt show, so I really want to be able to build up my upper body strength again and do pull-ups.
Speaker 3:Whoa Wow. Not what I was expecting actually, so I wasn't the Indiana stunt show.
Speaker 2:Yeah, hollywood studios, yeah, I've got a friend who is Mary Mary Ann and she said yeah, I'll help train you and you can try. Who is Mary Mary Ann? And she said, yeah, I'll help train you and you can try out and we can work together. And I'm like cool, let's do it. Wow, okay, I have plans to do the floor is lava show, but I don't think they're doing it, that show, anymore, except in applications. Ah, okay, okay, I also think that exists anymore either, does it? No, did they discontinue that show? I?
Speaker 3:don't know, on some sort of odd tv, I don't know. I don't know. Your dreams can come true. You just keep, you, keep at it, you keep at it. So you've described your motivations for starting the show, both of you first starting the show, and the warthog reached out to aaron, as it were. Now I think it's a thing we have to develop some kind of hashtag for that. I don't know. But at any rate and I love how, stephanie, that you mentioned the Donna, because we run it every year and love it, and I just can't believe that we've missed you there.
Speaker 2:Last year was my first year. Oh was it.
Speaker 3:Oh, okay, I thought you'd been doing like.
Speaker 2:I'm an ambassador, so I've got like a coupon code or something. You're an ambassador.
Speaker 3:Mm-hmm, me too. Me too, you're part of the D-Squad this year. Yes, is it your first time? Yeah, oh, and Erin, you're doing Donna yes, yes, I am.
Speaker 1:We have a team of 24 people coming into town to do it. Uh, the will run for erin's boobs team. I love it, I love it. And so I think that I'm gonna do shirts where everyone's just that's. What's gonna say on their shirt is will run for erin's boobs, and then I'm just gonna have erin like up here, and then have two big arrows pointing at my boobs.
Speaker 3:Because last year we were trying and it just didn't. Like we, it didn't come to fruition, like I couldn't get it done in time when you were diagnosed. We reached out to our friends at Pure Creative Apparel and we were like we have to get like a logo designed and like a we'll run for and the runny drink podcast and like for Aaron, so that we can run this year. But truly, you're going to be there this year, yeah, and we have time. We have two months, so it's great. I'm so sorry that I'm shouting and I don't really need to.
Speaker 2:I've got a group of friends. They create a team for me too, so Aaron and I were saying that we're trying to see if there's. We haven't really talked about it, but yeah.
Speaker 3:Yeah, we combine everybody. We have a team too, but so all of our teams will just be together, yeah, and it will be Maybe change, I don't know Wonderful. Yeah.
Speaker 2:Subtitle my team to our podcast.
Speaker 3:I don't know who knows, but okay, who knows, but OK. So your team is not named for your podcast and your team is named for Will Run for Aaron's Boobs.
Speaker 1:Yeah, because the Will Run that started like I created that team back in July before this podcast ever came even as a thought.
Speaker 2:So, yes, I signed up. This podcast, Brainchild, started in middle September and we launched it October 1st.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:So that's good, yeah, because I signed up for it the day that it opened.
Speaker 3:Oh, that's good, that is I can't, yeah. So you got three people here, you got two ambassadors and we have discount codes and Fitz is going to be there race announcing and she's got discount codes. So people shameless plug. It's Breast Cancer Awareness Month. We love the Donna Foundation. They're amazing supporting survivors and those who are fighting and just link in the show notes. Join any one of our teams and run the race or donate.
Speaker 1:I'm excited for the Donna, so I feel like it's great advertisement for them.
Speaker 2:You're signed up for the half Erin.
Speaker 1:And I am doing the half. I am fun running the half. So if you are planning to do a party pace, I'm going to be petting all of the dogs, stopping for all the drinks, stopping for all the food. It will be a good good old four, at least four hour fest of nothingness and running and chaos. We'll probably do what we did at space coast and have a sign like a pacer sign that's just going to have like our name on it or something, and then so people can find us as they're running. And then I think there was like 16 or 17 of us that stayed together at Space Coast and we just called intervals like we were pacers, and it's going to be a good time.
