Fitness Sickness: When "Wellness" Makes Us Sick

The fitness industry is everywhere—it’s in the air we breathe, the posts we scroll, the mirrors we judge ourselves in.

For decades, I lived and led inside that paradigm—as an aerobics instructor, a personal trainer, a sold-out believer in “no pain, no gain.” I was preaching the gospel of hard work and small meals, pushing bodies (mine and others’) toward a picture of thinness I truly believed equaled health.

“Go hard or go home.” “Feel the burn.” “Run the marathon to prove your worth.” “If you work hard enough, your life—and your body—will be perfect.” Sound familiar?

Let me introduce you to Josie. Josie loved tennis. But beneath that love was a silent desperation—tennis became her escape from an overwhelming life and difficult relationships. She ran after that little green ball like it could save her. Her body screamed at her to stop. Her knees ached, her back protested. And one day, it all collapsed—literally. She hit the court in pain so severe she couldn’t move. But still… “I just need the game more than it needs me,” she said.

This wasn’t fitness. This was obsession and

escapism. Josie didn’t need to chase power, performance, or perfection. She needed rest. Emotional space. Self-love.

Now meet Stella. Two knees needing replacement. Daily pain. Too heavy, they told her, for surgery. She felt stuck—judged, broken, ashamed. She sat. She spiraled. “I should be able to do what everyone else does.” Her self-talk was brutal. Her body? Just trying to cope after years of relentless stress.

We started with ankle circles. Tiny movements to reconnect her nervous system to her legs. But her ankles didn’t move. Years of trauma had locked them down. And Stella broke. Tears. Panic. Shame flooded in.

“I can’t believe how far I’ve fallen.” “I should be able to do this.”

No, Stella. You’re not broken. You’re human. And these are not failures—they're consequences of pain, not laziness.

It’s time we called out what this is: Fitness Sickness—the relentless pursuit of “fit” that bypasses kindness, healing, and truth.

I’ve stepped out of that world. I don’t worship the six-pack anymore. I believe in blood flow to muscles. That’s it. Just that. That’s the one fitness rule I kept. Because healing bodies need nourishment, not punishment.

What I practice now is kind movement. Alignment without force. Healing without hustle. Posture that doesn’t come from yanking your shoulders back until your spine cries—but from relaxing into natural alignment. Because holding your body tight doesn’t make you strong. It makes you stiff, inflamed, and injured.

Forget frozen backs and bulging discs. Forget judging yourself for what you should be able to do.

Let’s redefine fitness as freedom—freedom to move, to breathe, to feel, to heal.

Let’s return to conscious movement, where self-worth isn’t defined by how far you run, but by how deeply you rest. Where the goal is range of motion, not restriction. Where pain becomes a signal, not a sentence.

This is what I teach now. This is what I believe.

Live relaxed. Move free. 

Come heal with us.