Healthy Dent County is proud to introduce Marilyn Mueller. If we handed out awards for being tough, she would be at the top of the list as a recipient. We see her four to six times per week and her workouts last anywhere from 1.5 to 2 hours each visit.

Marilyn works out on our recumbent stepper and does strength training in the weight room. She does extremely high-volume rep counts on both lower body and upper body machines. When I say extreme high volume, I am talking about numbers up in the hundreds! Always near her anywhere she is working out is her walker, which she must use to get anywhere. Attached to her walker is all her essentials she needs for her workout including her earbuds and braces necessary for the support she needs.

Marilyn does not have the gift of mobility that many people take for granted. She must fight to keep it daily. This gift was stolen from her 12 years ago in a near fatal car accident in which she was trapped for hours in between two vehicles. In the years since the accident, Marilyn has undergone several surgeries and progressed from a wheelchair to her walker. Her goal is to be free of the walker. She knows the only way to accomplish her goal is to continue to strengthen her muscles.

Strength training involves pain for Marilyn. Her body hurts constantly from her injuries. Getting out of bed involves pain for her. Seven surgeries and counting, including one for cancer, have left her to live a life of chronic pain. She takes shots for her pain every few weeks. Marilyn says that she has less pain when she works out regularly. She knows it helps her quality of life and allows her to continue participating in her favorite activities. She loves kayaking, fishing, swimming, and camping by the river. Marilyn has also inspired her young niece to workout with her when she has the opportunity.

Despite her condition, Marilyn is upbeat and optimistic and always happy to be here. She is a true joy to be around. She is the person we need to remind ourselves of when begin to make excuses for not taking care of ourselves. In short term, it is much easier for her to stay home and not make herself stay physically active, but in long-term that lifestyle would not bring her the quality of life she desires. She knows this and continues to fight for increased mobility. Marilyn is a living testimony to never give up.