At Stillwater Medical’s Total Health, Hunter Fuller and Daxton Ridgeway are helping people build strength, confidence, and independence, one step at a time. But what keeps them coming back each day is about much more than fitness.
For Hunter Fuller and Daxton Ridgeway, working at Stillwater Medical’s Total Health is about more than exercise plans, fitness assessments or helping someone reach their next goal. It is about the people who walk through the doors, the challenges they overcome, and the small but meaningful moments that remind them why their work matters.
This duo has become a welcoming presence at Total Health, where they work with members of all ages and abilities to help them improve their health, build confidence, and continue doing the things that matter most to them. Although they bring different strengths and experiences to the team, Fuller and Ridgeway share a common belief: everyone deserves to feel supported, encouraged, and capable of making progress.
For Fuller, the opportunity to work with a wide range of people, particularly active older adults, was a major draw after graduate school. Ridgeway, who previously worked in personal training, wanted to expand his experience by learning how to help people navigate injuries and physical limitations.
What they have found most rewarding, however, is the opportunity to be part of something bigger than a workout.
“I love knowing that every day I come in, I have an opportunity to make a difference in someone’s day,” Fuller said. “Whether that’s through their physical progress, helping them regain confidence, or even just believing in someone and believing in them when no one did, not even themselves sometimes.”
That belief begins with meeting people where they are. For someone who feels intimidated walking into a gym, or someone learning to navigate life after a major health event, having someone who listens without judgment can make all the difference.
Fuller and Ridgeway understand that their job is not simply to tell people what to do. It is to get to know their stories, help them feel comfortable, and encourage them to recognize what they can achieve.
Their shared approach is strengthened by the qualities they see in one another. Fuller admires Ridgeway’s patience, professionalism and genuine care for people, qualities he believes cannot simply be taught. Ridgeway, in turn, looks up to Fuller as a mentor who leads by example, answers questions and demonstrates what it means to treat people well.
That mutual respect helps create a team where they can learn from one another while working toward the same goal: making every member feel cared for and supported.
Sometimes, the impact of their work becomes clear through milestones that might seem small to someone else but mean everything to the person achieving them.
Ridgeway remembers working with an older adult who initially struggled to stand from a chair independently. After several months of training, the member progressed to getting down to the floor and back up again independently.
For Ridgeway, it was a powerful reminder that fitness is not always about lifting heavier weights or building bigger muscles. Sometimes, it is about maintaining independence and having the strength to navigate everyday life safely.
Fuller recalls helping a woman who wanted to improve her balance before an upcoming cruise. She hoped their time together would help her feel more confident and reduce her risk of falling while traveling. When she returned, she shared that she had enjoyed her trip and even participated in activities such as scuba diving.
Knowing their work helped someone experience something she might otherwise have approached with hesitation was a meaningful reminder of why Fuller loves what he does.
These experiences stay with them. Ridgeway is also motivated by a close friend his own age who had a stroke, an experience that reinforced how quickly life can change and strengthened his desire to help people protect their health and overcome physical challenges.
For Fuller, motivation comes from the people he serves, the coworkers beside him, and his wife, who encourages him to become a better person every day. Ridgeway credits his father’s example of dedication and strong work ethic for shaping the way he approaches his responsibilities.
And when the work begins to feel routine, a simple thank-you or handwritten card from a member can serve as a reminder of the difference they are making.
When asked what they hope members remember about their experiences at Total Health, both returned to the same idea. Fuller wants people to know they received knowledgeable, professional support from people who genuinely care about their progress. Ridgeway hopes they leave knowing someone cares about them as a person, not simply as someone following a workout plan.
For Fuller and Ridgeway, success is not measured by a single session or a fitness milestone. It is found in the confidence to try something new, the ability to move through life more independently, and the reassurance that someone is in your corner.
Because sometimes, a little progress can change much more than a person’s workout. It can change how they see themselves, how they move through the world and what they believe is possible.
To learn more about Total Health Fitness visit https://www.stillwater-medical.org/locations/total-health-fitness/.