Pursuing Health

“I think spontaneous healing is a lot more common than we realize. I’ve asked a room of doctors before, 'How many of you have seen a case of unexplained recovery that you didn’t think was possible and it happened?' Well, lots of doctors raise their hands. And I asked how many had reported it.  No one had reported it.  And I was loathe to report things myself, because, first of all, how are you going to get it published if you do all that work, and if you do get it published how are your colleagues going to view it?” - Jeffrey Rediger, MD, MDiv

Jeffrey Rediger, MD, MDiv,  has spent over 15 years studying spontaneous healing and pioneering the use of scientific tools to investigate recoveries from incurable illnesses.

He is on the faculty of Harvard Medical School, is the Medical Director of McLean SE Adult Psychiatry and Community Affairs at McLean Hospital, and is the Chief of Behavioral Medicine at Good Samaritan Medical Center.  Dr. Rediger is a a licensed physician and board-certified psychiatrist, and he also holds a Master of Divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary.

Dr. Rediger’s research has taken him from America’s top hospitals to healing centers around the world―and along the way he’s uncovered insights into why some people beat the odds.

I recently had the opportunity to chat with Dr. Rediger, and I was excited to learn more about how he became involved in studying a somewhat controversial field.  We talked how he objectively collects data,  the factors the play into spontaneous healing, and the lessons he's learned from his patients that have impacted his own life.

*Dr. Rediger's bio adapted from his website.

In this episode we discuss:

• How Dr. Rediger became interested in studying spontaneous healing

You can follow Dr. Rediger on his website, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

Links:

• Cured: The Life-changing Science of Spontaneous Healing

Related episodes:

Ep 97 - Challenging Conventional Cancer Care with Dr. Thomas Seyfried

Ep 116 - How Healing Works with Dr. Wayne Jonas

Ep 135 - Immune System Strength with Dr. Leonard Calabrese

If you like this episode, please subscribe to Pursuing Health on iTunes and give it a rating. I’d love to hear your feedback in the comments below and on social media using the hashtag #PursuingHealth. I look forward to bringing you future episodes with inspiring individuals and ideas about health every other Tuesday.

Disclaimer: This podcast is for general information only, and does not provide medical advice. We recommend that you seek assistance from your personal physician for any health conditions or concerns.

This post was originally published on June 2, 2020.

“‘Olivia, you're healthy.’ I held it in in the moment, but when I left the [doctor’s] office that day I cried. I had never had a doctor tell me I was healthy.”

Diagnosed with fibromyalgia in July 2016, Olivia Vollmar started CrossFit four months later, despite her doctor’s reservations.  “He loved that I was moving, but he thought it was too much. He has friends that are avid CrossFitters and just couldn't see how someone with fibro could manage to do it.  Like any good patient, I completely ignored him and continued on in what I was doing.”  Olivia decided she would continue with CrossFit for three months, and if the negatives outweighed the positives, she would stop.

One month passed, and Olivia found herself feeling better than ever.  Within two months, she was sleeping more regularly, feeling less fatigued, and her joint pain had decreased.  She no longer needed to see a psychiatrist from her anxiety and depression.  “CrossFit saved your life,” her therapist told her.  Within three months, she was completely symptom free, and living a normal life.

Along with her new exercise routine, Olivia made dietary changes, following the general advice to eat meat and vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch and no sugar.  When she returned to her doctor 10 months after her initial fibromyalgia diagnosis and just six months after starting CrossFit, he barely recognized her.  She had lost 100 pounds!

Olivia discussed her rheumatologist’s treatment plan with her doctor,  and he ran through a series of questions checking on her pain, sleep, mental health and quality of life.  Olivia was stunned when, for the first time in her life, he pronounced her healthy.

“When I was first diagnosed I had so many doctors tell me there was no hope in this disease. I would always suffer and always feel awful. I would never be free from medication and I would never live a normal life. One of my doctors told me to not pursue a career in medicine because it wouldn't be possible.”

