Before joining Club Sweat you could find Roohy in between classes, doing schoolwork or volunteer work and working in a research lab. She didn’t have much time for anything else, let alone time to work out. “I always felt tired, a little sad and very anxious about a lot of things. I chalked most of my feelings up to the stress of being a university student; staying up late, studying for exams, working on projects, and balancing a full course load while trying to have some semblance of a social life, more than anything though, I think I just felt unfulfilled.”
Roohy had originally sought out Club Sweat with the intention of losing weight. She didn’t have a specific weight loss goal in mind but knew that she needed to drop the excess weight around her mid-section and she knew she wanted to have a healthy heart, a strong mind and a strong set of legs to carry her through this thing we call life. She was tired of feeling sad and was tired of letting her anxiety control her life. She says she just wanted to feel in control of her health. “Your health is everything, until you get sick. You start to realize that there was only ever one thing that was really important in life, and that’s your health.
I had cancer when I was 11 years old. My body went through a lot, at a really young age. I had multiple surgeries, I went through 12 rounds of chemotherapy, had needles put into my spine and tubes down my nose. I was on steroids that made me gain 20-30 pounds at a time, while also not being able to keep an ounce of food in my stomach. Cancer is not something I would wish on anyone…nor is it something I ever want to deal with again in my life. But the reality is, 1 in 3 Canadians will get cancer in their lifetime and if you’ve had it once it actually increases your risk of developing cancer again later in your life. It also increases your risk of cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis and diabetes, to name a few. Every doctor, every specialist, I have seen since being in long term follow-up cancer care for a number of years now, has said that the only thing I can do right now to reduce my risk of having cancer again is EXERCISE, EAT WELL and take my VITAMINS. That’s it. It’s that simple.”
After receiving a text from Dan and a consultation visit later with Ash, Roohy says that joining Club Sweat has been the best decision she has made in a very long time. “I love the fun workouts, I love the constant motivation, and the encouragement I receive. Club Sweat really does feel like a community of people who just want the best for you. Having the right support networks in place in your life can make the world of a difference, and that’s really what Club Sweat is. A really incredible and vast support network of great people.” Roohy’s says “I’m proud of so many things. But I’m really proud of the positive relationship I have developed with exercise in such a short amount of time. I view it as part of my day now, a way to take care of my heart and a way to calm the anxious thoughts in my head. The more I think about it, the more I view exercising as a form of self-love; I love this body that has been given to me….and I want to take care of it and keep it healthy so that it can help me live a big life.”
