Survive Running Injury with Cindy Kuzma
I met up with writer and runner Cindy Kuzma in Chicago to talk about running injuries, mental strategies, and how to thrive despite the obstacles.
By Marnie Kunz
I first met Cindy Kuzma, an incredible writer, runner, and genuinely inspiring person, when she was interviewing me for a Runner’s World article she was writing about Runstreet Art Runs. We’ve kept in touch since and I’ve had the pleasure of Cindy coming to several of our Art Runs, in Chicago and NYC. Cindy is now continuing to conquer the world one word and mile at a time, as she has a very interesting running book about injuries out, as well as a podcast and online injury support group, The Injured Athletes Club.
Cindy Kuzma at our Chicago Daydream Art Run and Festival. Photo by Grace Pisula.
Cindy’s book, called Rebound: Train Your Mind to Bounce Back Faster From Sports Injuries, is a project she co-wrote with mental skills coach Carrie Jackson Cheadle. I sat down with Cindy in Chicago recently to discuss her book, injuries, mental effects of injuries, and how we can learn to thrive despite running injuries.
Check out the video interview:
After experiencing her own setbacks with running injuries, Cindy wanted to provide resources and support for other injured athletes. And so she created The Injured Athletes Club, with co-creator mental skills coach Carrie Jackson Cheadle. The Injured Athletes Club includes a podcast, newsletter, and community for injured runners and athletes to get tips, inspiration and connections with other athletes. As Cindy points out, one of the hardest parts of being injured for runners is not being able to participate in the social side of running, which is races. The Injured Athletes Club offers a solution with a supportive, like-minded community.
Update: Cindy has now released a second book, Breakthrough Women's Running: Dream Big and Train Smart, by Cindy Kuzma and Neely Spence Gracey. This book is an in-depth training guide for women runners, including training principles, workouts, and personal stories from professional runner Neely Spence Gracey.
Cindy continues to run and write in Chicago.
Related Posts: Second Chances, Mexico and Running Injury, Best Running Books to Get Inspired, Strength Training for Runners Guide
Resources: The Injured Athletes Club, Rebound: Train Your Mind to Bounce Back Faster From Sports Injuries book by Cindy Kuzma and Carrie Jackson Cheadle, Cindy’s articles in Runner’s World, Cindy Kuzma Instagram, Cindy Kuzma Twitter
Marnie Kunz is a NASM-certified Brooklyn trainer, USATF, and RRCA-certified running coach, and the creator of Body by Runstreet training and Runstreet Art Runs, which bring together communities through running and street art. She is a Brooklyn resident, trainer, Akita mom, and writer. She enjoys running coaching, traveling, art, and eating messily. You can follow her running and events at @Runstreet Instagram and Runstreet Facebook and follow her on Twitter for more on her running adventures.
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