Evoke Fitness is bustling ahead of another fitness competition for the beloved Breast Cancer 2 Bikini competitors. Owner Mena Spodobalski is training a new group this year, but they are just as committed as the last. While they are all inspiring, one woman captures every heart she meets. Leslie McGarry has a lot of energy in her small frame and her big smile is shadowed only by her bright eyes. She is a light in the south Reno gym, which she frequents a few times a week.
The mother of four is fun, faithful and fully committed to living every minute of every day. One way she is making the most of her life is by checking off goals – like competing in a fitness competition. "My first response was no way! It's way out of my comfort zone. I'm not doing it. But as time got closer I thought, why not?" On days she gets chemo and immunotherapy, Leslie still works out. She has learned over the past decade - since being diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer - it makes her feel better. Cancer returned two-and-a-half years ago in her lungs and brain. She has had two brain surgeries and several tumors removed with Cyberknife technology. However, the tests, scans and 28-day chemo treatment continue. Often times her son, Joedy, who is a Carson City Firefighter, will accompany her to treatments, as we witnessed during her last mammogram at Carson Tahoe Health. It’s not uncommon for fellow firefighters to escort her and keep her company during chemo, too. It is clear Leslie is loved.
While she jokes that nothing – included less-than-ideal scans - surprise her anymore, she chooses courage over fear. Doctors call her cancer terminal, but Leslie refuses to believe it. "Every minute of every day is a blessing to me because when the doctor tells you you're terminal - you view life differently." Minute-by-minute, life changes and she feels blessed to have learned the value of it when she did. "But honestly,” she explains, “It's what we should do on a daily basis. It’s how we should live our life because what if we get killed in a car accident or in the line of duty or whatever it is that we're doing... we still have to deal with that." So her message to others is to love hard, cherish each other and make the most of your days. It's how she lives and what she hopes others will see when she hits the stage. "I don't have a bucket list; I have a live life list... so I can mark that off."
You can buy tickets for the Best in the West Classic fitness competition at Evoke Fitness Training Complex. The address is 895 East Patriot Blvd, Suite 108, Reno, NV 89511 or call (775) 827-1995. The bikini, figure, physique and bodybuilding competition is on October 7th at the Grand Sierra Resort.
