Episode 13: Carrie Combs, "Carrie The Crohnie"

Today’s guest is Carrie Combs, who was diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease 8 years ago at the age of 22. Within her first 5 years after diagnosis, she had three surgeries, countless medication changes, and–as she puts it–a lot of really bad days.

During those times, the thought of running a marathon never even crossed her mind. But, fast forward today and she’s now run two half marathons and getting ready to complete another with the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation’s Team Challenge in Nashville at the end of April. She plans to race in her first full marathon this fall.

In this episode, Carrie shares how her mindset changed after her surgery in 2017 and she realized she needed to do more to take control of her health. With the help of a new gastroenterologist, she began a healing journey with new medications, a training program to regain her strength, a clean diet with all foods in moderation, and supplements she discussed with her doctor. She’s now an avid runner and crossfitter who is learning to balance life with IBD, her family, and her passions.

Carrie goes into detail about some of the supplements she’s found beneficial in her endurance training, including: Nuun (an electrolyte tablet made with plant-based ingredients without all of the extra sugar and additives, and are gluten free, dairy free, and soy free that helps with hydration), salt tablets, slow-release iron, vitamin D, and collagen powder.

As a runner with Team Challenge for the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation, Carrie is able to combine her passion for running with the purpose of raising funds for IBD research. If you’d like to keep up with her story or make a donation to help her meet her fundraising goal for the April Rock ‘n Roll half marathon at the end of this month, visit her Instagram page for more tips, her journey, and links to her Team Challenge page:

@carriethecrohnie
https://www.instagram.com/carriethecrohnie/