Long Overdue Letter to Cathe with Gratitude

[Cathewofan]

Dear Cathe,

I have been one of your staunchest loyal fan for years, ever since I stumbled upon STS in my early 30’s when the other 90 day Extreme Home Workout was all the rage.

I am in STEM, so I am really keyed into science and medicine. My non-career interests are in human physiology and kinesiology. STS is the best 90 day program that’s ever offered in the home fitness market with proven muscle endurance, hypertrophy and strength training techniques.

STS simply just knocks the ball out of the park. I have gained tremendous endurance, power & strength to the point I can master unassisted pull-ups in different hand grips. With such a positive outcome, I gradually ventured into your other home fitness programs.

Little did it surprise me that I conclude your home fitness programs are by far the BEST in the industry emcompassing a huge variety of workouts accompanied by well-cueing and pacing in:

Strength
Aerobic
Balance and Stability
Coordination And Agility
Flexibility And Mobility

for a balanced exercise regimen that can be maintained & sustained for years to come. I quickly become your devotee and abandon other home fitness programs.

Over almost 20 year time span and on-going, I’ve been steadfastly working out with you and owning a nice collection of your DVDs. Each & every DVD you put out is well-designed and well made with options of chapters, premixes. I cannot think of anyone else that has your caliber in the industry.

I felt the eerie déjà vu when you experienced a partial retinal detachment. About 6 months prior to your incident, I experienced another vitreous detachment in one of my eyes due to myopia and ageing. I read your progress with concern and prayed for quick healing. That said, I must confess: during my own healing time, I was troubled and depressed by the fact that I am ageing. I guess you can say it’s the mid-life crisis finally rearing its ugly head.

Your positive attitudes in dealing with the retinal detachment and making a comeback inspires me greatly. Working out with you and seeing you live on Thursdays uplifts me. I feel that I have a friend in front of me helping me overcome my fears of ageing and the close call of losing my eyesights.

I apologize for this long discourse with all my sincerity. I really could have written much more, but written words fail me at the moment. My intention is to let you know how you change my life for the better and give me a brand new perspective of life and fitness.

Thank you so very much from the bottom of my heart.

Mattie

 

[Braille]

I would like to 2nd Cathewofan's comments and thanks. I'd also like to thank you for your focus on fitness rather than appearance. I look great for my age, but I'm several decades past my 20's, so the comments about getting rid of love handles and looking great in a bikini that other instructors make during their workout instruction are distracting and tend to remind me of my age rather than how healthy I am. I find it unmotivating. You, Cathe, are motivating and fun. We work hard when we work out with you, but it is fun and satisfying. I feel proud of myself - like I've accomplished something after I've completed one of your workouts. Some workout instructors make me feel like I put in a whole lot of effort just to fit into an outfit - like all that effort is for other people rather than myself - like they think that their audience is vain. Thank you for knowing that at any age and at any fitness level and in any shape, we are people that want to achieve and/or maintain health and fitness goals. Frankly, there's cosmetic surgeries for people that are only concerned about looks. For the rest of us that want the whole kit and caboodle (strength, endurance, bone density, mental and physical health, etc., we have you. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love looking my best, but I'm glad that you focus on the things that make me feel and live my best.

 

[Cathewofan]

I would like to 2nd Cathewofan's comments and thanks.

Braille:

Thank you for sharing your story.

I understand different people pursue different goals in their fitness journey - many of their goals may not jibe with mine and I respect that.

Incidentally, I also look decades younger than my chronological age. As someone in the STEM field, I have long embraced with the simple tried and true ‘Fountain of Youth’ principles – whole foods healthy diet, sufficient sleep, hydration, mental equanimity and movement. These are the ‘freebie’ longevity protocols that can never go wrong, no matter how far nutraceuticals or pharmaceuticals could possibly advance in the future.

I feel privileged to be able to afford the home fitness exercise setting and purchase Cathe’s DVDs to obtain a fit and functional life as I move on to the next chapter of my life. There are still many under-served pockets of communities that do not have the means or access to home fitness programs of high quality like Cathe’s. My pledge is to raise the awareness in the local community and assist with the home fitness set-up.

