Christine Conti ’02 could have easily said “I can’t do it” in the days and months after she was diagnosed with advanced rheumatoid arthritis in 2009.
As it turns out, Conti’s grandmother received the same diagnosis decades earlier, leaving her in a wheelchair until she died at age 10. A progressive autoimmune disease that attacks the body and can cause permanent joint and organ damage led Conti to undergo chemotherapy and treatment. I also took other medications and felt devastated at first.
“I’m only 30!” she recalls thinking. “I have young children, two cats, and a picket fence. … It was almost a death sentence. It took me back to my childhood with my quadriplegic grandmother.”
Instead of succumbing to the fear of pain and suffering, Conti conjured up words that would become his life’s mantra. “Yes, you can.”
“I always thought, you’re not going to beat me that easily,” she says. “I’ve reached a point where I say, ‘You can do something or you can do nothing.’ Always choose ‘something.’ You have the ability to help others through what you do. ”
Conti has definitely helped himself and others over the past 15 years. A former English teacher and investment banker, he has reinvented himself as a medical fitness expert and educator, podcast host, motivational speaker, author, and business leader. Conti’s health has improved so much that he has run more than 50 marathons and ultra-endurance races. She is also a four-time Ironman. And in July 2023, Conti’s wellness work with chronically ill patients earned her a prestigious national honor, the IDEA World Fitness Instructor of the Year Award.
***
Conti, Fitness and Binghamton University have been connected for 40 years. When Christine Van Schaick was a child, she and her family traveled to the Babylon, Long Island, campus to watch her older sister Julie, a 1988 Binghamton graduate, play on the Colonials volleyball team.
“I’ve been exposed to Binghamton and the SUNY system from an early age,” Conti said.
Christine Conti overcame advanced rheumatoid arthritis to be named IDEA World Fitness Instructor of the Year in 2023. She tells her story and offers advice and encouragement to others in her book, Split-Second Courage. Image credit: Lisa Reardon. Christine Conti overcame advanced rheumatoid arthritis to be named IDEA World Fitness Instructor of the Year in 2023. She tells her story and offers advice and encouragement to others in her book, Split-Second Courage. Image credit: Lisa Reardon.
×
Conti decided to follow in her sister’s footsteps and not only attend Binghamton but also play volleyball. She started out as an outside hitter and excelled while earning a degree in English and taking classes in business, psychology, and exercise science.
“I graduated from college with a great degree and great experience,” she says. “I got to play, be a leader, and participate in intellectual conversations on campus. It was only four hours from home. It was a great choice.”
The Binghamton base played a role in changing Conti’s life and career after his rheumatoid arthritis went into remission. She researched exercise science, health, and nutrition to develop ways to help people with chronic illnesses both physically and mentally. Conti also started running and created a “bucket list” of challenges.
“The only reason I ran in volleyball was when I got in trouble,” she says with a laugh. “I said, ‘If my legs are starting to get tired, I’ll do this, this, and this first.'” I wasn’t going to talk about anything negative. Get out there and make a difference.
“My lifelong love of physical activity was the foundation of what I did,” she added.
**
By the late 2010s, Conti was already writing medical fitness education courses and developing programs for chronically ill patients. National workshops and keynote speeches brought her discoveries to a wider audience, and she soon became involved in diseases ranging from terminal cancer to Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, autism, and spinal stenosis. We started receiving requests for support from people suffering from .
This patient effort was complemented by a podcast (“Two Fit Crazies and a Microphone”) and a book, “Split-Second Courage,” published in 2022. The book encourages readers to “face fear head on,” think positively, and turn unhappiness and pain into problems. Live the best life possible.
“I got sick,” Conti says. “It changed my life in a positive way. This diagnosis made me realize that my life is limited and that I am here for a reason. To inspire others who don’t feel like they should.”
IDEA Award winner. Image credit: Supplied. IDEA Award winner. Image credit: Supplied.
×
Ms. Conti was able to further spread the message that “anything is possible” by winning the World Fitness Instructor of the Year award from IDEA, the international association representing fitness and wellness professionals. Conti didn’t use his acceptance speech at the IDEA World Fitness Convention in Los Angeles to read a list of “thank yous.” Instead, she used this platform to highlight the power of positive forces and encourage others to use exercise and nutrition to prevent disease.
“Because of that night and that award, I am able to make a bigger impact,” Conti said, adding, “I will not tolerate negativity.”
“Negativity causes stress. Stress causes inflammation. Inflammation affects your body and mind, which affects your overall health,” she says. “The goal is to be a lighthouse. A lighthouse doesn’t chase ships in the harbor. People say social media can be harmful. I’m shining so bright that 10 years ago you would have gone blind and erased me!”
***
An example of Conti’s life-changing influence can be seen on the Ironman course in Hawaii. There, she coached Marlin Stutzman to become the first woman with autism to compete in the Ironman World Championship in 2023. Conti, who participated in her first Ironman (2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride, 26-mile marathon) in Lake Placid, New York, in 2018, became a guide because she was inspired by others who became guides. It is unacceptable to miss a race due to illness. She met Chris Nikic, the first athlete with Down syndrome to complete every major marathon, and led him to half an Ironman.
“Once I had a few races under my belt, I felt like I could give back,” Conti said. “The guides are in charge of the race (the whole thing) with the athletes. But they can’t worry about themselves. They need experience and education to survive the race.”
Conti is currently training Thomas Welsh, a 29-year-old autistic athlete from Florida who plans to complete the World Marathon Majors in the next few years. For these athletes, the rewards are more than physical, Conti says.
“Exercise is more than just working out,” she says. “It’s not just about weightlifting or how fast you can run. What’s important is that you feel good. … When you see people running marathons in wheelchairs being pushed around, they… They will say they don’t have a disability. They feel like everyone else. I’ll forget.”
Conti, who is based in New Jersey with her husband and two children, continues to have a “yes, we can” attitude in 2024. She co-founded Reinventing the Women International with author and speaker Lisa Charles. The organization strives to mentor and connect women of all ages and walks of life to help them grow their brands and support systems. She is also the CEO of FitFixNow, an online continuing education company for fitness professionals, personal trainers, athletic trainers, and more.
“It all stems from trying to make people healthier and happier,” she says. “From women’s empowerment to FitFixNow to my book, it’s all about staying healthy and independent for as long as possible, because there’s no other way to think.”
