From Fitness to Faith

Jay is the Creative Director and Programs Manager for IWR. This is his story:

I grew up in a tough city outside Boston and found Heroin by 15. Something kept me alive long enough to get out of there by way of the Marine Corps, but many of my closest friends weren't so lucky. The military kept me on the straight and narrow long enough to find something I loved almost as much as dope: CrossFit. The intensity of leaving it all out there gave me a similar 'high', and more importantly, total disconnection from the pain underlying everything. Eventually I recognized my addiction had just found another outlet, 'healthy' on the outside this time at least, but just as detrimental inside. In years of coaching and owning a gym, I recognized that until we re-imagine what we believe about ourselves and the world we'll never actually change. The only way I've found to change that internal story is through faith, leaning into this internal feeling that was screaming to be heard. Now I'm dedicated to helping others listen too.