In the end, I strive for a lower biological age than my chronological age. I believe with this mission statement, I can maintain and sustain my home fitness routines with Cathe for years to come.

Mattie

 

[Braille]

Cathewofan, your goal of raising awareness and assisting with home fitness set-up is inspiring to me and touches my heart. I was 19 and doing well financially when my son was born. He was born with severe disabilities. He was never supposed to walk, talk, etc. I'm pretty tiny and told the doctors and experts that that just wasn't going to work for my son and I, because I had no intention of dragging, pushing and carrying my son (who wouldn't always be a lightweight baby) around as I grew older and older. I had to leave my career in order to take classes on how to teach all of the skills that he wasn't going to just "pick up" on his own. Insurance wouldn't cover therapy, because my son was an impossible case. Without my income, we became dirt poor, but we were happy as my son very slowly but surely learned some of the skills that the doctors had said he'd never learn. Eventually, they had no choice but to allow my son to have speech, occupational, and physical therapy. I was extremely embarrassed though when the physical therapist said that we needed a physical therapy ball at home (they're now sold at Walmart for around $10 as stability balls, but used to be over $60 because they were medical equipment), and I had to tell her we couldn't afford one. I got creative and turned a cylinder-shaped footstool on its side and was able to do help him do trunk strengthening (now called core) on that. I could no longer afford my gym membership, nor could I afford even a simple set of hand weights. I kept in shape as best I could by running and doing body weight exercises, but I was already in shape to do those things. I also had a husband at home that took care of my son while I went for a run. It would be very difficult to get in shape without child care or without equipment - at least to start with. With my son's hard work and years of therapist, he now walks and talks and does the impossible. We are okay financially now, but it would have been worth it to be poor my whole life just to see my son (now 32) able to get down the stairs of our deck to check the mail. It would have been so nice, though, to have had equipment at home to help my son and to keep myself in shape. I think what you're doing is incredible, and I hope that you are successful. We have places in our area that accept clothing, food donations, pots and pans, and even television sets for the poor, but many won't accept exercise equipment, because it's not deemed a necessity. I understood when they didn't want our treadmill (changed out to an elliptical), because it takes up space. I didn't, however, understand why they wouldn't accept my smaller step (when I upgraded to a large one) with the step DVDs (I ended up with duplicates) or my set of 3, 5, & 8 lb. hand weights (grips were too big - I have small hands and carpal tunnel). If organizations in your area have such restrictions, you might consider asking them to call you with the contact info of anybody's exercise equipment that they don't accept? I couldn't figure out back (when I couldn't afford equipment) why on earth I couldn't find any donated equipment. I didn't find out until I tried to donate some myself that many places have restrictions against it. Anyways, I've never heard of anyone doing what you're doing, and I think it's something that should be done. I wish you success.

 

[Cathewofan]

your goal of raising awareness and assisting with home fitness set-up is inspiring to me and touches my heart. I was 19 and doing well financially when my son was born.

Braille,

Thank you so much for sharing your personal story. I appreciate it so much, not to mention your words deeply touch me on a new personal level. In the same vein, I thank you for your wise advice.

“If you have no struggles, you'll have no strength.” is somewhat of a glossed-over motto, but apropos when one encounters life’s challenges.

I thank you for your praise on my pledge to raise awareness of home fitness for under-served communities nearby. That said, had it not been my close call of losing my eye sights, I would never have had an opportunity to re-evaluate what the purpose of my life is and further what kind of legacy I’d like to leave behind. So in a sense, one could say my initial motivation is quite self-centered. However, the enlightenment comes when I witness the impact I could make on others – a sense of community progressing from sympathy, empathy and to the ultimate: compassion with action.

Your story of raising a physically challenged son came across the screen like a lightning bolt and shook me to the core. Many do not realize that one can easily fall into the pocket of the under-served through no foresight or fault. The vicissitudes of life, most often than not, connote of negativity and perception that nothing good can ever come out of the trough. You are a living proof of faith and tenacity in your son’s ability to thrive in due course and best of all, defies the naysayers. In my pre-med academic life, I always believe in this wisdom: “I can only practice medicine, while the spirit performs miracles.”