“Now, I'm completely normal and doing exactly what I want to do.  I can confidently say that it [CrossFit] has saved my life. Not only in the physical sense, but also in the emotional sense. Before joining my box, I had suicidal thoughts and was completely ready to end my life. Now I've found health, healing and purpose.”

Olivia's road to maintaining her health has not been without bumps and detours.  As she continued her new lifestyle, Olivia felt pressure to please others and anxiety that she might let her coaches down.  She realized that her eating had become disordered, and instead of approaching her workouts as an opportunity to be better than she was the day before, she was constantly comparing herself  and competing against others at her affiliate.  Her "healthy" lifestyle began to take negative toll on her health.

Recognizing that she needed balance, Olivia shifted her focus to make sure she's eating with less restriction and with a greater focus on consuming plenty of nutritious food.   She has also recently left her affiliate and started working out solo with guidance from a powerlifting coach.  These days, she's finding happiness and confidence in celebrating her own accomplishments without seeking the approval of others.

As she graduates from college this spring, Olivia has big goals on the horizon: she's pursuing her Master's Degree in Nutrition and is excited to use her education and her experiences to help others as she continues her own health journey with a focus on the long-term.  Says Olivia, "I am nearly 100% symptom free.  I have found freedom from a disease through diet and exercise.”

Olivia shared her story with me many years ago and I was so inspired to hear how she's overcome so many challenges by focusing on what is within her control to change.  I was excited to catch up with her recently and hear how her journey has evolved, how she found the courage to get started in the first place, and the advice she gives to help others get started on their own health journey.

In this episode we discuss:

• Olivia's childhood and how the passing of her mother impacted her health and her weight

You can follow Olivia on Instagram and Twitter.

Links:

• Snatches Over Suicide

Related episodes:

Ep 45 - Dan Baily on Moving West, Training for 2017, and Danny Broflex

Ep 69 - From "Obese to Beast" with John Glaude 

Ep 19 - Michelle Mitchell on her Experience with Exercise and CrossFit for Fibromyalgia Syndrome

If you like this episode, please subscribe to Pursuing Health on iTunes and give it a rating. I’d love to hear your feedback in the comments below and on social media using the hashtag #PursuingHealth. I look forward to bringing you future episodes with inspiring individuals and ideas about health every other Tuesday.

Disclaimer: This podcast is for general information only, and does not provide medical advice. We recommend that you seek assistance from your personal physician for any health conditions or concerns.

This post was originally published on June 15, 2020.

“The thing about it, she said, ‘Why are they destroying our city?’  And I said, ‘What if you were trying to get mommy and daddy’s attention and we weren’t paying attention to you? What would you do?’  She was like, ‘Well, I would talk louder.’  I’m like, ‘What if we still didn’t listen to you?’  She was like, ‘I would scream!’  And I was like, ‘What if we STILL didn’t listen?’  She was like, ‘I would be really sad. I would start crying.’  And I was like, ‘I know! And what if we STILL didn’t listen?  What if it went on all day long and we just didn’t listen to you?'  She was like, ‘I would be so upset. I would… I don’t know.’  And I was like, ‘Would you throw a fit? A tantrum?’  And she was like, ‘Yeah, I probably would. I’d probably throw my toys at you.’  And I was like ‘That’s kind of what happened, and then we would notice you because you would be making a mess, and we’d say ‘Sydney, Sydney, what’s wrong?’  And we would stand with you and try to calm you down and listen to you.’  So I said, ‘That’s kind of what happened with black people around the city.’  Definitely the first night. And people I think have realized what was going on, finally, and what black lives matters means and they were like, ‘Alright. You’re right.  We stand with you.’”

The CrossFit community may best recognize and remember Deborah Cordner Carson as the gutsy athlete who gave an inspirational performance at the 2012 CrossFit Games, overcoming a fear of open water swimming in the triathlon event and going on to win the 2012 Spirit of the Games award.  Deb could also be distinguished by the compression sleeve she wears on her left leg, and by the color of her skin.  Deb is one of the few black competitors in the sport of CrossFit.