Speaker 3:And you haven't done any. Donna events, Erin, you haven't done no but I have.
Speaker 1:Last year I had multiple friends who ran it and had shirts and stuff made for me and they sent me pictures along the way and I. The amount of dogs that are on course is just exciting. It's so exciting and they may not have had a jello shot on the course Every single dog You've got to be kidding, Stephanie.
Speaker 3:Listen, I can send you episodes where we talk about how we had there's a picture of me because we are back of the pack. It took us five. It took me and one of our listeners five hours to do it last year. Oh, cool the half. And I'm telling you it's fine, Everything is fine. It is the party course. There are the neighborhoods. Come out in force. Jell-o shots pickle shots beer.
Speaker 2:I'll be doing it all.
Speaker 1:Fireball, fireball. Oh, fireball is my favorite. If you have ever listened to the Royal Run for Podcasts and you listened to my 30th or 30th, my 30th birthday, I'll go with that. My 30th birthday party. Yes, I've been holding wasted by the time I crossed that finish line because I had done so much fireball.
Speaker 3:Oh, okay, so we have lists of things. You're just going to love all the dogs. You're going to love all the community. You're going to take so many pictures. You're going to laugh, you're going to cry.
Speaker 2:It're going to take so many pictures you're going to laugh, you're going to cry. It's going to be amazing, it's so emotional.
Speaker 3:It's so moving. It's just, it's it.
Speaker 2:It's a survivor photo might be finished with the marathon.
Speaker 1:Before I finish the half marathon, then it doesn't matter.
Speaker 3:It doesn't matter because the course is open the same amount of hours as the marathon, as you've done races like I guess Space Coast is like that, or on that south course or what the party course whatever it is.
Speaker 3:I digress. We're going to have a great party and we're going to get excited shirts that actually now that we have time. But your podcast is the reason that we're here. I think you've talked a little bit about what your target audience is, Although I do want to say to you, in listening to your first two episodes, I feel like people who are not going through the treatment or haven't been diagnosed can also learn about the perspective of those who are going through it from your podcast. Do you agree?
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think that's our goal too.
Speaker 1:I don't think that we, while we want to create a community and a place for people who have cancer or have had cancer so, as I say, survivors and thrivers I think that's a.
Speaker 1:It's a place where we want people to feel safe. So I think that we are trying to create that community within, like a Facebook group. If you have had cancer or have cancer, please come join us there and our podcast. Every week we'll have a password to get into that group because we want to maintain people's privacy, especially if they're talking about, like, their medical journeys or anything like that. But overall, I think that we want to create a community of people who can also understand what we've been through and also learn how to advocate for themselves if this ever were to happen to them, and to know that, if it were to happen to them or a loved one, that those people can still be active and do all the things that they've always loved and still thrive through that. So I think that's also a goal of this podcast not just to create the community within the cancer community, and not just breast cancer, but all cancers. I think that's just as important to us is the advocation part of the podcast.
Speaker 3:I just, I think, somebody who's outside and has that caretaker role, like you talked about with my dad with his stage four non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. He's currently going through treatment and doing well, but I think that your podcast gives me new perspective for that.
Speaker 1:I didn't know. You don't know what you don't know, and oftentimes, until you have something like this happen in your life, it's hard to find sources, and so I think that's why, even on my Instagram, I'm very open. I didn't create a new Instagram. I just I wanted to put it into a place where people had already followed me, because, as I, we joke on our podcast, because I got it from another group, an Instagram page I think it's the oh so Tough One where they call them cancer muggles or it's the cancer patient, it might be the cancer patient where they do memes and stuff and they call anyone who hasn't had cancer or cancer diagnosis to be a cancer muggle.
Speaker 2:A muggle is a non-magical person from Harry Potter.
