Episode 104: Rachael Steil on Coaching Athletes, Her Upcoming Book, and Doing Things Even When Scared

Rachael Steil [“Style”] began runninginsilence.org in December 2012 in the midst of her binge eating disorder, and as a cross country and track runner at Aquinas College. Unable to find many stories about athletes dealing with eating disorders, Rachael decided to blog about her own journey in the hopes that it might speak to others running in silence. Rachael Steil is now an eating disorder recovery advocate and the author of Running in Silence, which shares her story as an All-American athlete struggling with anorexia and binge eating. She is also the founder and speaker for the Running in Silence nonprofit to break misconceptions and raise awareness for eating disorders in sports, serves on the board for the Michigan Eating Disorder Alliance (MiEDA), and is currently a mentor for the USTFCCCA Female Coaches Mentorship Program. Rachael has been interviewed for numerous publications including U.S. News and World Report, Vogue Magazine, and Women’s Running. She has delivered presentations at coaching clinics, high schools, and colleges across the country to share her story, create awareness, and bring hope to other coaches and athletes. Rachael is based in Grand Rapids, Michigan where she is writing her second book and coaches high school cross country and track. Connect with Rachael @runninginsilence on Instagram or Runninginsilence.org.