Battle Cancer Take on Global Demand Using FITR Training

Battle Cancer has a long term agenda, to make fitness accessible for anyone who is recovering from cancer, around the world. We catch up with Program Leader and trustee of The Battle Cancer Program, Turlough Adley.

Tell us more about Battle Cancer and your role?

I am facilities manager and coach at our flagship Move Forward Gym in Devon, UK where we run one of the coach led classes for the charity “The Battle Cancer Program”. We provide a free 12 week program specifically designed for people that have undergone cancer treatment as well as our ongoing gym classes. We use FITR Training to provide the gym’s programming for all our members, as well as the specific 12 week Battle Cancer Program which provides a free, twice a week program at our coach led locations as well as remote clients around the world.

Finally we have our Battle Cancer event series, which are fundraising events where teams of 4 take on 4x 9 minute workouts and fundraise for a charity of their choice. We kick off in Manchester 7th August, Belfast 28th August, Toulouse 4th September, Berlin 18th September, London 17th October, San Diego 6th November and Tennessee 4th December. We have created our Battle Ready program for our events, a free 10 week program to download to help teams prepare for what lies ahead all powered by FITR Training.

Before using FITR Training how did you supply your programming?

It was all very messy, organised but messy! All via google sheets and docs and a lot of admin work.

How has FITR Training helped Battle Cancer?

We wouldn’t be able to offer all the programming we currently do if it wasn’t for FITR Training’s software. Our global reach would be impossible. We have people on our post cancer program signed up at both coach led locations and remote access across the globe because we can offer this streamlined programming remotely. Some of our clients are from Asia, South America and the USA where we will be launching coach led sessions later this year.

I have found FITR Training to be extremely innovative and they are always reaching out and finding ways to improve their software. We have 3 accounts, between the gym, the Battle Cancer Event and the Battle Cancer Program, the ability to switch between accounts makes the programming and management of a large scale and growing Charity so easy. An absolute blessing is the template function, I only have to tweak and not rewrite from scratch whenever we launch a new location, so the amount of time saved has been truly invaluable.

Can you explain why the Battle Cancer Program is so important?

Through this program we are helping people who have been affected by cancer, that in many cases are left with serious movement restrictions, loss of confidence and energy from the treatment as well as disease. With very few places willing to take them on as clients we have been able to kick start their fitness journey. They have gained confidence, friendships and the desire to continue taking back control of their physical health. One lady at our gym who had lung surgery has gone from having to stop 2 or 3 times when climbing the stairs to being able to climb without getting out of breath, after only 6 weeks!

Once clients download their free program that’s theirs to keep and clients have gone on to take it with them to their own gyms and show it to their coaches. It’s such a wonderful program that has no limitations to four walls and a location and is suitable for any level of fitness.

You are about to take on the US?

Yes we are! We are so excited that crossFit Mayhem has become one of the first gyms in the States that will offer our Battle Cancer programming in house along with CrossFit Wynwood, Miami and Crossfit Invictus, LA starting by the end of the year. To have such incredible coaches using our program means so much to the team.

We are also excited to be launching our US Battle Tour at the 2021 CrossFit Games where we will be hosting 50 workouts to highlight the AACR Foundation’s Fifty for Fifty initiative, which commemorates the 50th anniversary of the National Cancer Act, all of our challenges will be powered by FITR Training. You can access the challenges and take part at home, you don’t have to be at the CrossFit Games so sign up now and join in the fun! Please come by our stand to say Hi!

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Also, later this year, we'll be hosting class takeovers and Battle Cancer CrossFit Challenge events across the US. The money raised during our Battle Tour will benefit the AACR and its mission to prevent and cure all cancers through research, education, communication, collaboration, science policy, advocacy, and grant giving for cancer research.

We are on a mission to help as many people as we can.