We were lucky to catch up with Amanda Butler recently and have shared our conversation below.

Amanda, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Is there a heartwarming story from your career that you look back on?

I’m not sure how heartwarming my story is just yet…but I know in the end it will all make sense and I will be grateful for every obstacle.

I started my fitness career in 2016 after returning from living in Bangkok, Thailand for 1.5 years. My background has always been in health but I wanted a change from the corporate life so I decided to start a fitness job on the side. Fast forward to 2022 after fully dedicating my life to fitness as a personal trainer, group fitness instructor and now an on-camera trainer for large platforms like Amazon and POPSUGAR. I was working with brands like Nike, Adidas, Fabletics and more and finally felt like my career was taking off. All of my hard work was paying off and I felt like I was exactly where I needed to be.

I had been experiencing health issues for the last 4 years and was finally diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder called Hashimotos in March 2022. Then in July 2022, I found a small lump on my right breast. I waited a few months to get it checked out and after a mammogram, ultrasound and a few biopsies later, I was diagnosed with Breast Cancer.

From that moment on, everything changed. It felt like the rug was pulled out from underneath me and overnight I went from the peak of my career to what is my life? Thus began a year of treatment for cancer and my fitness career came to a halt.

I underwent chemotherapy, a double mastectomy, radiation and I am currently undergoing low-dose chemo through March 2024. BUT from the moment I was diagnosed, I decided to film everything on TikTok. Every doctor’s appointment, every procedure, every moment of sadness or exhaustion – I wanted to show someone the reality of treatment but also provide hope for those who are struggling with cancer. I have built an amazing community of people all around the world who are battling cancer and have created an online support group that meets every 2 weeks.

I have moved my on-camera fitness career into an on-camera cancer career and have received so much support from complete strangers. It has given me a sense of purpose throughout treatment but there is still a question of what my career should look like now. As mentioned, I’m waiting for it to all make sense and I hope that with every person I help, it gets me one step closer to my life purpose.

Amanda, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I started my fitness career in 2016 working as a group fitness instructor and eventually moving on to personal training and on-camera work. I worked for various apps and platforms such as Amazon Halo, POPSUGAR, Onyx and a few others. After being diagnosed with Breast Cancer at 32 in 2022, my entire trajectory changed. Now at 34, I am trying to figure out where I should land. I still work in fitness but in a completely different capacity as before.

I have been sharing my cancer journey as well as inspiring videos for those who are also affected by cancer online. This has grown into a large support system of people all around the world. Right now half of my business is fitness and the other half is social media. I want to bring more awareness and resources to cancer patients. I want to combine my knowledge of health and fitness to provide support for those going through treatment. Whether that is nutrition, fitness or mindset coaching – it is all needed.

I am most proud of my resilience and ability to turn lemons into lemonade. I have gone through an intense amount of struggle throughout my life and even though I am adding cancer to it, still I rise. My goal in life is to help as many people as possible. I know my struggles are relatable to everyone out there so if I can share my journey and provide inspiration or support to others going through similar struggles, that will be my purpose.

I want my story to serve as a reminder that you are not alone. Cancer is isolating and very lonely. The more we talk about our struggles, the more we can connect to those around us and find a community that empowers us to keep going.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

A lesson I’ve had to unlearn is that life is guaranteed.

We move throughout life thinking we will grow up, go to college, find a job, have a family and live happily ever after. But the nuance and beauty of life is that there are twists and turns at every corner. Obstacles come out of nowhere and yet somehow we still are striving for the end goal of “living happily ever after.”

Cancer has reminded me that life is so short and precious. People around me have passed away at young ages from cancer when that was something they never thought would be their story. We live for tomorrow and constantly remind ourselves, “we will get to it eventually.” Well, what if there is no eventually? What if the time to do the things you love are now? Losing my health over this last year has been the best reminder to live life now. Live in the present, say yes, book the trip, do the things you love with the people you love, work hard for the things you care about and stop working hard for the things you don’t care about.

When your entire existence is in question, you question how you have been existing. So before that happens, ask yourself if you are happy how you are living.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

It’s hard to pick just one when my entire story has been about resilience. I feel that the majority of my life has been an uphill battle. I’ve struggled in relationships, my career, with my health and so much more. And yet every time, I get back up and keep going.

Prior to my diagnosis I dealt with undiagnosed health issues for 4 years. I was going to doctor after doctor trying to get to the bottom of my symptoms and no one could give me an answer. Most people would give up but I refused. After 4 years of advocating for myself, I was finally diagnosed with Hashimotos. I had a brief moment to breathe and feel whole again and then 6 months later, I was diagnosed with Breast Cancer.

Now battling Breast Cancer I have had to fight for over a year. Going through 6 rounds of chemotherapy was one of the hardest experiences of my life. Not only are you physically exhausted but also mentally, emotionally and spiritually exhausted. You are then expected to get back up and continue fighting day after day. And then as soon as you finish that treatment, you move on to the next pillar of treatment – which for me, was my double mastectomy. The cycle repeats itself except in different ways and new emotions come up during this treatment. Then there is another treatment and another treatment. The fight continues.

Now that treatment is almost over, my resilience is me picking up the pieces from cancer rampaging through my entire life. What am I? Who am I? Where do I fit in? It’s all of these thoughts that can easily knock you down, but i’ve been fighting my entire life and have to keep going because what is the alternative?

Resilience is my nature. This isn’t something I proudly wear like armor around my chest, but instead the cards I have been dealt and I have chosen to get back up time and time again. I will always choose to be the phoenix rising from the ashes.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hiamandabutler/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCy2sBni9Wug2EAdEiWxJ7EQ
• Other: Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@hiamandabutler