Outsiders Anonymous

We are a local nonprofit that exists to provide free fitness training and an awesome sober community to individuals in recovery from drugs and alcohol to help them run from relapse and lift themselves into a life worth living. We were birthed out of our research at the University of Texas which showed that physical activity reanimated neurotransmitter receptor sites in the brain during early recovery. This allows the individual to then experience positive mood states that they otherwise wouldn't have access to, significantly reducing relapse rates. The number one cited reason for relapse is a desire to experience any emotion, as biological changes in the brain leave the individual unable to feel, and by turning back to their drug of choice, the individual then experiences positive affect again.

Our work then is to create a community to practically implement these findings. We go to rehab centers, sober homes, and hold classes at local parks and tracks for free(!!) to show people that life is something to be enjoyed and that they are truly capable of more than they know! Through workouts and eventually completing a Spartan Race (also free!), the individual struggling with addiction will begin to realize that they can achieve freedom through fitness.

Recovery is the hardest thing anyone will ever do; we are trying to stack the deck in favor of success - help us even the odds a little more!

Funded by Austin, TX (June 2019)