Speaker 3:Oh, thank you for clarification.
Speaker 2:Thank you, you're welcome. I saw the face.
Speaker 1:I was just gonna say it's a harry potter reference. Now you have homework where they're not magical. So like you don't understand, like what, what it's like to have those traits, and just in the same way, you know a person who hasn't been through it isn't gonna know what it's like, and so I think, that's a big part of it.
Speaker 3:It's a good analogy and now I understand a little bit more about the Harry Potter world that I guess totally missed the train on and need to get on board but I will.
Speaker 2:We often joke because in the last book you have to have a password to listen to the radio. In Harry Potter we, that's how we came up with the. We call it tumor talk, and so the tumor talk password is how you get into the Facebook group.
Speaker 3:Ah, brilliant, I love it. It's so many connections my English teacher heart with all of this Harry Potter books and, like how you, it's amazing where great ideas come from. It's just unreal, unreal. So do you? Have you talked about that? It's going to be a podcast, not just about your journeys through breast cancer, but all. You are going to have guests and discussions, if you will, about not just breast cancer but all kinds of cancer. Yes, yes.
Speaker 3:So what ideas for episodes do you all have coming up? What's on your list, because I know you're in the kind of beginning stages and you have two episodes out. What's coming up?
Speaker 1:So I think that we have decided that we launched in october. The idea came in september, so it just seemed like the perfect opportunity for us to focus on breast cancer in october, because of breast cancer awareness, of course and it's our podcast in our boobs.
Speaker 1:So yeah, yeah there you go, but the idea is really, each month when we do Stephanie's doing a medical fun fact each episode so we can do the advocacy and education portion of it. We'll be focusing on the different kinds of cancer for all the different kinds of awareness months, because there are awareness months for all kinds of cancer but you probably don't know about them.
Speaker 3:Unknown.
Speaker 1:Because they really only talk about breast cancer when they pinkwash everything. Our hope is that we can get some people on who have other types of cancer. So we're going to have guests. We also, stephanie, has some medical professional friends that we're going to try and bring on for the part of like diagnosis and how to advocate for yourself and those kinds of things Going through the process.
Speaker 3:So that's your background. Stephanie is in the medical field.
Speaker 2:Yes, I'm a family nurse practitioner.
Speaker 3:Okay, okay, family nurse practitioner Okay, so you'll have that aspect of it like your medical fun fact that actually comes from that field and from sound research and sources.
Speaker 2:Absolutely All of my medical fun facts are derived from peer-reviewed articles, peer-reviewed journals, medical textbooks and legitimate medical websites.
Speaker 3:You have lots of things in the works and I really like that. We're emphasizing that it is not just a podcast about breast cancer, but you're encompassing all of the different cancers, that, those awareness months that may go unnoticed throughout the year, and and all the different battles that people may be fighting.
Speaker 1:I feel like the thing is that everyone who has cancer is either going through some sort of treatment, so radiation, whether it be radiation, whether it be chemo, whether it be experimental, whatever trials different things like that.
Speaker 1:So we're all going through the same thing. It might be look completely different because everyone's chemo treats them differently everything, but we are all in the same boat. We all got that diagnosis where you're sitting there and you're being told you have cancer. So we all know what that feels like. It's just in a different way, but we're all trying to get through it. So I think that it unites us, even if it's not the same kind of cancer.
Speaker 2:And it allows for those that don't have breast cancer, because every other cancer but breast cancer is the one that just got the most attention, which got the most funding, but so it allows for everybody else to feel seen too.
Speaker 3:Yes.
Speaker 2:Because even though I had breast cancer and Erin has it, there have been times and I'm not speaking for her and she knows that she can absolutely tell me I'm full of s**t.
Speaker 3:Just jump right in there. Anytime Erin.
Speaker 2:Go ahead. There have been times where I've felt invisible. My treatment team is at the Orlando VA because I'm an Army veteran and my cancer is considered sequelae from my deployment. Okay, because I don't have any family history of cancer. I don't have any genetic component for breast cancer, but I have a genetic component for nearly every other type of cancer.
