Hi, I’m Natalie!
I’m a tall girl from Wisconsin who started this blog while living in Rhode Island more than 15 years ago. Since then, I’ve relocated to New Jersey and now Massachusetts—but somehow, Tall Girl in a Small State has stuck around through all of it.
There was a brief period of serious internal blog-naming turmoil when I moved to New Jersey. But upon discovering that I actually lived in the fourth-smallest state, me, my tall self, and I decided to keep the name. And now that I live in Massachusetts? Well, fun fact: it’s the seventh-smallest state. So clearly, the name was meant to be.
These days, this blog is where I share the things that make up my life: running, motherhood, scoliosis, living with a fused spine, and all of the imperfect, funny, challenging, and occasionally chaotic moments in between.
From the 800m to the marathon
In high school, I was a mid-distance runner. Anchoring the 3200m relay was my jam, plus an 800m or 1600m thrown in for good measure. Long runs, however? Anything over three miles was intimidating to me. Fast-forward more than 10 years, and three miles was often the short run. My then-boyfriend, now-husband suggested we train for a half marathon. Our first was the 2016 Walt Disney World Half Marathon, and apparently we had such a magical time because we haven’t really looked back since.
In 2018, we tackled our first 26.2 at the New York City Marathon, and we’ve continued running races and chasing new goals together ever since, from 10+ half marathons and the 2023 Walt Disney World Marathon right before we became parents.
These days, our run life looks a little different, but less miles doesn’t equal less fun! I’m an avid run/walker and talk a lot about the method on Instagram, including how I use different run/walk intervals, why walking during a run isn’t “giving up,” and how run/walk can be an incredibly useful tool for runners of all abilities.
For me, it’s also become an important part of figuring out how to run with scoliosis and a fused spine while balancing training with daily life.
Running with Scoliosis and a Fused Spine
I was diagnosed with severe idiopathic scoliosis in middle school and had spinal fusion surgery in high school to straighten out my 52-degree thoracic curve. I didn’t grow up thinking I’d become someone who would talk about scoliosis all the time. But it has become a pretty significant part of my story—and, eventually, a pretty significant part of this blog.
Living with scoliosis and a spinal fusion has taught me that movement doesn’t have to look one particular way. Despite extra hardware, my body has capabilities that I never could have predicted when I was a teenager recovering from surgery—like the ability to run a marathon and adapt to the heat and weight of working as a Disney character.
Running has given me a way to continually figure out that balance. I talk about running after spinal fusion, running with scoliosis, adapting training to work with my body, managing the unpredictable parts of scoliosis, and finding ways to keep doing the things I love without letting scoliosis or my spinal fusion limit me.
Because resilience isn’t always about pushing harder. Sometimes it’s about adapting to meet your body where it’s at.
Add Motherhood to the Mix…
My husband and I have our own little tall girl, who is quickly approaching three. I love watching her learn, grow, and become her own happy, independent little person.
Motherhood has added an entirely new layer to everything I do. I enjoy creating content around what it’s actually like to be a mother runner with scoliosis and a spinal fusion: fitting in runs around daycare schedules (and the sicknesses!), figuring out training while parenting, navigating the inevitable interruptions to a training plan, and trying to remember that “my pace” doesn’t have to look like anyone else’s.
Creating Content Along the Way
I’m a proud graduate of UW-Milwaukee and the Columbia Journalism School, and I’ve spent much of my career writing, creating content, and telling stories.
Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to work with brands in the running and lifestyle space. I’ve been part of the Brooks Running Run Happy Team and Brooks Running Collective, as well as Brooks’ affiliate program, for the past five years. I’ve worked with Nuun Hydration through its influencer program and have created running-focused influencer content for brands including Shokz and Outopia.
Today, I love creating content that sits at the intersection of my actual life and the things I’m passionate about—especially running, motherhood, scoliosis, spinal fusion, and the wonderfully messy process of figuring out how they all fit together.
Let’s Connect
Whether you’re navigating scoliosis or spinal fusion, a fellow mother runner trying to fit movement into the chaos of everyday life, a brand looking for authentic running or lifestyle content, or you just want to say hello—I’d love to hear from you.
Have a collaboration idea, a story to share, or something you think we’d be a good fit for? Get in touch.