Growing up, Deborah was inspired by great athletes in her family.  Her father came to America from Trinidad and Tobago on a track and field scholarship and her grandfather was the heavy weight lifting champion of the British Empire.  As a young girl she competed in gymnastics, and as a teenager she excelled in track and field, eventually earning a full scholarship to the University of Northern Iowa as a 400-meter sprinter.

When Deb developed lymphedema, a condition where fluid is retained in certain parts of the body and can cause dangerous swelling, she was forced to retire from her track and field career, but in time, she discovered ways to manage her condition- including that recognizable compression sleeve- while still being active.  She took up CrossFit and quickly rose to elite status in the sport, placing as high as 5th in the 2013 CrossFit Open and 13th at the 2012 CrossFit Games.

Since retiring, Deborah continues to do CrossFit for health, but she has also struggled with the heartbreak of multiple miscarriages, and most recently, a diagnosis of gestational trophoblastic disease, a type of pregnancy-related cancer.

Throughout her life, Deborah has been aware that the color of her skin means she's had to work harder for opportunities than others.  As a mother to two mixed-race little girls and a resident of the Minneapolis area, she also has a unique perspective on the recent events that have highlighted the ongoing systemic racism in our society.

I am grateful to Deb for taking a moment to share her perspective amidst all the other challenges she is currently taking on.  These conversations can be uncomfortable, but they're also important as we all strive to stand together and learn from each other.  In this episode, we chat about her experiences as a minority CrossFit Games athlete, the mentality she's using to fight her cancer diagnosis, the lessons she strives to teach her daughters, and how we should all speak up to overcome injustice and racial bias.

In this episode we discuss:

• Deborah’s struggles with multiple miscarriages

You can follow Deborah on Instagram

Links:

• 2012 CrossFit Games - Spirit of The Games Winner: Deborah Cordner Carson

Related episodes:

Ep 10 - Jenny LaBaw on Running 500 Miles for Epilepsy Research and Education

Ep 15 - Lewis Howes on Chasing Greatness

Ep 70 - USA Track & Field Heptathlete Tiffeny Parker on Beating the Odds

Ep 137 - Rich & Hillary Froning on Putting Family First

If you like this episode, please subscribe to Pursuing Health on iTunes and give it a rating. I’d love to hear your feedback in the comments below and on social media using the hashtag #PursuingHealth. I look forward to bringing you future episodes with inspiring individuals and ideas about health every other Tuesday.

Disclaimer: This podcast is for general information only, and does not provide medical advice. We recommend that you seek assistance from your personal physician for any health conditions or concerns.

This post was originally published on June 8, 2020.

“I love competing and testing.  You know what you were like the last time you competed, or the last time you did this sort of training block… and I just like building on trying to get better.  So there’s that. I also like… I know growing up what my parents and my sisters put into me to try to help me build something like that, so it’s not just for me, I’m doing it for them. And also when I compete at different places they come see me. So I don't get to see my Mom, Dad, my sister Becky much, so they always travel over to the Games, or they’ve come to Madrid a few times and the motivation to train, to get them to watch me to compete is motivation in itself.”

Jamie Simmonds, formerly Jamie Greene, made a huge splash in the CrossFit arena when, as a relatively unknown athlete, when won the 2016 CrossFit Open.

Since then, she's gone on to compete at the CrossFit Games four times, and stood atop the podium twice: first as a member Team CrossFit Yas in 2016, and most recently, as an individual at the 2019 CrossFit Games.

Perhaps even more remarkably, Jamie didn’t even start CrossFit until 2013.  Her background as a gymnast and rugby player helped propel her from a novice athlete to a force to be reckoned with.

Jamie’s journey to becoming the third Fittest Woman hasn’t always been easy: along the way she’s been challenged by a ruptured Achilles tendon, a team disqualification, and a dislocated shoulder, but her commitment to constantly improving herself has shaped her into a formidable competitor.

