Fit 4 Life | Cancer warrior fits herself in the midst of TrainFit madness

TrainFit Club's Stokely Rose and his team pulled out all the stops last Saturday to deliver a dose of Outdoor Madness Fit 4 Lifers won't soon forget. Fitness coach Tareeq was in his element, delivering a high-energy '80s dance-aerobic warm-up that set the tone for a morning of grinding, sweating, and conquering at In Motion Gym at Shortwood Teacher’s College on Shortwood Road.

As was expected, Trainfit offered variety, splitting the close to 400 Fit 4 Lifers among six exercise stations. The stations featured dance aerobics, back to basics, stick aerobics, boot camp, legs, and core fitness.

Even with so many options, the crowd had trainers working to keep up with the numbers, only getting a short break every eight minutes while Fit 4 Lifers moved from station to station.

Among them in the midst of the Madness was serial Fit 4 Lifer Jennifer Scott, who has stuck with the programme since day one. At 58 years old, Scott has kept pace with those many years her junior.

But there is something else that sets her apart. Scott is a breast cancer warrior. Diagnosed at Stage 2 a year ago, she is not only surviving but thriving.

“I’m still up and about trying to make myself happy,” the never-say-die Scott told The Gleaner.

“I try not to think about it. I usually do my exercise before I knew about it, and I still continue to do them now.”

She says the major adjustment she has had to make is to change her diet.

And regardless of the fact that she is has been receiving chemotherapy treatments on Mondays since March, she still manages to be actively present at the workout sessions every Saturday. Scott even does 5K runs, and she says she’s looking forward to Pink Run on October 27.

Scott, who has had to remove the offending breast, says she is doing all this with the blessing of her doctor.

“I asked my doctor if it was OK and he said to continue doing what I’ve been doing.”

She says every day is different.

“I’m not going to say it’s that awful; you have to embrace yourself and you have to feed your body. Sometimes you feel like you don’t want to go, and the next moment you’re ok. This moment you’re up and the next you’re down,” said the engaging Scott.

“I don’t know if it's because of the exercise but it doesn’t let me feel any way. I just keep on fighting, trying not to let it overcome me. I’m still up and about trying to make myself happy; I try not to think about it.”

JOURNEYING SINCE INCEPTION

Scott has been journeying with Fit 4 Life since the programme's inception in 2017. And she continues to kick cancer in the nether regions every Saturday morning, with the support of her son who motivates her to continue.

In fact, Scott even got a chance to put in her two cents during the challenge segment. Given the mic, she explained why she thought the men should not have an easier chance at the prizes than the women had in a previous competition.

And, it was an exciting WATA morning in the challenges segment, as the bottled water brand sponsored three of the five challenges. WATA offered up prizes for tyre pull, tyre flip, and pipe lunges, all of which kept challengers working hard and spectators on their toes.

From the start, sponsors Jamaica Moves, WATA, PowerAde, Foska Oats, Blue Diamond Almond Breeze Milk, Elle & Vire, Caribbean Choice, Gustazos, Eden Gardens Wellness Resort & Spa, JP St Mary’s, Medical Associates Hospital & Medical Centre, and GraceKennedy Money Services were on hand to ensure that, from hydration to health checks, Fit 4 Lifers had the perfect mix of sweat, hydration, food, information, and safety.

G.C. FOSTER COLLEGE THIS SATURDAY

This Saturday, October 19, Fit 4 Life will join title sponsor Jamaica Moves at G.C. Foster College in Spanish Town, St Catherine for another exciting workout, starting at 6:30 a.m.

Follow Fit 4 Life on The Gleaner’s social-media platforms – Instagram, Twitter and Facebook – using the hashtag #fit4lifeja to keep up with the movement, and on The Gleaner’s website.

For 12 weeks, Season 3 of The Gleaner’s health and fitness initiative, themed ‘Fit in 5’, will roll out at different locations across Jamaica, starting at 6:30 am, featuring free boot camp style workouts, lifestyle and fitness tips, challenges to win great prizes, demonstrations and samplings from sponsors and partners, a full body massage, health checks, among a host of other exciting things.

Everyone is invited to come out each week, free admission, as The Gleaner’s Fit 4 Life team journeys with Jamaica to a healthy, fitter life.

Check out the Health section every Wednesday in The Gleaner and at www.jamaica-gleaner.com for all you need to know to be Fit 4 Life.

For more details email: yourhealth@gleanerjm.com