Athlete Spotlight- Erin Collins

1.⁠ ⁠Tell us a little about yourself.

What does life look like outside of training, and what drew you to endurance sports?

Currently, I live in Columbus OH, a recent move from Phoenix and my first move across state lines as an adult. I married my best friend this summer 8 years into our relationship. I am a physician assistant, and worked in clinical medicine for 16 years. I was looking for a change, and found a position at Nationwide Children’s in Gene Therapy doing clinical research, and I LOVE it!

 2.⁠ ⁠Where did your journey begin?

Think back to when you started. What were you hoping for, and what felt challenging or unfamiliar?

This journey started when I was in high school. In order to get an A in PE, I needed to improve in the mile every week. My Dad would also run a few days a week when I was a kid. He is a military guy and had to pass the PT test so I would ride my bike until I became a runner myself, and then we ran together. My first marathon was with my Dad, the Marine Corps Marathon in DC! I ran for years before I had a coach.

 3.⁠ ⁠What have you had to overcome along the way?

Share a setback, obstacle, or life circumstance that has shaped your experience.

Where do I start? I am so proud of all I have overcome, the things that no longer hold me back.

Before meeting Marilyn, I started having pain in my left hip. When I saw ortho, they saw no acute issue and said my hip was stable but the pain sidelined me from running more than 8 miles. Hello pivoting to yoga! I had a season with yoga teacher training, and practicing ashtanga and vinyasa, and then I slowly returned back to the gym, running, and swimming. In 2017, my Uncle was diagnosed with Huntington’s Disease, a rare disease with a 50% chance of inheritance if you have a parent with the disease but can also be a spontaneous mutation. It came out of nowhere in our family, and I am the only one in medicine so I had all the feelings and jumped into learning as much as I could. I went to a conference where humans were cycling across the country to raise $$ and awareness. And guess who bought her first bike, worth as much as my first car?! The humans in the bike shop knew Marilyn, and some new triathlon friends who had coaches encouraged me to reach out to her. It took a lot of courage to ask for help and also to believe I was worthy of coaching!

 4.⁠ ⁠What helped you move forward?

Were there changes in your approach, habits, mindset, or support that made a difference?

Feeling stuck, depressed, devastated. I was overwhelmed and overtaken by big feelings. So why not consider working with a Coach, someone outside my very small circle? For as long as I can remember, I’ve struggled with anxiety. Part of this journey has been being open to living better through chemistry too, a little extra serotonin goes al long way in making life tenable!

 5.⁠ ⁠How have we worked together as coach and athlete throughout your journey?

Share a conversation, adjustment, or challenge we worked through together and what you learned from that experience.

We spoke once, in was in the midst of issues with my Dad, about making me into a person who can stand up and face anything and anyone. This looks like getting out there and starting (a workout) even if I’m tired, or struggling through too many feelings.

 6.⁠ ⁠What are you most proud of?

This could be a race, a personal breakthrough, greater consistency, or something that no result sheet could capture.

I am most proud to have a life I love. I have made all of the choices required to get to this day. I feel empowered to also move forward into whatever spaces I feel called to.

Of course I am proud to have 2 70.3s, a couple marathons, and many other races under my belt. But even more so, I am proud to consistently get my a** out of bed and into my body, meditating, swimming, running, yoga, walking. Bike is out of the rhythm at the moment, but that’s okay!

 7.⁠ ⁠What have you learned about yourself through this process?

Has anything surprised you or changed how you see yourself?

I belong here, amongst strong and bold athletes, in a space that reminds me to ask questions and continue making plans, to dream bigger than any bank account. So much of my journey is about unlearning the things that no longer serve me, and learning new thought patterns that have created my most amazing life!!

 8.⁠ ⁠What is one lesson you’d like to pass along?

What would you want someone starting out—or facing a similar challenge—to know?

Trust the pieces of your intuition that feel specific. It took too long for me to learn my intuition is unique to me, and only I can play my part. Leaning into what I know is meant for me, even if it doesn’t make sense in the moment or seem possible, has always worked out better than I could have imagined.

 9.⁠ ⁠What does this journey mean to you beyond sport? That I can keep moving forward and asking the universe for meaningful moments and opportunities. It means working in research so I can witness good change happening in medicine, and for families, and eventually witnessing the cure for HD.

How has it influenced your everyday life, relationships, or perspective? Even yesterday during the team meeting, I was reminded that I need to keep being intentional about creating moments and connections that matter.

10.⁠ ⁠What’s next for you? Enjoying my most recent transitions.

What goal or experience are you looking forward to, and why does it matter to you? I have been struggling with some pain in my left hamstring. It matters because every challenge can feel like a barrier, but overcoming it, moving through it, is a reminder that this too shall pass, and there will be a better version of me on the other side.