FitSteps for Life was a wonderfully strong and vibrant lifeline after my diagnosis with Stage III breast cancer. No matter your activity or fitness level before cancer, once you start treatment (and even after you finish!), everything changes. Having a professional team, knowledgeable on what I was going through, not only gave me appropriate exercises, also helped me work through many of my fears and frustrations. There were days when they encouraged me and challenged me in what I was doing, but there were also days when they would remind me that I wasn’t at the same level that I was before my treatments – that my body was going through some serious and dramatic (and traumatic) changes. They helped me to not get too frustrated when walking to the mailbox was a struggle; instead, they helped me celebrate the ability to get out and just get moving. Going to a gym to workout can be very intimidating – going to a gym with no hair, no fingernails, limited strength, and a huge fear of germs can be paralyzing. FitSteps facilities are different. There are people who are have lost all of their hair or in process of losing it all; who are in walkers and wheelchairs; who are wearing masks and gloves; who love to dance and workout, and those who don’t. There is no judgement or ridicule. There is support, strength, and comradery. There are trainers who are happy and willing to work with you at whatever level you are at, and who understand your treatments and limitations. They truly are there to get you through.  There are many things cancer did to me. One of the best, by far, was introducing me to the Cancer Foundation/FitSteps for Life.