Your improvisation in providing the needed therapy for your son brings tears to my eyes. I feel your strength, your hope & your confidence in every single written heart-felt word. “Having children just puts the whole world into perspective. Everything else just disappears.” You have humbled me greatly.

Your own fitness journey is full of inspirations as well. You worked with what you had and what you could afford. That’s the lesson that one should always keep in mind. Living a bountiful life as well as ageing gracefully is not as complicated as most mass media make it out to be. On the other hand, many have no clues and/or have no resources in disadvantaged zones.

I have been privileged to live in an upper middle class neighborhood. During the pandemic, I witness many children cannot attend classes, because of no access to WiFi or laptops in the poor communities. In addition, there’s no decent grocery store that carries whole fresh foods other than cheap ultra-processed ones that come in cans and boxes. The food bank situation suffers the same fate – people donate ultra-processed food out of pantries. Regular hard-working folks are laid off with no insurance to fall back on, skipping physical therapy. The story goes on.

It’s the latter that gives me a vision to raise the awareness of home fitness for either health or rehabilitation end goals in the under-served communities. I am sure there will be obstacles and resistance, but working with other like-minded in my community, perhaps I can make a slight dent.

I hope with all my sincerity that your son is doing well. What a journey you have and in the end, you declare triumph. I always believe we learn and thrive from hard times, not the good ones.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SHARING. Again, I am very much humbled.

Mattie

 

[TessGeo13]

Cathewofan, your goal of raising awareness and assisting with home fitness set-up is inspiring to me and touches my heart. I was 19 and doing well financially when my son was born. He was born with severe disabilities. He was never supposed to walk, talk, etc. I'm pretty tiny and told the doctors and experts that that just wasn't going to work for my son and I, because I had no intention of dragging, pushing and carrying my son (who wouldn't always be a lightweight baby) around as I grew older and older. I had to leave my career in order to take classes on how to teach all of the skills that he wasn't going to just "pick up" on his own. Insurance wouldn't cover therapy, because my son was an impossible case. Without my income, we became dirt poor, but we were happy as my son very slowly but surely learned some of the skills that the doctors had said he'd never learn. Eventually, they had no choice but to allow my son to have speech, occupational, and physical therapy. I was extremely embarrassed though when the physical therapist said that we needed a physical therapy ball at home (they're now sold at Walmart for around $10 as stability balls, but used to be over $60 because they were medical equipment), and I had to tell her we couldn't afford one. I got creative and turned a cylinder-shaped footstool on its side and was able to do help him do trunk strengthening (now called core) on that. I could no longer afford my gym membership, nor could I afford even a simple set of hand weights. I kept in shape as best I could by running and doing body weight exercises, but I was already in shape to do those things. I also had a husband at home that took care of my son while I went for a run. It would be very difficult to get in shape without child care or without equipment - at least to start with. With my son's hard work and years of therapist, he now walks and talks and does the impossible. We are okay financially now, but it would have been worth it to be poor my whole life just to see my son (now 32) able to get down the stairs of our deck to check the mail. It would have been so nice, though, to have had equipment at home to help my son and to keep myself in shape. I think what you're doing is incredible, and I hope that you are successful. We have places in our area that accept clothing, food donations, pots and pans, and even television sets for the poor, but many won't accept exercise equipment, because it's not deemed a necessity. I understood when they didn't want our treadmill (changed out to an elliptical), because it takes up space. I didn't, however, understand why they wouldn't accept my smaller step (when I upgraded to a large one) with the step DVDs (I ended up with duplicates) or my set of 3, 5, & 8 lb. hand weights (grips were too big - I have small hands and carpal tunnel). If organizations in your area have such restrictions, you might consider asking them to call you with the contact info of anybody's exercise equipment that they don't accept? I couldn't figure out back (when I couldn't afford equipment) why on earth I couldn't find any donated equipment. I didn't find out until I tried to donate some myself that many places have restrictions against it. Anyways, I've never heard of anyone doing what you're doing, and I think it's something that should be done. I wish you success.

