Trey Horrell began his fitness journey in 1997 while attending school in Philadelphia. Until then, he had been overweight, topping at 250 pounds. “I had seen a guy in the office that was very fit, and I asked, how do I get into shape like that?” He began a strict diet and exercise lifestyle and quickly reached a weight of 180 pounds in 1999.
“It was strange. I felt like I was losing weight almost too fast.” During that time, he had noticed some lesions on his skin. Not thinking much of them, he continued his professional pursuits until pain in his pelvic region caught his attention. “It was so intense I could not ignore it anymore.” When he got to the urologist, he was rushed out of the office and to the ER for tests. He was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. He immediately underwent surgery, six outpatient chemotherapy treatments, and 20 rounds of radiation to clear what was left of the cancer cells.
He followed up with his doctors every three months after that.
“I knew I had to keep my body healthy to fight.” Years passed without the return of cancer. He’d moved back to Memphis and started his life again. In 2016, he noticed a new lesion. After immediately addressing the issue with his oncologist, he was diagnosed again with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Because of the level of health and fitness he had maintained over the years, he decided, along with his doctors, to undergo extremely aggressive chemotherapy. “My doctors told me that only about 5% of people in my position are healthy enough to undergo such an aggressive regimen. We wanted to kill every cancer cell in my body. In doing so, we almost killed all my cells.”
His therapy consisted of six rounds. Each round was five days of 24-hour infusions. “I had no immune system left. I could barely walk on my own. But, it worked.”
It only took Trey a couple of months to start his exercise routine again. He began questioning what he was truly doing with his life — searching for his passion. It wasn’t long before he found it.
“My fitness saved my life.”
Trey wanted to be involved full-time in what gave him his life back. He has since received training in massage therapy and fascia stretch therapy, a type of physical therapy that combines massage with stretching to rehabilitate the body.
“I love sports. I knew I had found something when I realized I could combine my love for sports and fitness. I wanted to work on athletes to improve their quality of life and help them move better.”
Trey currently works with clients to help them combine their fitness activities with sports that they love, particularly golf. On January 1, 2024, he bought his own gym in Memphis, Raptor Performance and Wellness, specializing in soft tissue massage, FST, and personal training. He can help his clients with everything from their golf swing to general massage.
Trey also keeps his health in check by eating a clean diet, strength training five times weekly, pilates twice weekly, and “golfing a lot.”
“I love what I do. Fitness literally saved my life. Because of the shape I was in at the time the second round of cancer hit, I was able to fight it with everything I had.” Trey urges everyone to self-check. “If you notice something abnormal, please get it checked. The second time, there was no doubt. It is imperative that we all do it.”
Written By Shlomit Ovadia
Photo by Tindall Stephens
