For as long as I can remember, I’ve had two particular struggles: working out what the heck my purpose is, and taking care of my health. For some reason, the two always felt diagonally opposed.
Some seasons of my life I’d just be grinding, prioritizing work over everything, until I inevitably became really sick. Then I’d lock in on my health, focus on healing and forget about all my responsibilities. Until the guilt of leaving my ambitions behind crept in, the drive to work hard came back and I’d return to the grind with even more intensity. And then get sick again. That was the cycle of my life, on and off, for years, all while pursuing academic achievements, then a career, and moving from one country to another.
The stress of that life (plus a few of my own bad habits) led to back-to-back health problems: insomnia, burnouts and finally an autoimmune disease. And amidst all of that, I felt really lost, like I wasn’t living my purpose out fully. I can’t say what my exact breaking point was (there were in fact way too many rock bottoms and lowest of lows to name just one), but one day I decided that something needed to change. The change didn’t happen overnight, more like a couple of years, but through the accumulation of many small steps, I eventually found my way. Well, it was a lot of small steps actually, and it started with running.
Finding my way back
I fell in love with running 7 years ago. At first it was a coping mechanism to deal with burnout, but eventually it became a passion in itself, and through running I became interested in my health as a whole and what I actually needed to feel well.
I learnt as much as I could about holistic health, movement, nutrition, recovery and stress management. Running became an important part of that process. So did yoga. I trained as a yoga instructor and later as a running coach, and began spending more and more time thinking about movement not simply as a way to get fitter, but as a way to feel more at home in your own body. I started sharing that journey online, and since then more than 38,000 people have joined me on it. (If you’ve followed me since my running content days, hiii.)
Along the way, I started having a lot of conversations with people about their health. Friends who were exhausted. Colleagues in my old job who couldn’t find time to exercise. People who wanted to eat better but didn’t know where to start. Women who were successful on paper but felt like taking care of themselves would slow their hustle.
Maybe you recognize yourself in one of those sentences. I recognized myself in all of them, and I also realized something else: I really wanted to help.
Not just by telling people to take care of themselves, and not by offering another list of things they should be doing (the internet feels overwhelming enough as is). I wanted to help people cut through the noise, to point them towards good information, thoughtful practitioners and practical tools, and to give them that little bit of confidence and comfort along the way.
More than anything, I wanted to give a big virtual hug to anyone who believes that being tired and burnt out is simply the price you have to pay, around the clock, for building the life of your dreams. I believed that for years. I don’t anymore, and part of why TGR exists is to tell you that you don’t have to either.
The purpose of The Good Race
The Good Race is built on a simple belief: your health should work with your purpose, not compete with it.
I want this space to help you understand your body, make sense of the science, and get curious about practices that actually fit into your life, your purpose and your ambitions.
What you’ll find here
Conversations bridging science, lived experience and practical tips. We explore movement, nutrition, rest, stress, hormonal health, intentional living, habits, how to talk with your doctors, how to balance a busy job with taking care of yourself, and everything in between.
You’ll hear from researchers and practitioners alongside entrepreneurs, professionals, athletes and people simply trying to figure out how to live well in the middle of a busy life, because there’s no single way to have a “healthy” life. How we live the foundations of health depends on our bodies, our circumstances, our cultures, our work and the lives we’re trying to build. What there are, though, are better questions to ask, better information to have, and better tools to help us make decisions for ourselves. That’s what we’re here for.
Where to start: the podcast
Start by listening to The Good Race podcast! Some episodes will be just you and me, nice and cosy, and others will have guests from all walks of life. Start with episode one, which is my burnout story told properly, or pick whichever title in the feed describes your week most accurately.
You can listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or subscribe right here on Substack: you’ll receive every new episode straight in your inbox with its full notes and the practical takeaways (because it’s all about making changes that last beyond listening to the episode).
Thank you so much for being here! I’ll speak to you soon, and in the meantime, keep running your good race.
Bénédicte
PS: The podcast is only the beginning. I hope to bring you more fun stuff very soon, so stay close!