Man opens gym for cancer survivors after facing his own battle with the disease

Thursday, June 22, 2023

Man opens gym for fellow cancer suvivors on same journey

The only rule he is that you treat the gym like a home away from home and share your story so Kenneth can show you a pathway to healing.

RUTHERFORD, New Jersey (WABC) -- It may look like most gyms, but the mission behind this one is so much more than building muscle and dropping weights.

Body Sculptors is the passion project of a man who rebuilt his life after it nearly ended from a cancer diagnosis.

With every lift, Kenneth Hopson handles the weight of being a survivor. A survivor who used a cancer diagnosis to motivate him and care for those who have pushed through this same battle.

"Its not easy to get over this, its not easy at all. So when you help someone and help them understand, you've been through this," Hopson said.

His journey began some 13 years ago when Kenneth was in retail and losing weight for some unknown reason.

"My doctor did a scope on me and when he did a scope and with my blood work he said that there were some abnormalities," Hopson said. "So once he did the scope he saw that there were some cysts in my stomach lining."

He was diagnosed with stomach cancer and blamed himself for being too cavalier about life.

"I ignored eating right I took living forgranted," Hopson said.

But he learned some powerful life lessons from his own battle with stomach cancer and created a gym that welcomes anyone with health issues. Body Sculptors are not only for the body, but for the mind and soul.

"You're suppose to come through this door and leave all the other stuff outside," Hopson said.

Customers that come to Body Sculptors get a complete body scan so once they go inside and start working out they know exactly what they're working on and how to improve their health.

"Anything that causes you any type of stress, when you walk through this door this is suppose to be your deep breath," Hopson said.

The only rule he is that you treat the gym like a home away from home and share your story so Kenneth can show you a pathway to healing.

ALSO READ | Middle, elementary school students set sail in the East River on their handmade boats