{"id":434545,"date":"2026-09-13T07:26:26","date_gmt":"2026-09-13T07:26:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/434545\/"},"modified":"2026-09-13T07:26:26","modified_gmt":"2026-09-13T07:26:26","slug":"two-veterans-two-comebacks-why-theyre-saying-youre-not-done-yet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/434545\/","title":{"rendered":"Two veterans, two comebacks: Why they\u2019re saying \u201cyou\u2019re not done yet\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

Houston \u2013 Sometimes, a comeback starts with one very specific goal.<\/p>\n

For Mark Ackley, that goal was getting back to doing the things he loved.<\/p>\n

The U.S. Marine veteran, former athlete and lifelong outdoorsman had spent much of his life staying active. But after battling Stage 3 non-Hodgkin\u2019s lymphoma in 2023, followed by a serious back injury, the activities that once defined him suddenly felt out of reach.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was coming off this one-two punch,\u201d Ackley said. \u201cThe battle with cancer was bad enough. And then there was a year recovering from the chemo after that and then right into this back injury.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Mark Ackley chemo (Copyright 2026 by KPRC Click2Houston – All rights reserved.)<\/p>\n

The injury left Ackley using a walker and facing the possibility of surgery and even a wheelchair. For someone accustomed to running marathons, cycling and spending time outdoors, the thought of losing his mobility was devastating.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re thinking this time maybe forced retirement,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

Then he met Fenix Shepard.<\/p>\n

\"\"Fenix Shepard (Copyright 2026 by KPRC Click2Houston – All rights reserved.)<\/p>\n

Shepard, a U.S. Navy veteran and Houston fitness coach, had her own difficult road back to health. After a traumatic car accident left her with a traumatic brain injury, shoulder injuries and sciatic nerve pain, she spent months using a walker and receiving injections for pain.<\/p>\n

Shepard eventually reached 195 pounds and a size 18. At just 5 feet tall, she knew she needed to find her own way back to the gym and back to the life she wanted. <\/p>\n

\"\"Fenix Shepard transformation (Copyright 2026 by KPRC Click2Houston – All rights reserved.)<\/p>\n

\u201cI had to find my own way back into the gym, back to life, back to healing,\u201d Shepard said. <\/p>\n

When Shepard moved to Texas recently, she finally felt like she was ready to start her life again. She started he own company and published a book titled \u2018Loved Unconditionally: A Spiritual Memoir of Trauma, Addiction Recovery, and Finding God Beyond Religion.\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

Her own experience shaped the way she approached Ackley\u2019s recovery.<\/p>\n

When he walked into the gym looking for help with his mobility, he told Shepard he didn\u2019t need a traditional personal trainer. He needed someone who understood what he was going through.<\/p>\n

She did.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been there,\u201d Shepard told him.<\/p>\n

The two veterans began working together, taking a slow and calculated approach. Instead of pushing Ackley through an intense workout, Shepard focused on movements that helped him gradually rebuild strength and mobility.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe also knew how to pull back a little bit,\u201d Ackley said. \u201cWe had to do this rebuild pretty darn slow.\u201d<\/p>\n

And Ackley had one very specific goal in mind.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to be back on the dive boat, scuba diving, standing up with 60 pounds on my back in 90 days,\u201d he told Shepard.<\/p>\n

\"\"Mark Ackley scuba diving (Copyright 2026 by KPRC Click2Houston – All rights reserved.)<\/p>\n

That goal gave their work a purpose.<\/p>\n

For Ackley, the comeback became less about a number on a scale and more about reclaiming the activities that made him feel like himself.<\/p>\n

His message to others who may be struggling with their own setbacks is simple: set a goal, find someone who understands what you\u2019re going through and keep going.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re not done yet,\u201d Ackley said.<\/p>\n

Today, the two continue to share that message with others. Shepard says transformation is about much more than weight loss. Her own 70-pound transformation taught her that becoming stronger and more capable can open the door to getting more out of life and Ackley\u2019s story is a reminder that progress doesn\u2019t always look dramatic.<\/p>\n

During Houston Life, Shepard demonstrated some of the exercises she and Ackley used during his training, including resistance-band squats, triceps kickbacks, biceps curls and controlled core movements.<\/p>\n

For Shepard, resistance bands can be an accessible place to start for people who may not be ready for heavier weights.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of clients that have back issues, shoulder issues, hip issues, we start with bands before I even move to going to weights,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The bigger lesson, both say, is that getting stronger can create more than physical changes. With each small improvement can come a little more confidence, and that confidence can make it easier to return to the activities and experiences you love.<\/p>\n

Copyright 2026 by KPRC Click2Houston – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Houston \u2013 Sometimes, a comeback starts with one very specific goal. For Mark Ackley, that goal was getting…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":434546,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[19746,2931,584,56,58,57,150874,55750,3434,1913,55526],"class_list":["post-434545","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-houston","tag-comeback","tag-fitness","tag-health","tag-houston","tag-houston-headlines","tag-houston-news","tag-local-spotlight","tag-u-s-army","tag-u-s-navy","tag-veterans","tag-working-out"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/434545","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=434545"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/434545\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/434546"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=434545"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=434545"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=434545"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}