Jamie is a native of New Zealand, but since 2014 has lived in Abu Dhabi where she coaches and trains at CrossFit Yas.  She and I recently caught up to chat about her experience at the 2019 CrossFit Games, what her 2020 training season has looked like so far, and how she stays motivated and committed to her training in the face of challenges.

In this episode we discuss:

• What the COVID-19 pandemic experience has been like in Abu Dhabi

You can follow Jamie on Instagram

Links:

• Jamie Greene joins Tia-Clair Toomey on the Podium at the 2019 CrossFit Games

Related episodes:

Ep 104 Physical Therapist & CrossFit Games Athlete Amanda Barnhart

Ep 130 - Kristi O'Connell on Training for Joy and Balance

If you like this episode, please subscribe to Pursuing Health on iTunes and give it a rating. I’d love to hear your feedback in the comments below and on social media using the hashtag #PursuingHealth. I look forward to bringing you future episodes with inspiring individuals and ideas about health every other Tuesday.

Disclaimer: This podcast is for general information only, and does not provide medical advice. We recommend that you seek assistance from your personal physician for any health conditions or concerns.

This post was originally published on May 25, 2020.

Everybody puts their boots on the same way.  And what that means is, it doesn’t matter your title here.  It could be the people on our leadership team, Bill and I, or it could be the person coming in their first day on the job on the assembly line...everyone is the same. And everyone is going to be treated the same. And it goes back to that first [value], we work until it’s done. If there are boxes that need to go out the door, or we need to make more barbells, you’re going to see the top leadership down going out and helping right now. We did get overrun before we could hire some people- we have everyone in our office right now, they’re doing shifts on our production floor. And that’s really what this is all about, and you see people getting experiences that you normally wouldn’t have. To go out and build a barbell, and maybe you’re in our IT department, a lot of places you wouldn’t have that opportunity, but we live by that standard. Everybody puts their boots on the same way.”

Caity Henniger has been a lifelong athlete.  In high school she led her basketball team to victory in 91 out of 102 games, was voted MVP of the 1998 Junior Olympic AAU circuit, and was a two-time state champion in both shot put and discus.  She went on to play collegiate ball at Ohio State where she averaged 15.4 points per game and set the school single-season record for three-pointers, with 106, earning her the Edward S. Steitz Award as the nation's best three-point shooter.  In 2005, Caity joined the WNBA as a player for the Charlotte Sting.

After multiple leg surgeries led Caity to retire from basketball, she was drawn to the competitive side of CrossFit.  In 2008,  with just a few months of CrossFit experience, she took first place at the 2008 CrossFit Games.  Caity would go on to become a fixture in the production side of the Games, working as an ESPN commentator and as a representative of Rogue Fitness.

Shortly after Caity's 2008 CrossFit Games victory, she began playing a huge role in helping Rogue Fitness grow from a small e-commerce site to a major powerhouse in the fitness equipment industry.  With a focus on manufacturing quality, American-made products from local sources, Rogue now employs over 900 people at their massive 600,000 square foot campus in Columbus, Ohio.

Recently, when Ohio issued a stay-at-home order in response to COVID-19, Rogue quickly pivoted their manufacturing processes to make Personal Protective Equipment for healthcare workers, a decision that is not only helping to keep healthcare workers safe, but is also helping to keep their local community employed.

I had to opportunity to sit down with Caity to learn more about the mission and values Rogue was founded on, and how those principles are driving their business during this time of uncertainty.  We chatted about her days as a competitor,  how she balances her role as an executive with her own personal health,  and we were even able to steal a few minutes from Rogue's Director of Product Development, Ahmik Jones, to learn more about the processes behind shifting gears from manufacturing fitness equipment to manufacturing PPE.

In this episode we discuss:

• Caity’s athletic background

You can follow Caity on Instagram and Twitter.

You can follow Rogue Fitness on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.

