NOVEMBER 2020 MEMBER OF THE MONTH - DENISE

We are honoured to introduce Denise as November’s Member of the Month! Denise was the very first member to join at LIVE WELL North Vancouver! She shares how exercise is now a central part of her life and how she has more energy, more stamina, and has normalized her blood pressure through positive lifestyle changes. We are so inspired by her health journey!

My name is Denise, I LOVE LIVE WELL Exercise Clinic and this is my LIVE WELL story.

Several years ago, I began to have health issues but it wasn’t until about 2 years ago that I decided to do something about it. I was always tired, had little energy and my stamina was almost non-existent. This hit home when my sister and I went to Europe for three weeks and I had a difficult time keeping up with her. Granted, she is 12 years younger and very fit, but I had hoped that I would do okay. I realized that unless I began an exercise program and made some lifestyle changes, my travelling days would be short-lived. More importantly I was tired of the lack of energy and being constantly fatigued. I needed to invest in myself.

I truly dislike gyms but I did some research into them and none appealed. Was I trying to talk myself out of this? Probably. I was afraid that these gyms would not take into account my health issues or my fears. In short, I was afraid I would be put on an exercise program that was beyond my limits, not be able to do it and quit. Fortunately, I came across the LIVE WELL Exercise Clinic website by chance and it seemed the perfect fit for me!

My own personalized program is built around my health issues and my fitness level, which continues to improve! The staff monitor me every step of the way and while they may push me to do more than I want sometimes, they do not push me more than what I am capable of doing! This takes away any fears I have of my program being beyond my abilities.

I have been consistent in attending LIVE WELL Exercise Clinic sessions twice weekly since April 2019. I love it and have no plans to quit. This surprises me as I’m not a ‘gym’ person and have never lasted long with any exercise class I’ve ever taken. At LIVE WELL Exercise Clinic, we do more than exercise: we learn about nutrition, changing one’s mindset about exercise in all forms, how to keep motivated and so many other topics It is amazing what one learns here!

There is comradely among my fellow members and the staff and we are a ‘family’. I cannot say enough about the LIVE WELL Exercise Clinic staff - they are knowledgeable, positive and are the first to cheer every little success that you make. I’ve learned which exercises I can do at home to supplement the in-clinic sessions, stretch exercises to do when I’ve been on the computer too long and when my body just needs to rest. I am proud of the fact that now I look forward to exercising and it’s become a part of my life.

For me it was never about giant leaps forward in a short span of time. From the start I’ve known that my progress would be slow and steady. I did not think that I had come very far but when l look back at where I began, the exercises I did at the beginning, the number of repetitions and the heaviness of the weights, I know that I have progressed. I am no longer tired all of the time (just sometimes!), have far more stamina than I did and my blood pressure is consistently in the normal range. There is more to do and I cannot wait to see where I’m at in another year.