Category: NYC

• Navigating Life Lessons on a NYC Subway

  A stranger named Brendan on a Brooklyn subway platform said exactly the right thing at exactly the right moment. On NYC connections, Mercury in retrograde, and the people who show…

  

• Embracing Contradictions: Yoga and City Life

  Finding stillness in a very hot room in a very loud city. On yoga, contradiction, and the particular peace of sweating in a small studio under a New York City…

  

• Running Against Demons: My NYC Marathon Experience

  NYC Marathon 2025, one-year sobriety milestone, and a demon shirt Iris didn’t realize she was wearing until the photos came back. On running, gratitude, and the tribe that carries you…

  

• Inspiring Marathon Tips for Every Runner

  Eight NYC Marathons as a proud back-of-the-pack runner. What actually makes the difference on race day has nothing to do with pace. Iris Derke’s tips for every runner who lines…

  

• Where’s Fred? NYC Marathon Tribute and Inspiration

  Every NYC Marathon runner should know Fred Lebow. The statue that moves to the start line every year, the founder who ran his own marathon with a brain tumor at…

  

• Mind Over Muscle: Finding Strength in Pilates and Sober Living

  Back from ten days away from Pilates, and the first move delivered a quiver. On returning to the body, beginner’s mind, and why the sober mind and physical practice are…

  

• Back-of-the-Pack Wisdom: Celebrating Every Runner’s Journey

  A NYRR race in Queens and a conversation about joy versus checkboxes. Iris Derke on back-of-the-pack wisdom, running for the journey, and the thing no fast finisher ever told her.