Speaker 2:Awesome. There have been times and not because of my treatment team, but just because I've just felt so alone. But I've had friends that are ahead of me in this process and using the same plastic surgeon and breast surgeon, because those aren't through the VA, they're through a civilian on the civilian side over here. But even though I've had all the support, I have a great husband, I have a great treatment team at the VA. I have great friends. There have been times where I have just felt alone, and very little times, but nonetheless.
Speaker 4:Do you have any race or running experiences that have mirrored the challenges that you're dealing with cancer or that you've dealt with cancer, and if you've got any stories you might want to share?
Speaker 3:That question. It came to mind because I think that the marathon, or somebody who decides to run and train for a half marathon or any kind of distance, I think that a race mirrors life and can mirror some battles within your life. So and I don't know if you all have experienced that outside of cancer, when you're running, you're like hitting the wall at a race I thought this was interesting when I read it and I have thought about it.
Speaker 1:Stephanie only got these questions like an hour before I had time to think about this, but I didn't even know there are more questions down.
Speaker 2:It took me until trying to get into the zoom there was a password. Oh, so that's how far I made, it okay.
Speaker 1:Pdf document okay, I read the questions last night and I did think about this a little bit. I don't know that I could say that I can think of something that mirrors it so much as I can say, being a runner or a marathoner or an endurance athlete in general, nothing can prepare you for the moment someone says to you you have cancer. But I will say that I do genuinely feel that because I was an endurance runner and because of that mental quote, unquote toughness that we have within us, because at mile 18, when you hit that wall, you have to dig deep within yourself and say I am stronger than the part of my brain that is telling me I can't do this Right. I am stronger than the part of my brain that is telling me I can't do this Right. And so when I got diagnosed, I had always said I and I repeated this over and over again I've always said I could never have cancer. Having watched other people, I know going through it Right, like the chemo, like not feeling well, the constant vomiting, the chronic fatigue, the this, the that. I always said to myself I'm not strong enough for that. Like I've watched people do it and I've been like there's no way I could ever do this. I can't have cancer, I could never do it.
Speaker 1:But when they say that to you, you have two options, right, you have two options Curl up or show up. You have two options Curl up or show up. And in that yes, stephanie likes to end our podcast with that quote and if you want to live, that's your option. And so you have to mentally get behind that and just and it's not like an overnight thing it takes. I can't say that I'm still prepared for it, but I'm doing it because I have to.
Speaker 1:Right, and maybe a marathon is not exactly the same thing, but when you're at mile 18 and you want to get to that finish line, you just have to dig deep within yourself and say I can do this, I'm going to get to that finish and in that way I feel like it's very similar. And I think that being an endurance athlete and having had that experience did make me tougher and feel like I was able to get through that mental barrier easier than somebody who may not be in an endurance athlete and having joined some of the Facebook groups and the breast cancer support groups, I think, and having talked to Stephanie and having talked to my friend Fernando, or having talked to my friend Melissa, or all these people who have been through cancer. I think that's where the similarities lie and where you can see the difference between an endurance athlete and someone with cancer.
Speaker 3:Yeah, that is wow. Yeah, that is what an answer. And I just and I saw Stephanie just nodding her head profusely the entire time yes, what is the tagline that you end every episode with? So far, stephanie? What is it that you say?
Speaker 2:Curl up or show up. The choice is yours and I'm not saying that. There aren't days where I haven't curled up and there aren't days where Erin has already talked about that she threw a blanket overhead and she's in a cave and was ugly crying. There aren't days where I just like didn't break down in Target walking through the makeup aisle, or in Walmart, where the entire front of the store just went silent and all the cash register just stopped and stared at me because I was having a breakdown, went silent and all the cash register just stopped and stared at me because I was having a breakdown, but we do our breakdown and then we continue on.
