Fit for Survival - Patient Testimonials

December 5, 2011
During the last three years, I have had the pleasure of working with the Fit for Survival team.  They all care deeply about helping us, sharing their sense of humor, and promoting laughter and life. It has been a great help to me to be able to workout with other survivors as we can communicate and help each other. My diet and exercise programs have vastly improved. Without this program, I would not be where I am today.

May 10, 2010
The Fit for Survival Team made it easy to lose 40+ pounds this past year. My exercise program was tailor-made for my lifestyle and varied throughout the program to keep it fresh. This included tips on a shorter but slightly more intense workout during our busiest time of year at work. This way, I could keep up with my exercise routine. I can mix and match the routines to accommodate the time I have. I got so into it that I even found myself adding more routines and fitting in some extra running in place or dance moves.

On the nutrition side, Mel gave me a goal of total fat grams for the day. Her tip of just keeping track of fat grams and the calories and everything else will just fall into place made it easy to track without getting bored. Just a few tweaks in the kinds and amounts of what I was already eating make it satisfying to stick with.

The Shaw team has been there along the way to answer questions and adjust the program when needed. I am so grateful for the Fit for Survival Program and thank the doctors at the Shaw Cancer Center for having this program as part of the overall healing process.

Sincerely,
Sylvia DiPaulo

May 2010
After several surgeries and months of chemotherapy, I successfully completed my treatment for Stage I breast cancer, but was left feeling like a fragment of my old self. This initial treatment process intended to save my life was also a long, taxing process that drained me both physically and emotionally. With an active family including two young boys, I was eager to recover and rebuild. Joining Fit for Survival (FFS) helped me to do just that. 

When I walked into the FFS studio for the first time, I was bald and “beaten up”—and quickly disheartened by how little I could physically do. With particular attention paid to post-operative and post-chemo limitations, the team provided professional and careful guidance, allowing me to set reasonable weekly fitness goals on which to build.  In time, there were marked improvements, from an increase in range of motion and flexibility to an increase in strength and endurance. With these milestones came a noticeable improvement in my energy level . . . and frame of mind.

It’s been about a year since I started working out at FFS. I continue to go, not only for the highly customized and top-notch physical training, but for the unique and almost instant camaraderie that arises among the survivors who attend. I wouldn’t find this in an ordinary, exercise-only gym, which is why I feel so very fortunate to have a program like FFS here in the Valley.

B. Stockton