What happens when the sport you love becomes tangled in the very thing you're trying to heal from?
This week on the podcast, I’m honored to share a powerful and personal conversation with someone very special to me — Lex, a longtime client and now a thriving (just-graduated!) college athlete. We started working together when Lex was in high school, in the thick of an eating disorder that had taken her away from the joy of running. Today, she’s not only returned to the sport she loves — she’s doing so from a place of healing, self-trust, and fierce resilience.
This episode is a raw and hopeful exploration of what it really looks like to recover as an athlete — beyond the surface-level advice of “just eat more” or “listen to your body” (both important, but rarely enough when the culture around you is shouting something different).
We talk about the deeply layered ways eating disorders show up in athletic spaces:
🏃♀️ The pressure to have a certain body type
🍝 The fear-mongering around carbs and "eating clean"
📣 The damaging impact of off-handed comments from coaches
💬 And the silent comparisons with teammates that can become deafening
Lex also opens up about her family dynamics, the treatment that didn’t work, and how she learned to advocate for the care she actually needed. Her story is a reminder that recovery is not a linear path — it’s a winding one, full of self-discovery, hard conversations, and quiet moments of courage.
In this episode, you’ll hear:
Why Lex developed an eating disorder in high school
The unique vulnerability of runners to disordered eating
What helped her actually move the needle in recovery
How romantic partners and friendships can either support or sabotage healing
What it took to return to running with a new mindset
Her advice for other athletes who are struggling — and the next frontier of her recovery journey
Whether you're an athlete, the parent of a teen, or someone still healing your own relationship with food and movement, this episode will speak to your heart. It’s a love letter to the parts of us that are still trying to be “good enough” — and a permission slip to choose freedom instead.
After you give it a listen, leave a comment on to let me know what resonated. I always love hearing from you!
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