Speaker 2:And I call it just feel your feelings, have your moment, put a timeline on. Your feelings, say, I'm just going to take the rest of the day and I'm going to binge watch Harry Potter. I see what you did I want to, and then tomorrow I am back at it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, for sure, curl up and a lot of the same things that Aaron said, like those moments Do you remember where you were when 9-11 happened? Or those nation defining moments, getting that call or going into the doctor's office because I got called which is fine because I'm a medical professional like getting that, that information and that diagnosis.
Speaker 2:that's when our world stopped the earth stopped for a moment and just everything went still. And I remember exactly where I was. I was at my dining room table, I was doing something on my computer, whatever, and I remember I was just sat there for a while and I stood up and my husband came into the area and I said did you get cruise? Did you get travel insurance on the cruise? He said, yeah, why? I was like I have cancer and I just remember that so plainly. And, of course, man, a few words is that sucks. Yep, sure does.
Speaker 1:Yeah, mine wasn't so kind. Mine was while I was at work and the radiologist didn't even ask me if I was in like a good place to talk, and I was like cool, just like in the office. And she's, you have cancer. I was like that's not the way to tell someone they have cancer. Oh, my thanks, buddy. And so then I called my husband and I couldn't say anything. I was just sobbing and so he knew because I couldn't even get a word out of my mouth and you were in a public place you were at work.
Speaker 1:I owned a. Actually, as of November 1st we'll be selling the company, but I owned a construction company that does like electrical work. We do like traffic signals and like easy passes and those kinds of things.
Speaker 1:So you were in the middle of all that and I was in the middle of yes, the office when I got the call, and then my husband had to actually come to the office. Michael had to come to the office to pick me up, because I barely said a word to him. He just knew. And so he came to the office and then they arranged for my car to be driven back to my house while Michael drove me home to my house while Michael drove me home.
Speaker 1:Lessons in treating patients like human beings with kindness and empathy. I don't even think I shared that on our podcast when I gave us our story. Yeah, I forgot when I was doing that I didn't actually say how I got the news.
Speaker 3:It could be a whole show idea for your. It could be a whole episode idea, Like just here. You're not our target audience, but people in the medical field who have to notify patients. These are examples of what to do or what not to do. Just say it. I'll get off of that because, like anybody can tell when I am, what I think and feel and what I because I can't play poker my face is just my face. I have very strong feelings about that kind of advocating and supporting my dad through wholeheartedly support your face.
Speaker 3:I hate my face sometimes because that's the way it is, but but really we have talked about your podcast, we've talked about some of your journey and who your target audience is, but I really think that anybody can get something from your show and I want to put it out there for those runners in the Runcation Nation that might be dealing with something privately and not really putting it out there on social media and that kind of thing, those who are caring for somebody and may get something out of this show. So where can people find it? Where can people connect with you?
Speaker 1:Anywhere you get your podcasts.
Speaker 2:Wherever fine podcasts are sold also a caster sold wherever fine podcasts are sold.
Speaker 3:Instagram, you have handles that. We can yes put.
Speaker 1:We are pace yourself, dot, it's just cancer. On instagram, and we are pace yourself, it'scancer at gmailcom.
Speaker 3:If you would like to email us, leave us a review on Apple Podcasts of course there's a question I have about reviews while we're on this and you're sharing it and how people can connect with you. But will Tom from the Will Run For podcast? Will he, for all the five-star ratings that you all receive, will he run five miles for those?
Speaker 1:So he's running five miles for the We'll Run For podcast. He's running five miles for the Rise and Run podcast. He's running five miles for On the Runs podcast. He's running five miles for the Runny Drink podcast. So why not add the five miles for every five-star review for the Pace Yourself?
Speaker 3:I'm so excited. I didn't know that we were on the five-mile review for the pace yourself. I'm so excited. I didn't know that. I didn't know that we were on the five mile bandwagon, and now we can put that as our call to action at the end of our show any podcast that we have guested on.
