When the world shut down in March 2020, my livelihood—and a giant piece of my identity—went with it. I’d been a sound engineer for over 25 years, most of that on Broadway.

I was standing in the living room, backpack in hand, about to head into the show when I got the call that we were shutting down for two weeks. And yeah, it turned into eighteen months, but everybody had a pretty f’d up pandemic.

Shut the F Down

Here’s what my pandemic looked like: Total uncertainty (Would we stay healthy? Would we lose the house? Were we ever going back to work again? And who am I if I don’t mix live sound?). Being on the verge of an empty nest and suddenly having 4/5 of the brood solidly ensconced at home. Staring at the ceiling at 3:00am night after night, feeling like the ground was shifting under the bed and we’d get sucked into a sinkhole any minute.

To alleviate that feeling, I’d get up and eat Tostitos. And cookies. Maybe some ice cream.

I realized how burned out I was from the pace of putting up two new shows in a year with the cumulative toll of over two decades of eight shows a week, six days a week. So I pursued wellness like it was my job (after all, I didn’t have one for the time being). Meditation, therapy, online classes, physical therapy, home workouts, daily walks…

And still, a shitload of emotional eating.

Why WILDFIT?

Let’s be clear: Vanity alone has never motivated me to change. I only had an exercise practice because it was my antidepressant. But it was the WILDFIT before & after pictures that caught my attention. (I am vain, it’s just not my prime mover).

What made me actually sign up was the prospect of becoming free from food cravings. Food cravings kinda ruled my life. I’d eat well during the day, but at night I was eating for sport. And the shutdown proved it wasn’t just the show schedule.

So I signed up for the 90-day challenge. I was nervous because it was a significant investment and I was unemployed. I was also nervous because I’d never stuck to any kind of a food program or diet before. Much like how before I got sober I tried to control and enjoy my drinking without success, I thought where food was concerned I just didn’t try hard enough.

How WILDFIT Is Different

WILDFIT was so different from anything I’d tried before. We added things in before we ever took a vacation from any type of food. Changes were incremental. There was support from a group and no judging, no weight check-ins, no fake food to buy, no supplements. I had tools to use and wasn’t relying on willpower.

The most surprising win I had from doing WILDFIT was dramatic reduction in my pain levels. I’d had six foot surgeries and was dealing with the aftereffects including nerve damage. All my joints hurt and I could barely write longhand anymore. But about five weeks in, I woke up and my hands didn’t hurt. I no longer needed the daily anti-inflammatories I’d been taking for about 15 years. I made a plan with my doctor and got off the nerve pain medication. I found I didn’t need my inhaler for exercise-induced asthma.

I released 20 pounds and haven’t picked it back up again. I learned and integrated a lot about why and how I make food choices, how to want to make better ones, and how to make it easy to do so. I became a certified WILDFIT coach to help others find their own success, reclaim their health and vitality, and live the life they want.

If you yourself get sucked in by before & after pictures, here are mine, February and May 2021.