Lauren Wingenroth, Freelance Journalist Profile

Articles

The Right Carbon-Plated Running Shoe Can Help You Snag a New PR

1 week ago | self.com | Lauren Wingenroth

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. Once reserved for elite runners, the best carbon-plated running shoes are becoming increasingly popular for anyone trying to shave a few seconds—or, if you’re lucky, a few minutes—off your PR.
Is ‘Run Fast, Squat Heavy’ the Ultimate Compromise Between Cardio and Strength Training?

2 weeks ago | gq.com | Lauren Wingenroth

This story is from Manual, GQ’s flagship newsletter offering useful advice on style, health, and more, four days a week. Sign up here to get it in your inbox. A few years ago, longtime CrossFit athlete Adam Klink set a certain corner of the internet ablaze when he ran a sub-five-minute mile and hit a 500-pound back squat in the same day. Either of those numbers could be a personal record of a very fit person, but to Klink, it was the combination that exemplified the CrossFit philosophy.
What This Lifting Influencer Wants You to Know About Strength, Diet Culture, and Gymtimidation

3 weeks ago | wellandgood.com | Lauren Wingenroth

Casey Johnston doesn’t pretend that she got into lifting weights to get strong, or to feel empowered. In her new book, A Physical Education: How I Escaped Diet Cultured and Gained the Power of Lifting, she’s honest about the fact that, at first, it was another diet culture-fueled attempt to lose weight, after cardio and dieting kept failing her. But that didn’t last long.
Only In Your State

3 weeks ago | onlyinyourstate.com | Lauren Wingenroth

Considering I’ve lived much of my life only a state or two away from one of the country’s biggest, most vibrant cities, I’m ashamed to say that I’ve only been there once. But this summer, Atlanta is calling me back (Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter tour may or may not have something to do with it).
Hoka Mafate X Review 2025: I Tried the New Trail Running Shoe

3 weeks ago | self.com | Lauren Wingenroth

Mafate XMultiple Buying Options AvailableAll products featured on SELF are independently selected by our editors. However, when you buy something through our retail links, we may earn an affiliate commission. ProsComfortable, plush midsoleOutsole has excellent gripForked carbon plate for speed and stabilityBreathable yet protective upperConsPriceyA bit heavyWhen you think of Hoka, you probably think of the brand’s plush, comfy road running shoes, like the fan-favorite Cliftons or Bondis.
Get In the Summer Spirit With Berry Picking at Eno River Farm in North Carolina

3 weeks ago | onlyinyourstate.com | Lauren Wingenroth

Berries taste better when you’ve picked them yourself—that’s just science. (And by science, I mean my taste buds.)It’s finally berry picking season in North Carolina, and there’s no better way to get summer started than to visit a local farm and fill up a bucket with strawberries (which typically grow in NC between late April and early June), blueberries (which you can pick between early June and early July) or blackberries (which grow from the end of June through August).
The Best Treadmill Running Shoes That Won’t Wreck Your Knees

1 month ago | self.com | Lauren Wingenroth

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. Love it or hate it, the treadmill is part of life when you’re a runner. Whether the weather is unpleasant or you need to squeeze in a few miles while keeping an eye on a kid or a Netflix show, odds are that you’ll log some indoor miles occasionally. But when the tread calls, will your road running sneakers cut it?
Broken Spoke Farm in Hillsborough, NC Has the Best Soft Serve Flavors, Period

1 month ago | onlyinyourstate.com | Lauren Wingenroth

Hear me out: The best soft serve in North Carolina isn’t from a quaint beachside shack or an old-school spot in one of the state’s many adorable downtowns. It’s at Broken Spoke Farm, a family-owned, central NC establishment miles away from the nearest town and surrounded by farmland and grazing animals.
I Asked Our AI-Travel Planner For a Weekend Adventure in Asheville - Here's What It Created

1 month ago | onlyinyourstate.com | Lauren Wingenroth

Travel-related decision fatigue can catch up to even the most adventurous among us. After all, even a weekend trip comes with dozens of decisions, from where to stay to where to eat to where to hike to what to order at that sandwich shop that everyone’s talking about. Sometimes, parsing through the choices and doing all the research can feel a bit much, and can start to take some of the fun out of it (and need we remind you, the fun is the whole point).
Navigating Boundaries, Consent, and Safety in Immersive and Participatory Shows

1 month ago | dancemagazine.com | Lauren Wingenroth

A few years ago, I went to a dance performance that made me feel physically unsafe, where sweaty performers crawled on top of me and the other audience members. I worried for the performers’ safety, too—at one point one of them accidentally kicked and broke a house light, sending glass shards flying. In the time since, I’ve wondered if I was being too sensitive. Was I truly unsafe, or just uncomfortable? Was I too dismissive of the artist’s prerogative to take risks and challenge audiences?