Speaker 1:We have volunteered tom for this okay, okay, I don't know that tom no remembers this, and or is he aware? Committed to this himself.
Speaker 3:He's aware, tom, but he's been committed. Tom, you're committed, you are Tom. Yes, you're committed, and thank you. We appreciate your support, tom.
Speaker 2:Yes, good job, tom.
Speaker 3:Five stars, five stars.
Speaker 1:Would recommend Highly recommend Certified fresh, whatever Make sure you tag Tom in all of your reviews for all five of those podcasts, so that you could make him do 25 miles.
Speaker 3:Do a marathon. Tom Just round up.
Speaker 2:Is he doing dopey? Is he doing dopey? No, not this year. No, is he?
Speaker 3:doing any marathon weekend races? No, no, they won't be there Speaking of upcoming races. Ladies, what do you have? Where are you? As we say on our podcast?
Speaker 2:accomplishing, exploring and indulging. Next, I guess I'll take the lead on, will be at Wine and Dine. Three races I have to walk all of them again. I walked them all last year because I was seven days post double mastectomy and I will be 14 days post reconstruction surgery.
Speaker 3:Stephanie is walking all the races at Wine and Dine.
Speaker 2:Doctor's orders. I'm allowed to walk everybody. If you see me, I swear to God. The surgeon said that I could walk them.
Speaker 3:Go to gray area this time, and you'll have one of your kiddos with you as well.
Speaker 2:Yes, I'll have nine with me for the 5K. He wants to do 10Ks and I'm like dude. When you can stop whining about the 5Ks, then maybe I'll start bringing you on the 10Ks.
Speaker 3:Tell him not to whine at Wine and Dime, and then we'll talk about 10Ks.
Speaker 2:Oh, yeah, he wants to do all the weekends with me, with the exception of Princess.
Speaker 3:I understand that, Erin. What do?
Speaker 1:you have coming up on your race calendar. I will be at New York City Marathon while you guys are all at Wine and Dine. I unfortunately didn't plan well for the year that I was going to do New York, because all of my friends were there last year. I do have a few. Ren Dizner is going to be there. Yay, michael Leslie shout out. Yeah, so we will see several friends. We have a couple other podcast friends. We actually created a joint Rise and Run and we'll run for meetup on Saturday in Bryant Park. So if there are any red people out there who are running and want to come meet with us, feel free.
Speaker 3:Oh yeah, so Michael Leslie is a patron of our show. Get the runcation nation up in there.
Speaker 1:Yep. So we will be there at Bryant Park 2.30. And then I will be running the New York City Marathon, and I use the word running lightly. I will not be walking the whole thing, but I probably will walk a good portion, because I am the most undertrained I've ever been for a marathon, aaron, you got this.
Speaker 3:Stephanie, you got this Wine and dine.
Speaker 4:And again.
Speaker 3:The expert, meb Kofleski, who we've had on the show, says it's better to go in undertrained than overtrained and I think that's what led him to his New York City Marathon victory. He has said in his book 26 Marathons. Anyway, not a sponsor of the show, but a huge hero of ours for the show.
Speaker 1:We have picked some places to indulge in New York City. We have a dinner reservation with said Michael at not my Michael, the other michael brenda's at a subway station in new york. It's a pizza place, that is, in order to get into the pizza place you have to go down into the subway station and it's a, so we're gonna have some pizza and they they have a an expansive menu of other things that look delicious amazing.
Speaker 3:We will expect a full recap on this, on all of this, all of this, and we wish you an amazing race experience, both of you. I hope that I get to see you so, stephanie, at Wine and Dine, and I hope to hear all about yours and Run Diz Nerd's New York City Marathon experience. Everybody should check out the podcast, the brand new podcast with Erin and Stephanie Pace yourself it's just cancer Available wherever podcasts are served. Ladies, thank you so much for being on our show and we hope to accomplish, explore and indulge with you really soon.