What an inspirational story and what an inspirational woman you are!

 

[AVeyRa]

Cathewofan, your goal of raising awareness and assisting with home fitness set-up is inspiring to me and touches my heart. I was 19 and doing well financially when my son was born. He was born with severe disabilities. He was never supposed to walk, talk, etc. I'm pretty tiny and told the doctors and experts that that just wasn't going to work for my son and I, because I had no intention of dragging, pushing and carrying my son (who wouldn't always be a lightweight baby) around as I grew older and older. I had to leave my career in order to take classes on how to teach all of the skills that he wasn't going to just "pick up" on his own. Insurance wouldn't cover therapy, because my son was an impossible case. Without my income, we became dirt poor, but we were happy as my son very slowly but surely learned some of the skills that the doctors had said he'd never learn. Eventually, they had no choice but to allow my son to have speech, occupational, and physical therapy. I was extremely embarrassed though when the physical therapist said that we needed a physical therapy ball at home (they're now sold at Walmart for around $10 as stability balls, but used to be over $60 because they were medical equipment), and I had to tell her we couldn't afford one. I got creative and turned a cylinder-shaped footstool on its side and was able to do help him do trunk strengthening (now called core) on that. I could no longer afford my gym membership, nor could I afford even a simple set of hand weights. I kept in shape as best I could by running and doing body weight exercises, but I was already in shape to do those things. I also had a husband at home that took care of my son while I went for a run. It would be very difficult to get in shape without child care or without equipment - at least to start with. With my son's hard work and years of therapist, he now walks and talks and does the impossible. We are okay financially now, but it would have been worth it to be poor my whole life just to see my son (now 32) able to get down the stairs of our deck to check the mail. It would have been so nice, though, to have had equipment at home to help my son and to keep myself in shape. I think what you're doing is incredible, and I hope that you are successful. We have places in our area that accept clothing, food donations, pots and pans, and even television sets for the poor, but many won't accept exercise equipment, because it's not deemed a necessity. I understood when they didn't want our treadmill (changed out to an elliptical), because it takes up space. I didn't, however, understand why they wouldn't accept my smaller step (when I upgraded to a large one) with the step DVDs (I ended up with duplicates) or my set of 3, 5, & 8 lb. hand weights (grips were too big - I have small hands and carpal tunnel). If organizations in your area have such restrictions, you might consider asking them to call you with the contact info of anybody's exercise equipment that they don't accept? I couldn't figure out back (when I couldn't afford equipment) why on earth I couldn't find any donated equipment. I didn't find out until I tried to donate some myself that many places have restrictions against it. Anyways, I've never heard of anyone doing what you're doing, and I think it's something that should be done. I wish you success.

You and I are soul-sisters, Braille!

I have four children and my oldest two have autism. My oldest didn’t talk until he was 5. I was also told “he’ll never talk” and “he needs intensive therapy 20 hours a week” etc. We also couldn’t afford it (monetarily or otherwise). So I rolled up my sleeves and did what I had to do to get him help. He’s 16 now and not only speaks, writes, reads and does quite well in English, but he’s also an excellent Latin student as well. He’s still different, he still has challenges (including epilepsy) but he’s a far cry from the grim diagnosis I was given when he was four.

I have to take care of myself because there is literally a group of five people (my husband included) who rely on me. That hasn’t been easy or convenient. I gave up everything I had to to make sure they thrive. But I have to include myself in that health paradigm. Cathe has always been a part of that “treatment plan”.

I am currently battling with a degenerative spinal issue (maybe from years of hauling kids around literally on my back; but mostly from genetics and extra weight).

I am 100% an advocate for at-home self-care. If I didn’t have Cathe’s enormous catalog of fitness options, I would have one more thing I had to “figure out for myself”. It’s true I could do it on my own, but it would definitely be harder.

I am so thankful to have a “coach” who has done all the research for me. I can just plug in and hit “play” and I know I’m taken care of. HUGE HUGS and thanks to Cathe and all the Cathletes who believe in good health.