My mom and I were talking the other day about making the best of what we have and just how happy I am that I took that leap of faith and created this blog. What’s been so special about it, is the integration of my people. All of them. From all walks of my short, 22-year-long life. What started with supporting was I was doing has blossomed into the greatest group project that’s ever existed. Especially since this month is the December Holiday Hustle (monthly fitness challenge) and the time of year when you think about what you’re grateful for, I wanted to introduce you to some of the big players of athlete state of mind. If you’re not mentioned, it doesn’t mean that you’re not important, I’m just choosing to highlight specific people right now! With that being said, here’s some awesome people who’ve played a huge role in where this blog is today.
Abby Way
Abby was the first interview I did and the one that I’m proudest of. Her post helped me introduce my interest in mental health in such a beautiful, raw way. I was so excited that I had created a platform that was able to help people connect through the sharing of private experiences. Abby was the best person I could have possibly chosen to start my blog with and I’m so thankful she was willing to be vulnerable with not just me, but all of you!
Andi Felix
Andi’s been one of my biggest supporters for a while now. She came back to watch our SRUWS games and made sure to be there for my senior day. Such an inspiration herself, she’s owned and run her own business for the past few years (FX Athletic Performance – if you’re in Cincinnati, go check her out). Not only has she used her own personal platform to support me and the blog, but FX has our back too! It’s enabled me to connect with more athletes outside of my immediate bubble which is my biggest goal. It’s also pretty awesome that she has her athletes participating in the December Holiday Hustle!
Trent Rosenberg
Trent’s family so technically he has to support me, but via Training with Trent, he’s been supporting athlete state of mind in a super relevant way. Similar to Andi, he’s helped me connect to athletes and people outside of my own bubble, and in turn I’ve hopefully done the same for him. His participation was crucial to October’s fitness challenge (Colorado Trail Challenge) and simply put, the December Holiday Hustle wouldn’t exist without him. If you’re enjoying the workouts and want more, you should let him know! He does this for a living and would love to help you reach your fitness goals after December!
Elise Forry
What’s one of the most important things when creating a brand? A logo! Let me tell you guys, I’ve done a lot of this website/blog stuff by the seat of my pants. I’ve already broken my website once (shoutout to Bluehost’s support team) and have made some “good enough” decisions, but I’ve had no interest in creating a half-assed logo. Thankfully, best friend/former roommate/former teammate, Elise Forry is brilliant when it comes to exactly that. While we’re still in the designing stages, what she’s come up with so far is really awesome and I can’t wait to share it with you guys. Her contribution will be how people recognize athlete state of mind…That’s huge! It goes without saying that we’ll have to do a limited merch drop in the future, how could we not!?
While this team is made up of people who probably didn’t realize that they were teammates, I couldn’t have done it without any of them. They’ve all been incredibly crucial to my success, confidence in what I’m doing and motivation to keep going. These people and more have helped by messaging me about an article they liked or that a fitness challenge got them up and moving again.
My life has pretty much looked the same for the past nine months – for better or for worse – and for the majority of those months, I’ve lacked that socialization piece in a huge way. It sounds odd repeating how Rapunzel-y I feel, but that’s kind of how my family’s been living our lives. It’s not optimal or preferred in any way, but right now it’s crucial for us and our health. This blog has been my window to the outside world and MAN, have I needed it. The conversations that have been sparked, the check-ins, the collaborations, the support, the outlet for my thoughts and feelings…All of it has gotten me through and without the blog, that wouldn’t have been present in the same way.
To these four and all of you who have ever shown support, thank you from the bottom of my heart. You’ve made my 2020 that much better and helped challenge and improve myself at a time when I need it most.
With all of that being said, if you ever – and I mean ever – have an idea that could help my improve what I’m doing in any way, never hesitate to reach out. Especially you WordPress pros. I would love to chat with you sometime.