Misfit Mountain Athletics

Ready for an adventure but don’t know where to begin?

Join me in the spring for an Introduction to Backpacking retreat in the eastern Tennessee mountains. We’ll get to explore the Appalachian Trail together and learn all the skills you need to safely and confidently adventure outside on your own. All gear and food is included.

This budget-friendly retreat is perfect for beginners or those who would like to build community in the outdoors. Registration is live! 

Who wants to go on an adventure with me?

I have 3 opportunities to explore somewhere new, make new friends and learn new skills:

In April 2027 I will be hosting two different budget-friendly retreats—a trail running retreat and a beginner backpacking retreat. Both will be beginner-friendly and open to total newbies! So if you’ve always wanted to try trail running or backpacking, now’s your chance.

In August 2027, you can join me on an epic Iceland Trek with Hardwin Adventures ! We’ll be tackling the Laugavegur and Fimmvörðuháls trails over the course of 5 days. I’m helping to guide and would love to have you along on this adventure.

Stay tuned for all the details!

Really, it’s ok.

Ready to begin your journey? No better time to start than now! I’ve got a couple of 1:1 coaching spots available. They won’t last long.

Running, hiking and biking on trails is always more fun with friends.

I’ve been overwhelmed with messages asking if I’ll be hosting more trail retreats soon. I appreciate all of you checking in!

And the answer is …. YES!

After taking the year off to restructure and re-organize, I’m happy to announce that my running and adventure retreats will be making a comeback in 2027, and they’ll be bigger and better than ever!

Backpacking workshops. Trail running retreats. Mountain Biking trips. We’ve got a lot planned for 2027.

What kind of adventures would you like to be a part of? Let me know in the comments and we might just be able to create something you’ll love!

A huge congratulations to Ashley for snagging 3rd place in her 24 hour race this past weekend!!

Ashley is a dedicated athlete who is such an amazing member of the running community here in Nashville.

It’s an honor to watch her train hard and progress as a runner.

I’m so proud of your determination and grit, Ashley!! You are an inspiration.

Heat gotcha down??

Here are 4 ways to survive and thrive in the heat as an endurance athlete…

Curious about sweat/sodium testing? Scroll back through my feed to learn more or send me a DM!

So incredibly proud of my athlete Echo. She snagged her first Shasta summit this past weekend!!

Echo has overcome some major setbacks over the past few years. She has persevered and reached her goals through hard work, determination and the right type of training.

Mid-life can be tough y’all, but it can also be the most amazing time of your life!!

Are you a midlife athlete trying to navigate the world of endurance sports? Here’s your reminder that new summits and new PR‘s can be within reach.

Curious to learn more about how to train through midlife? Send me a DM and let’s chat.

The before + after you might be surprised to see: weight gain edition

In a world filled with SkinnyTok, What I Eat in a Day videos and menopause weight loss “hacks,” I made a conscious choice to gain physical weight (and lose a bunch of toxic mental weight!) over the past year.

At age 45, I’m prioritizing my bone density, muscle mass and mental health in order to be a healthier and happier midlife athlete.

Over the past 12 months I have:

•Ended toxic relationships and took charge of my mental health (goodbye toxic weight!)

•Strengthened my relationship with food (no more skipping dessert!)

•Gained 15 lbs of muscle mass and fat (and I feel strong AF!)

I was nervous that the change would ruin all the metabolic improvements I had made over the past 5 years. But guess what? Recent testing revealed, it didn’t!!

I was nervous that my performance would take a hit. Instead, I’m stronger than ever!

Bonus: I can tolerate the cold better on my mountaineering and backpacking trips and say yes to extra tacos afterwards.

If you’re afraid that gaining weight will ruin your progress, it probably won’t.

Your skinniest self probably isn’t your happiest self, nor is it your best performing self.

For a long time, I felt that as an athlete and coach, I needed to look shredded. But I somehow always felt frail, not strong.

Maintaining that kind of physique long-term wasn’t fun, mentally or physically. Now I’m happy, healthy and still performing well without restriction.

I ditched the scale and all the other things holding me back. And I have zero regrets.

Bodies change over time. And I can finally say that now, for the first time ever, I’m truly happy in my own skin.

I’m building a durable Lauren who’s in the endurance game for life ❤️ So this is your reminder—not all weight gain is bad. Shredded isn’t that fun. Your ideal body probably weighs more than you think.

If you are eyeing a 100 or 200 mile race in the future, backpacking can be an excellent tool in your training routine!

In fact, my 200 mile training plans often include backpacking/fast-packing weekends.

If this is a strategy that you have used as well, I’d love to hear your thoughts!