Book Tour: The Adventures Continue With a Talk at BU

I took on my first book tour 11/29 through 12/7, landing in Boston, driving to Vermont to speak at Saint Michael’s College, driving back to Boston to speak at BU, driving to Rhode Island to speak at URI (Kingston), and back to Boston for one last talk at BU. You can find the first entry here, and the second entry here. The following details on Monday 12/4:

Paula Quatromoni, for those of you who don’t know, is one of the nation’s top experts on the intersection of nutrition, eating disorders and athletes. We met each other back at the Eating Disorders in Sport Conference in August, where she bought my book. She thought it would be a great idea for me to come to speak in Boston, and when Emily from Saint Michael’s put together everything to have me speak at her college, I saw that Boston wasn’t too far away . . .

So here we were, Monday night December 4, working together!

About 15 minutes before the start of the presentation, Nancy Clark arrived (internationally respected sports nutritionist, weight coach, nutrition author, and registered dietitian who specializes in nutrition for performance, health, and the nutritional management of eating disorders). I have been a fan of Nancy ever since I read her book Sports Nutrition Guidebook back in my freshman year of college (I even mention it in Running in Silence). And here she was, with HER copy of Running in Silence, asking me to sign it.

The presentation itself went well–in fact, I feel like everything I’ve been working on these past five years is coming together. I emphasize all sides of eating disorders–including binge eating, of course–and share the intensity of it (not just physically, but EMOTIONALLY and SOCIALLY), as well as ways in which we as a society (or coaches, parents, and peers) can improve on how we identify eating disorders going forward.

After presentations, I always enjoy meeting with everyone who attended. For this talk, it was students from Boston University, dietitians, athletes (including the whole soccer team who rearranged their practice time to attend the talk), a cross country coach, and others who have struggled with disordered eating. A few of us carried on the conversation at a restaurant across the street.

The people I’ve met and the connections I’ve made were some of the greatest parts of this trip. With that said, I must give a huge shout-out to Paula for being the one behind all of this. I’m thankful for her enthusiasm and belief in what I do, and for all SHE does in the realm of eating disorders in sports. She is the one who continues to push forward with these important issues and is rooting for me (and the book!) all the way. She is likely my biggest promotor for Running in Silence, and has helped me to gain more confidence as I navigate this speaking journey.