Opinion/Resources/Teen Perspective

By Teen Opinion Contributor Maggie VerDught

Photos: Deposit

Happy back-to-school season!

I am now a senior in high school! I have done cross country since seventh grade, and I want to share my story with you. My hope is that it may somehow inspire you and ultimately remind you of God’s truth.

The race begins

I can’t even remember why I decided to run cross country in the first place— I think one of my friends was doing it, and so I joined her. For my entire childhood, I was a sedentary reader. I walked to and from school each day, yet beyond that, I didn’t exercise much! Cross country began my “health journey” and the realization that exercise and physical disciplines are important.

Pushing up the hill

My freshman year of high school, I was determined to succeed on the high school team. I pushed myself and got several personal records. I was proud of myself. After that season, I pushed myself even harder. Winter training began, and I gradually became obsessed with food. I read the book “Glucose Revolution” by Jessie Inchauspé. I researched glucose spikes and blood sugar crashes, and obsessively planned out what I would eat for the day and week to come.

My spring track season of freshman year went well. I continued to become obsessed with what I ate, and what my body looked like. In the summer of 2024, I went on a week-long mission trip to Portugal. I was still deeply struggling with my relationship with food, and I was a very anxious person, though I didn’t realize that at the time.

Something to note is that I was never officially diagnosed with an eating disorder, but I showed orthorexic behaviors (not to be confused with anorexia) frequently. Eating disorder struggles come from inward-rooted fears and lies. I believed the lie that I was ugly and fat. I hated my body.

On the mission trip to Portugal, I tried so hard to follow all of my rules to be “healthy.” It was our last night in Portugal, and after going to the beach, we went to McDonald’s. My friend asked me what I wanted to eat. It was late, and I told him I wasn’t hungry. Looking back on this now, I realize how crazy I was. I truly believed that if my body didn’t look a certain way, I wasn’t really worthy of love. I equated my worth with how I looked and how I performed.

No pain, no gain

As I went into my sophomore cross country season, I was determined to do better than ever before. And I did. I achieved my best personal record so far, and I was proud of myself. Something clicked inside of me. Running wasn’t truly about me; it was about pushing myself outside of my comfort zone and reaching for a goal. It was about choosing gratitude every day and acting on that perspective. I reminded myself, I am grateful to be able to move my body. I am grateful to run. I am excited to push myself to run fast today.

At the same time that my perspective on running shifted for the better, I was still struggling with my unhealthy relationship with food. In November of 2024, right after the cross country season finished, I got sick.

I was sick for the whole month, and I still don’t know exactly what was wrong with me. I had chills, extreme fatigue, brain fog, and muscle weakness, yet I wasn’t “sick” enough to skip school. Internally, I was spiraling. I had worked so hard to become the “healthiest” and fastest version of myself. I couldn’t believe this was happening; all of my hard work felt like it had been erased. I was struggling physically, mentally, and emotionally at this time. I started to gain weight, and I hated myself for it. I couldn’t exercise as much as I wanted to. I was also overwhelmed and anxious all the time.

As I began to recover in early December, I started working out again, but my unhealthy mentality towards food continued. I began to embrace an all-or-nothing path of thinking when it came to food. Since I ate two cookies, I might as well eat five, because I’m already getting so fat. This is a very unhealthy and sinful way to think! I was self-centered and obsessed with what my body looked like. My gratitude-attitude that I had exercised previously to excel in cross country seemed to fade away, and I acted more selfishly.

The finish line in sight

Before the track season of my sophomore year (spring 2025), I recognized more of the detrimental thought patterns that were causing such turmoil in my life. I prayed, and sought counsel from Christian friends and mentors. My 2025 sophomore track season went worse than the previous year, and I was discouraged. I tried to stop caring about what my body looked like, but I compared myself to others constantly. I knew that the only solution was gratitude and God.

As I prepared during the summer of 2025 for my junior cross country season, I practiced embracing a different mindset: my body is not mine, it is God’s. I am His vessel. Though I train my body to reach certain physical goals, my worth is not defined by whether or not I fail to achieve them. My worth is not defined by what I look like, either. Around this time, I wrote something on a slip of paper and stuck it to my wall as a reminder: “Ability > Vanity (Thank God for what you can DO!)”

While I still struggle with anxiety today, I now strive to maintain a much healthier mentality. Last season (fall 2025), I was only 10 seconds away from my personal record. I had gained 10 pounds, and I thought I would never get near my record. But I did, and I’m still proud of that.

Conclusion

Now, as I write this, I am heading into my senior year of high school, and my senior cross country season. I’m excited, of course, and a little bit nervous! But I know that whether or not I gain a personal record this season, I will have given it my all. I’m so grateful for what cross country has taught me over the years, and the relationships I’ve cultivated because of it.

I hope you enjoyed reading my senior cross country story. May God bless you, and have a great week!

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Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.

1 Timothy 4:7-8

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Maggie VerDught is a high school student who enjoys learning about culture, news, and politics.

She is passionate about sharing the truth, especially with her generation. Maggie loves to run, read, and write poetry in her spare time.

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