Links:

• 2008 CrossFit Games: The Final, Final Results

Related episodes:

Ep 51 - Dick Costolo on Taking Risks and Finding Fitness

Ep 90 - CrossFit Games GM Justin Bergh: The Man Behind the Magic

Ep 101 - Dr. Joe Janesz on Building a Champion Mindset

If you like this episode, please subscribe to Pursuing Health on iTunes and give it a rating. I’d love to hear your feedback in the comments below and on social media using the hashtag #PursuingHealth. I look forward to bringing you future episodes with inspiring individuals and ideas about health every other Tuesday.

Disclaimer: This podcast is for general information only, and does not provide medical advice. We recommend that you seek assistance from your personal physician for any health conditions or concerns.

This post was originally published on May 11, 2020.

“Being a professional athlete, it’s a really selfish lifestyle that you need to lead. You’re number 1, 2, and 3.  You think about yourself -  it’s your life.  Like Cami said, it’s that extra percent that you put in that people don’t see.  It’s the sleeping during the night, the recovery in the evening, the food that you eat, the meal prepping, the training. It is everything, it’s the whole package.  So, all of a sudden - my body is my work tool and all of a sudden it’s not mine anymore.  I’m sharing this with someone else, and my body isn’t going to come first anymore.  She’s going to come first, no matter what, and I’m grateful for that, but it’s definitely something that you… It’s weird.  It’s a weird feeling.  It’s an incredible feeling, but it’s also really, really strange.”

Known as “Iceland Annie,” Annie Thorisdottir is a two-time Fittest Woman on Earth (2011-2012) and ten-time CrossFit Games veteran. With a background of gymnastics, pole vaulting, and boot camp, Annie made her Games debut in 2009 at 19 years old.  Since then, Annie has been a staple in our sport and she is known to train hard and always compete with a smile. After placing second in the world in the 2020 CrossFit Open, Annie declined her invitation to the 2020 CrossFit Games as she prepares for her next big event: she and her long-time partner, Fred Aegidius, are expecting their first child in August of 2020.

Camille Leblanc-Bazinet began her Crossfit Games journey in 2010, and she has competed every year since, ultimately earning the title of “Fittest Woman on Earth” in 2014.  In 2019 she made the transition from individual athlete to team competitor and took home silver as a member of Team CrossFit Krypton.  A former gymnast and Level 1 Seminar staff member, Camille has also been a member of the Canadian National Olympic weightlifting team and holds a chemical engineering degree.  She and her husband, Dave Lipson, recently announced that they are expecting their first child in September of 2020.

Annie, Camille and I recently caught up for a long overdue chat.  We compared notes on how their pregnancies are progressing, talked about how their training routines have changed, and discussed how their experiences as competitive athletes are helping prepare them for motherhood.  And, of course, we shared lots of laughs along the way!

In this episode we discuss:

• Camille’s intention to retire from competition, and Annie’s desire to compete again

You can follow Annie on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.

You can follow Camille on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.

Links:

• I'm PREGNANT - 10 Weeks In, Annie Thorisdottir

Related episodes:

Ep 14 - Camille Leblanc-Bazinet on Moving Forward, Engineering, and Body Image

Ep 57 - Annie Thorisdottir and Fred Aegidius on Team Work and Individual Performance

Ep 81 - Postpartum Training and the Road Back to the CrossFit Games with Lindsey Valenzuela

Ep 82 - Training during Pregnancy and Healing Diastsis Recti with Lisa Ryan

Ep 83 - Pelvic Floor Health for Athletes with Julie Wiebe, PT

Ep 110 - Kara Saunders on CrossFit and Expecting Baby She-Bear

If you like this episode, please subscribe to Pursuing Health on iTunes and give it a rating. I’d love to hear your feedback in the comments below and on social media using the hashtag #PursuingHealth. I look forward to bringing you future episodes with inspiring individuals and ideas about health every other Tuesday.

Disclaimer: This podcast is for general information only, and does not provide medical advice. We recommend that you seek assistance from your personal physician for any health conditions or concerns.

This post was originally published on April 27, 2020.