A new Celebrate Recovery female Christian support group aims to help its members run from addictions, hang-ups, harmful habits and the like.
And its two leaders can attest that “replacing one addiction with another one,” as they put it, can be a healthy, life-transforming step.
Such is the idea behind Recover Run, a three-times-per-week support group under the umbrella of Community Church of Columbus’ Celebrate Recovery program. People meet at 6 p.m. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at the tower at Mill Race Park, mostly for quick, two-mile excursions and fellowship.
Co-leader Adrienne Bowles, 32, acknowledged that she has lost 50 pounds via running — not to mention an addiction to painkillers and alcohol.
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Plus, in the past, she has struggled with anxiety and overeating. Celebrate Recovery has taught her one big lesson among many.
“Willingness (to change) is different than willpower,” Bowles said.
Co-leader Dakota Smith, 29, explained the idea simply at one of the group’s most recent meetings at the tower at Mill Race Park in Columbus.
“The idea is, regardless of what you’re getting through, if you’re trying to make positive changes in your life, and letting old things go, you have to replace the things that you are taking away,” Smith said. “I got that concept in my own life through lots of trial and error and have been through countless different treatment programs.”
Smith spent two-and-a-half years in Madison Correctional Facility for drug offenses after years of addiction to opioids. She grew up in a family where illegal drugs simply were a part of everyday life. The love of God eventually reordered her life.
“Your heart has to change,” Smith said. “Against everything that kept me stuck, I prayed, ‘God, please help me not to want that anymore.”
She acknowledged she still lives with painful consequences of her past decisions, though healing has come to many of her previously broken relationships.
Scott Hundley, Community Church of Columbus’ director of counseling and community, emphasized that the group is another way for people building a new segment of their life to find basic help from those around them.
“It is important because we encourage people in recovery to expand their lifestyle into pro-social and healthy activities,” Hundley said. “It is also a community connection with others that are supportive.”
The leaders understand that running much of a distance is challenging for many.
“I remember how horrible it was just to get a quarter-mile done (running),” Bowles said. “But then I also remember how fulfilling it was when it was done. It’s so worth it, because it makes you want more.”
Smith chuckled when she heard that.
“We are creatures of extremes,” Smith said, adding that such is common among those overcoming addictions. “But we have discovered that recovery is all about finding balance.
“In recovery, you’re working to become spiritually fit — as well as mentally and emotionally and all of that. But you have to pay attention to the physical. And that is often the last thing on many Americans’ priority list,” Smith added. “But, being invested in something, setting and reaching goals and building self-esteem while figuring out what you’re really capable of — that mindset eventually flows into every area of your life.”
Smith chuckled at her own passion.
“We live this,” she said. “And we want other people to get what we’ve got. We want to see people’s healthy habits replace their old ones.”
Columbus resident Rachel Malinsky shows up about twice monthly to run “to get some mental clarity” to overcome a trauma.
“I just needed to become physically active again,” Malinsky said. “And I needed to be around people who would motivate me.”
She finds that in Recover Run. The two leaders also mentioned the camaraderie and accountability of togetherness.
Bowles laughed when asked if she wants to run most days.
“Before all this (running), I didn’t really want to use (drugs) most days,” Bowles said. “But that often was the first thing I did, just so I could get up and do what I needed to do. On some level, this is going to have to be one of the same things.”
She also is beginning to follow some of the Recover Runs with informal yoga sessions in the grass at the park.
“We want to be known as a trusted group where women can come for healthy activity,” Smith said.
Though the group is non-competitive, runners want to begin to enter some events together, such as the half-marathon at the annual Mill Race Marathon event.
Bowles offered some humorous wisdom for those unsure whether they have the strength to even do something like Recover Run.
“Suit up,” she said. “Then show up. And things will fall into place and you’ll do it.”
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What: A Christian, female support group (all ages) for those battling addictions, harmful habits, hang-ups and the like. Those who gather three times per week (and sometimes more in other settings) walk and run about two miles each session. But leaders stress that is not a fitness group, per se, and is also for those who never have run.
When: Meeting for now at 6 p.m. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at the tower at Mill Race Park on Fifth Street in Columbus. Most runs (and sometimes walks) are limited to trips throughout the park, including a stop at the exercise-and-weight-training station. Heavy rain and lightning have canceled some meetings.
Family and kids: Organizers have encouraged moms to bring children or teens along for the run (complete with strollers or bikes), and even leashed dogs.
Why: To offer, support, encouragement, accountability and friendship.
Information: Dakota Smith at 715-226-5830 or Adrienne Bowles at 812-350-3428.
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