My relationship with Denise started a few months ago when I received an email from her introducing herself and asking what the possibilities were of her taking my class. As I read on, she explained to me her situation. You see, Denise has an amputated leg from the knee down and wears a prosthetic leg. I asked to meet with her first so I could asses what kind of movements she could handle. Unfortunately, at that time she was still very under developed on her left leg. Her quads, hamstrings were completely atrophied and her balance/core and movement were off. So we decided to start training one on one to rebuild her leg, make it stronger and get her to the point where she could start taking my class. Her story is as follows:
In her early teenage years, Denise was diagnosed with cancer in her calf. After removal of the cancer, radiation treatment and chemotherapy she still underwent several surgeries till she was about 18 years old which included may skin grafts. In her twenties, Denise was also diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis.
Over the years because of the radiation and chemo, the bones in her ankles started to fuse together, essentially cause her to lose her gate. However, Denise continued with her physical activity and did what she loved to do most, run!
That wasn’t the end of her struggle, in her thirties, Denise started to lose circulation into the lower half of her leg and doctor’s said it was necessary to amputate. So they did. And after two years of walking on crutches Denise got her “bionic leg” as I like to call it. However, her muscles in the amputated leg had lost all size and strength. She started working with her new leg through physical therapy and now has continued to work with me.
Her goals are simple. To be able to run again. She’s not looking to run a marathon or anything like that. She just wants to run. So that’s her one year goal and I know she’ll make it. Right now her short term goals are to balance on the less developed leg, squat using both legs evenly, and lunge without holding onto something.
After listening to her story and knowing how strong Denise is inside and out, these goals will be a piece of cake for her. She has battled a lot in her life. But she still comes in with her head up, feeling strong and secure that she can and will accomplish her goals.
Attached you’ll find some video I started taking of her and some of our workouts. This is just the beginning for her. Stay tuned to see her progression!
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