'My darkest days are behind me': Regina man spins his way to one year of sobriety

Getting fit and getting sober are unique and distinct goals, but they share common fundamental truths in that both require a degree of commitment and discipline. 

Regina's Andrew Shanks is combining the two, and is finding great success.

"Some of my darkest days are behind me," said Shanks.

This weekend, Shanks will celebrate one year of sobriety. It's been a long journey for Shanks, and one that has been aided by riding a stationary bike — a lot.

For the past year or so, he's been spending a lot of time at Regina's Wheelhouse Cycle Club, riding 15 to 20 times a week.

"I know that it is always going to be beneficial to my mental well-being, just keeping my head straight."

That dedication has now been recognized in the form of an award. The Wheelhouse Cycle Club recently presented its first ever Community Champion Award to Shanks for his commitment to fitness, and for sharing his story on the road to sobriety.  

Finding bottom

We've all heard the clichés that people are not going to get sober until they are ready, or that people suffering from addictions have to hit bottom. For Shanks, 32, it was a slow ride to dark places.

He's been a bartender for years, busily pouring drinks for others.    

"It is a fun job, but it can be a very toxic."

Shanks says he fell into an unhealthy routine. He left some of his favourite things behind, no longer playing drums or skateboarding.

I had two near attempts to kill myself, but thankfully that didn't pan out the way I wanted it to.- Andrew Shanks

"I couldn't find any sort of light or spark, and it just got to the point where I'd hijacked myself into oblivion.

"One day I said, 'Well, I don't want to live like this anymore and there's no hope for me,' and I had some pretty bad shit going to my head," he said.

"I had two near attempts to kill myself, but thankfully that didn't pan out the way I wanted it to."

Shanks knew he had to change his life or die. That change started slowly.

"Riding a bike inside was hilarious to me," he recalled.

New habits

Shanks viewed places like the Wheelhouse Cycle Club with skepticism, suggesting — with tongue firmly planted in cheek — that spin classes appeared to have a certain cult-like quality to them.

But he had friends who swore by it, so he gave it a shot. Then he just kept going. Stay sober, ride, stay sober, ride and repeat, over and over again.  

"I don't know if it's essentially the key to work for everyone, but I know for a fact that it works for me," he said.

"It's been a very long year it's been a very short year.… There's been a lot of self-reflection and I'm still trying to figure out what I want, but I feel the best I've felt like a decade," said Shanks, who adds the award he received from the cycle club was significant for him.

"The realization that, like, some of my darkest days are behind me, and that I've survived them — that realization has never exactly been as clear as it was a couple weeks ago when I was recognized within the community.

"So it was pretty cool."