Kat Makes Serious Health Strides (Part 1 of 2)

"When I was 18, I was in a head-on collision," Kat recounts. The accident caused severe damage to her knee. "They came very close to amputating." The injury has impacted her over the decades since – "It'll always be a bit wonky," she notes – but in recent years, she's found considerable relief: Kat installed an Endless Pools® Performance model.

The Big Decision

When Kat (short for Katherine) and her husband, Doug, first considered an Endless Pools product in 2013, "I was 46 and needed a knee replacement. The doctor wanted to wait as long as possible": a knee replacement lasts 20 years, and a second one just 10, she was advised.

"I couldn't do a lot of stuff in the gym. I was getting frustrated, and also I was gaining weight."

When Doug suggested installing an Endless Pool in their garage, she asked herself, "'I've never been a swimmer. Is this something I'm going to use?'"

They visited the Endless Pools Factory Showroom in suburban Philadelphia. As she recalls, "I got in the demo pool and thought, 'Oh my gosh, I just love it!'"

Kat uses the Endless Pool in her converted garage almost daily to swim, jog, run, dance, and even watch TV! A Performance model, it has helped her to lose 30 pounds, postpone knee-replacement surgery by as much as 10 years, and sleep at night uninterrupted by knee pain. Of her Endless Pools fitness and rehab regimen, Kat says, "It's changed my life."

Kat's Endless Pools Progress

"I spend half the time jogging in the pool. Things I can't do on land – squats, running – I can do it in the pool." She also enjoys adapting yoga and Pilates movements into her aquatic fitness routine. "I use the pool five, six, seven times a week – sometimes twice a day."

"I lost 30 pounds, and my muscle percentage has gone to the high range for my age. My cholesterol is perfect. My blood sugar came down. My doctor said it's amazing."

While her weight loss was gradual, over about three years, Kat notes that she changed nothing else – not diet or activity outside the pool – to contribute to her progress.

And that knee replacement? Thanks to her improved fitness and weight, her doctor now predicts that it won't be necessary for another five to 10 years!

UPDATE: When Kat left Maryland for Massachusetts, she installed a new Endless Pools Performance model in her new home's garage. She updated the look a bit, but she still enjoys versatile aquatic exercise to manage pain and stay active.

Finding Gratitude

"Now I'm where I want to be," Kat relates with relief. After losing 30 pounds in her Performance Endless Pool, "I'm just maintaining."

Other quality-of-life measures have also improved. "I would wake in the middle of the night from the pain, and I don't do that anymore. The pain tapered off since I started getting fitter."

When she's in the pool and Doug is nearby, Kat sometimes asks him, "Can I just tell you how grateful I am? It's just changed my life."

Next: Kat explains why making serious health strides in her Endless Pool has been so much fun!

The beautiful fitness room above? It started as this garage! Kat and Doug converted it to house their partially in-ground Endless Pool. Thanks to its modular construction, the Original Endless Pool series can be installed almost anywhere. Discover some of the surprising location possibilities on the Endless Pools House Tour.

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