Interview with the Author of The Stroke of an Artist: The Journey of a Fitness Trainer and a Stroke Survivor - Tracy L. Markley

Tracy L. Markley is an award-winning personal trainer, educator, and author with a distinguished career in the fitness industry since 1994. As the owner of Tracy Markley's Fitness, she has earned accolades such as being named one of 2024 America's Top Fitness Educators by the National Fitness Hall of Fame and the 2021 IDEA World Personal Trainer of the Year. Tracy's expertise spans a wide range of certifications, including Certified Fitness Specialist, Personal Trainer, and Reiki Master-Teacher, with a focus on stroke recovery, senior balance, and fall prevention. Her acclaimed book, The Stroke of an Artist: The Journey of a Fitness Trainer and a Stroke Survivor, along with her 15 other books and children's literature, reflects her dedication to empowering stroke survivors and caregivers. Tracy is also the creator of advanced education courses and hosts a popular podcast, The Health and Fitness Show with Tracy.

Author Q&A

Why did you write your stroke recovery books?

I wrote my first book on stroke recovery in 2017. I had been training a client, named Gary, who had a stroke in 2014. At that time, I had been training Gary for about two and a half years. I met him when he was six months post stroke, while he was using a walker.

Gary was told he would never walk again after a nearly six months stay in a rehab facility. He was sent home in a wheelchair. A physical therapist in our small town we lived in got him out of a wheelchair and using a walker. This is when we met. He became strong enough to not use his walker and used a cane and then no cane at all. His recovery journey was quite a journey. In our time together, he would say to me, "We need to share my story to help people." "You know things other trainers, don't know?" He would also stop in a middle of a training session and say, "Don't ever have a stroke; they suck." After hearing him say this more than a dozen times, I said to him, "You know, we need to write a book about your recovery and call it, Dear Stroke, You Suck. We both laughed, but I meant it. I followed through with the book with a plan to bring hope to other stroke survivors. This was important to Gary. He knew how hard stroke recovery can be.

This book was our story, shared with aspirations of bringing hope to stroke survivors to achieve the most progress possible in their recovery. Gary to continually make progress, even at 34 months post stroke.

Although my plan was to call the book "Dear Stroke you Suck," Since he was an artist at the last minute I changed it to "The Stroke of an Artist" The Journey of a Fitness Trainer and Stroke Survivor.

I began getting more clients who had had a stroke.

I was asked to write a course for fitness professionals. I did do that as well. It is a Stroke Recovery Fitness Specialist course. I began a stroke support group on Facebook, and it grew to over five thousand people.

I found at this time that thousands of stroke survivors and caregivers needed more recovery help even though their insurance coverage stopped paying for physical therapy. So, I began making videos on YouTube and then wrote the book. "Stroke Recovery, What NOW? When Physical Therapy Ends, but Your Recovery Continues." My first book was read worldwide, and I often get contacted with questions and help. One couple who lived in New Jersey as I was on the Oregon coast, came to train with me. She had reached out to me in an email and asked if her and her husband, who was an 82 year old stroke survivor, could come live in my small town for a month and train with me every day. And so, they did. It was incredible, but also broke my heart that they could not find good help where she lived. She shared with me some hard journey's they went through with poor care. I lived 3,000 miles away from this 82 year old stroke survivor. They travelled to me.

I also had asked in my Facebook stroke support group at that time, "What has been your experience and or challenges with finding a fitness professional to help you after your physical therapy ended?" The answers shocked me and made me incredibly sad for stroke survivors who are trying so hard to get to the best recovery, but not sure what to do or where to go. They write things such as: "They treat us irrelevant." And "Personal trainers don't know the name of muscles.," and more.

The answers shocked me. Many have had bad experiences and said trainers do not know their muscles and do not know what they are doing. Some had good experiences, but eighty percent were not good.

So, with the answers I received form this survey and the experience with the couple from New Jersey played a huge role in me writing the "Stroke Recovery, What NOW?" book.

I was touched in my heart strongly that a survivor is limited to the knowledge and experience of the person helping them. If they have more knowledge they can find a better professional to help as well.

Then during covid in 2020 business were being shut down worldwide and thousands of stroke survivors were left with not being able to get their physical therapy. I could not train them as well. I made a few videos on YouTube to try to help. Then I decided to write the book "Stroke Recovery, Leg Stability and Walking Gait" After I wrote that I had several messages from Stroke survivors and caregivers asking me if I can write one on arm recovery. So, I then wrote "Stroke Recovery, Regaining Arm Movement.

I was able to get both the books out fast. All my stroke recovery books have muscle illustrations to help survivors and caregivers understand the body and movement better. I say in all my books that "Knowledge is Power." For example, how can someone learn to stand and walk again if they have no understanding of what muscles are involved and what functional training is needed. That is essential for the professional helping survivors. How can someone help someone stand up if they do not know what muscles and senses in the body participate in standing?

All my books are to help educate caregivers and stroke survivors as well as professionals that help them. Limited knowledge can limit recovery.

Often when I am interviewed or asked to be on a podcast. Many people want to know the top three exercises for stroke recovery and "titles" as such to attract listeners, but there is no such thing. Each survivor is different and each movement in the body requires more than just three movements. I go into dept in my books but teach it simply with illustrations for easy understanding.

Also in 2020, I thought to bring the book "The Stroke of an Artist" out with the original planned title, "Dear Stroke You Suck", and make it in larger print and larger illustrations, as I have with all my books.

So, the book with my client Gary is out with two titles.

The Stroke of an Artist and Dear Stroke you Suck.

How can readers discover more about you and you work?

I am easily found by just searching my name on google, yahoo, Bing and other search platforms. I have my own website that is my name

http://www.tracymarkley.com my books are on amazon and my website.

All my social medial links are on my website too. But I like Instagram the best and that is

http://www.instagram.com/motivate_healthyfit

I also host a podcast show: The Health and Fitness Show with Tracy. Found on dozens of podcast channels and all links are also on my website. http://www.tracymarkley.com

For more about these four books and others by Tracy L. Markley visit her author page on Amazon.com https://www.amazon.com/stores/Tracy-L-Markley/author/B07982JMCG

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This release was published on openPR.