... EXERCISE ADDICTION

I had been up since 4 a.m., running 43 km in the dark, in training for an upcoming marathon.

- BY Charlotte Hilton Andersen

When I completed my run in just over four hours, I jumped into my car, bypassed my house and headed to the gym for my regular workout of high-intensity kickboxing. I would do that for an hour and follow it up by lifting weights.

I made it most of the way through my kickboxing class before passing out.

A friend carried me downstairs, and I lay down on the dirty gym couch. I stayed like that until I could sit up without the room spinning. Even then, I tried to head to the weight room, but my friend insisted that I go home, packing me into my car with a stern look. I thought he was being overly cautious. I was a little lightheaded, sure I hadn't eaten anything since the night before. I wasn't trying to lose weight by not eating; I just couldn't fit eating in between workouts.

I drove myself home, showered quickly, threw on a different set of workout clothes and went to my car so I could go back to the gym to finish my workout. It was then I realized my car keys were missing. I turned around to see my husband holding them.

"What are you doing?" he asked, clearly worried. He didn't know I had fainted. All he knew was that I'd been working out since 4 a.m. But that was enough to set off alarm bells for him.

I was furious. And terrified.

"I have to finish my workout," I said, and started crying.

"Or what?" he asked. I didn't know what, but I knew something bad would happen. That's because I was in the grips of a severe exercise addiction-a cross between an eating disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder. For me, exercising was the primary way I coped with stress, depression and anxiety... and I had a lot of all three.