A Kelowna woman wants to be the next face of Ms. Health & Fitness magazine, but she’s not your typical cover model.
“Anybody can do it, anybody, I swear. I am the poster child for anybody can do it,” says Candace Chisolm, a 52-year-old grandmother who is only about a year into her fitness journey.
In 2015 she started feeling very ill. She was in and out of hospital, even spending time at a brain clinic in Vancouver. “They thought I had MS. They tested me for everything and they were struggling to find what was wrong,” she explains.
At one point, she was paralyzed on her left side and told she could spend the rest of her life in a wheelchair. Eventually, she was diagnosed with Lyme disease, and after extensive treatment partially recovered her health.
Then her granddaughter was diagnosed with cancer in 2020. Chisholm spent months by her bedside. Her weight ballooned, but she was inspired by her granddaughter's tenacity and courage to take back her health. She has so far lost 72 pounds. More importantly, she has improved her strength by leaps and bounds.
Chisholm heard about the Ms. Health and Fitness cover model contest and decided to go for it, even though she didn’t fit the mould of past winners.
“They were all in their 20s, maybe early 30s. There was no grey hair and there wasn’t anybody who still had a tummy or cellulite on their thighs. I have all of those things and I probably always will.
“And I’m OK with that. But I also have guns and great calves and I’m happy with where I am,” she adds, saying being healthy and fit is now her lifestyle.
She is a quarter-finalist in the Ms. Health & Fitness contest. Voting to advance to the semi-finals ends Thursday at 7 p.m. Chisholm was in 6th. She needs to move into 1st to advance to the next round.
“I really do want to win because I think we need this story. But it’s already been a very rewarding journey even getting to here.”
