Search Weight Loss Topics:

Home » Fitness » Cancer survivors find fitness, support at East Bridgewater YMCA program – Enterprise News

Members of the Old Colony YMCA Livestrong Program in East Bridgewater have started a 12-week program to reclaim their health.

EAST BRIDGEWATER After months of intensive chemotherapy, John McLaughlin was a shadow of himself. The lyrics of a Pink Floyd song echoed in his head.

There's someone in my head and it's not me.

That's the way I felt for a good five months, McLaughlin said. For five months all I would do is go to chemotherapy, come home, sleep and maybe watch a half an hour TV with my wife and then go back to bed.

McLaughlin and six other cancer survivors are ready to get their lives back.

The group is embarking on a 12-week Livestrong fitness program at the East Bridgewater YMCA, designed specifically for cancer survivors.

The group will meet twice a week for an hour and 15 minutes each day, working with fitness instructors and other specialists, at no cost to the survivors, to regain what cancer has taken from them.

We help them find their new normal because cancer changes their life forever, said Helen Byrne who is a healthy living specialist at the East Bridgewater YMCA and leads the Livestrong fitness class. Their life is never the same. Theyre completely new people.

The survivors know all too well what its like to feel like strangers in their own body after cancer treatment.

Clustered around a table in the Livestrong group fitness studio at the East Bridgewater YMCA during their first session on Tuesday, March 7, the survivors shared stories of their own cancer struggles and hopes for a healthier self at the end of these 12-weeks.

The radiation: I call it my out of body experience, I wasnt even me during that time, Lois Sullivan of Halifax said Its like it wasnt me, I was looking down on that person... I was a different person.

Before the cancer, McLaughlin enjoyed working out and took pride in staying fit.

This cancer thing has knocked me on my ass, McLaughlin said. I want to get back to where I was.

To help survivors regain a level of normalcy and physical ability, Byrne and her team of fitness instructors lead them through a 12-week evidence based program that helps strengthen participants both physically, mentally and emotionally.

Its not just about fitness, its their entire emotional well-being, said fitness instructor Courtney Sullivan. Its an opportunity for them to be able to connect with one another on a different level than, say, with someone who hasnt gone through cancer.

Often times, its that personal connection that cancer survivors need most, according to David Sheedy who is a graduate of the Livestrong program and a member of the East Bridgewater Board of Selectman. Sheedy credits the Livestrong program with playing a major role in his cancer recovery in 2012.

You really connect with people going through the same things youre going through, Sheedy said. The bonds that are created at the end of those 12 weeks are so special. Its really a lifesaver for people.

Sheedy is one of many Livestrong graduates from past years that volunteer their time to come back during new sessions and help participants through what they know, first-hand, can be a difficult 12-weeks.

Its like a family, another Livestrong graduate named Dick Wallace of East Bridgewater, who is also an employee at the YMCA, told the newest batch of participants. Im here to tell you, if you ever need anything, Im here.

The Livestrong program is part of a national YMCA initiative that was first launched on a trial basis in 2011 at YMCA locations across the U.S. including East Bridgewater.

At the start of the program, participants measure their personal fitness with pre-assessment tests. Fitness instructors assist participants in simple tasks meant to measure their balance, flexibility, arm reach, leg strength, and how many walking laps theyre able to complete.

By the end of the program, participants are always impressed with how far theyve come.

They gain confidence, and you can see it, fitness instructor Jen Mangelson said. Theyre so proud of themselves by the end because they can see the progress they made despite their disease.

Watching these cancer survivors progress is nothing short of amazing, fitness instructors can agree.

Its so interesting to watch them from day one because they transform as people, said Lauren Cucinotta, one of the original Livestrong trainers in East Bridgewater, They get stronger physically and emotionally they find support within each other and the Y.

Every day, Im inspired in ways I cant even describe, Byrne said.

The Enterprise is following six East Bridgewater cancer survivors in their 12-week journey through the Livestrong program.

Shannon Gallagher may be reached at sgallagher@enterprisenews.com.

See the article here:
Cancer survivors find fitness, support at East Bridgewater YMCA program - Enterprise News

Your Full Name
Your Email
Your Phone Number
Select your age (30+ only)	30313233343536373839404142434445464748495051525354555657585960616263646566676869707172737475767778798081828384858687888990919293949596979899100101102103104105106107108109110111112113114115116117118119120
Select Your US State	Select Your StateAlabamaAlaskaArizonaArkansasCaliforniaColoradoConnecticutDelawareFloridaGeorgiaHawaiiIdahoIllinoisIndianaIowaKansasKentuckyLouisianaMaineMarylandMassachusettsMichiganMinnesotaMississippiMissouriMontanaNebraskaNevadaNew HampshireNew JerseyNew MexicoNew YorkNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaOhioOklahomaOregonPennsylvaniaRhode IslandSouth CarolinaSouth DakotaTennesseeTexasUtahVermontVirginiaWashingtonWashington,DCWest VirginiaWisconsinWyoming
Program Choice	Select Your ProgramInjectable HGHInjectable TestoteroneInjectable SermorelinInjectable Weight LossInjectable HCG DietInjectable Vitamins
Confirm over 30 years old	Yes
Confirm that you resident in USA	Yes
This is a Serious Inquiry	Yes
Message:

Home » Fitness » Cancer survivors find fitness, support at East Bridgewater YMCA program – Enterprise News