NewsBreak Original

On New Year’s Day of 2022, I began an ultra race called Tuscobia in Northern Wisconsin. I was “only” signed up for the 80 mile distance, but the full race is a 160 mile out and back event. Temperatures were projected to be low all day, with a high temperature of only 2 degrees Fahrenheit. I wasn’t totally prepared for the cold conditions, and I wasn’t mentally ready to take on such an event. I was tired from a year of training and racing. I was in the middle of starting a new job for a poorly-run, chaotic tech company. I was mentally stressed and physically exhausted. Twenty miles in, my shirt was frozen to my wrists and my neck. I started shivering, and I didn’t have the emotionally bandwidth to problem solve. I was on the precipice of crying when my parents picked me up, turning up the heat in their SUV to thaw my frozen limbs.

"You live a very happy life," said one of my coworkers, as he looked at the pictures I’d recently hung in my office. There was Chase and I on New Year’s Eve, Chase smiling widely and me planting a giant kiss on his freshly shaven cheek. There was me with a group of friends in Chicago at a Fitz and the Tantrums concert, me with college teammates, my parents, Chub-Chub, Chase again, my in-laws, me and my best friend TayLORE. I was smiling in each photo, because that’s what you do when you know your picture is about to be taken. Nobody frowns as their aunt says, “Say cheese!” Nobody scowls for the Christmas card photo, nobody cries as they hug their fiancé on New Year’s, even if that’s what they feel like doing.

Is it possible? Yes. Is it helpful? Not always. After being diagnosed with Anorexia Nervosa, I was told to stop exercising. I wasn't happy about that, because I was addicted to exercise. Being a Division 1 athlete was serious business, and for five years straight, I worked out like it was my job because it sort of was. I'd been running a lot and slowly starving myself for years prior to my diagnosis. I pushed myself through workouts only to go home and sleep for hours. I bonked countless times in the middle of runs. My gastrointestinal system was so messed up that at one point, I couldn't run more than a couple miles without having to stop to use the bathroom. My athletic performance wasn't anywhere near good, but I was so indoctrinated into my eating disorder that losing weight mattered more to me than running fast. I needed to keep moving so I could avoid any unwanted weight, or so I thought.

My daughter just spent her spring break with my parents which left me with an empty house. With the extra time I was able to fit in extra workouts, did some yard work and took a lot of walks while dog sitting for my parents. Not having to cook for a week, I also ate super clean and am feeling incredibly healthy. Since they are all headed back from their adventures, I've spent some time trying to figure out how to maintain some of the extra fitness while I get back into the regular routine.

Daily Vlog: Working and Working Out in NYC @Thebingbuzz on all platforms

Long before I started working out on a daily basis, when I was feeling particularly stressed I would find myself mopping or vacuuming floors, scrubbing tubs or mowing grass. The solution was two-fold. First, it re-focused my mind on a specific project and away from the source of my stress. Second, the physical activity seemed to calm the nervous, restless feeling that came with whatever was creating my mental anxiety.

Here's a tutorial of how to build miniature sized gym and fitness equipment out of LEGO bricks! A bench press, a treadmill and a weight rack all out of LEGO bricks! FOLLOW ME! Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/trash_can_films">https://www.instagram.com/trash_can_films</a>/ FaceBook: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Trashcanfilms">https://www.facebook.com/Trashcanfilms</a>/