I'm an author and journalist based in Toronto. I’m currently a contributing editor at Popular Mechanics and a senior editor at Canadian Running magazine. I also write a biweekly column on the science of exercise in the Globe and Mail. My newest book, released in May 2011, is Which Comes First, Cardio or Weights? Fitness Myths, Training Truths, and Other Surprising Discoveries from the Science of Exercise.

For a detailed CV, click here. A few key highlights pertaining to the topics I write about:

Science: Before becoming a journalist, I did a Ph.D. in physics at the University of Cambridge, then spent a few years as a postdoctoral researcher with the U.S. National Security Agency, working on quantum computing and nano-mechanics.

Sports: Between 1997 and 2008, I competed as a middle- and long-distance runner for the Canadian national team, at distances ranging from 1,500 metres to 12 kilometres. I continue to enjoy training (and, occasionally, racing), and I remain deeply interested in the world of amateur sport.

Music: I’ve been playing jazz saxophone for more than 20 years now, but in the tradition of armchair critics everywhere, I’m a better student of the music than I am a player. I enjoyed covering jazz for the Ottawa Citizen from 2005 to 2009 – and I’m available for weddings and parties…