Showing Up Anyway: Fitness and Life with a Disability

Training Through Adversity: My Journey Working Out With a Disability

Most people walk into a gym thinking about PRs, aesthetics, or competition. For me, just showing up has always been a victory. Living with cystic fibrosis, mitochondrial myopathy, and having an ostomy changes everything—but it doesn’t take away your ability to fight, grow, and push yourself. If anything, it redefines what strength truly means.

Strength Looks Different for Everyone

In fitness culture, strength is often measured in numbers—how much you lift, how fast you move, how long you last. But for someone with chronic health challenges, strength is measured differently.

It’s:

• Showing up even after surgeries or hospital visits

• Pushing through fatigue when your body feels like it’s working against you

• Adjusting workouts instead of quitting

• Building discipline even on the days motivation is gone

Some days, my “100%” looks like someone else’s warm-up. That doesn’t make it less meaningful. It makes it real.

Adapting Isn’t Weakness

One of the hardest lessons I’ve learned is that modifying workouts doesn’t mean you’re failing—it means you’re strategizing.

For me, CrossFit movements like squat cleans, pull-ups, and box jumps are amazing challenges—but they don’t always happen exactly as written. Sometimes I scale, sometimes I slow down, sometimes I substitute. And that’s okay. Fitness isn’t about forcing your body into a mold. It’s about building a system that allows you to improve safely and consistently.

The Mental Battle Is the Hardest Part

The physical side is demanding, but the mental battle is tougher.

There are days when frustration hits hard, days when progress feels invisible, days when comparing yourself to others is almost impossible to avoid. And yet, every time I show up anyway, I’m building something bigger than muscle—I’m building resilience, courage, and confidence.

Community Matters More Than You Think

Fitness should feel empowering, not intimidating—and finding the right community can make all the difference.

Progress Isn’t Always Visible

Progress doesn’t always show up as heavier lifts or faster WODs. Sometimes it’s:

• Moving with more confidence and less pain

• Pushing through a workout you didn’t think you could

• Building mental toughness you can carry outside the gym

These wins matter just as much as the numbers on the board.

Why I Keep Going

I train because it’s worth it. Not because it’s easy, but because it gives me:

• Control in a body that can feel unpredictable

• Confidence in situations that used to intimidate me

• Proof that limitations don’t define me

Working out with a disability is about redefining what strength means—and celebrating every victory along the way.

Final Thought

If you’re working out with a disability, chronic illness, or other challenges, just know this:

You belong in the gym.

You belong in the community.

And your journey matters.

It doesn’t matter where you start. What matters is that you keep going.