Ever heard the expression “gym junkie”? This is not just a throw-away phrase to signify people who love working out. It actually comes from a serious disorder known as exercise addiction. Exercise addiction is a compulsion towards physical activity, and it’s a serious condition. You may be thinking, “I wish I had that!” because most people are lazy and have the opposite problem, but you have no idea how bad it is. Exercise addiction causes mental and physical strain and fatigue well above normal levels and can be damaging to one’s health. Since I joined AA — Athlete’s Anonymous — and started oxygen therapy in Melbourne, I’ve slowly been getting better.
My friends and family saw my condition deteriorating over a matter of months, as I could spend hours at the gym every night and wake up early for my 4 km pre-work run. Nobody could get through to me, I hadn’t faced up to the fact that I had a problem. Then the day came when I pushed myself way too far. I woke up at 5 am and decided to extend my morning run to 6 km. When I got to work, I was still not content with my work-out and so jogged during my half hour break instead of eating. After work, I went to the gym for my usual routine – treadmill, squats and weights. The last thing I remember is lifting a 10 kg dumbbell because I woke up twenty four hours later in hospital. I’d collapsed from exhaustion.
Since admitting that I have a problem and attending my AA meetings weekly, I’ve slowly been recovering from my exercise addiction. Now, I only workout once a day for half an hour and I spend another half hour afterwards having hyperbaric therapy. Melbourne doctors recommend sitting in the hyperbaric chamber after exercise to help the muscles regenerate, and mine are in a particularly sore and sorry state after how hard I pushed them. It’s going to be a long and tough road, but I’m looking forward to my recovery.