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Essential fitness for cancer patients

Physical activity will keep your muscles and tissues in working condition and will prevent weakness, skin sores, breathing difficulties and other problems associated with extended bed rest.

While you might not feel like moving around, being active will help relieve stress and anxiety about your condition or the treatment and can help to keep your appetite up .

Even a small amount of regular physical activity has been shown to bring benefits for cancer patients and a minimum of just 30 minutes moderate exercise three days a week will generally:

•    Help maintain fitness and strength levels by keeping muscles toned and cardiovascular ability up
•    Keeps oxygen circulating through the body which promotes blood supply and white cell production for healing
•    Reduce the fatigue symptoms (Cancer Onset Fatigue)
•    Promote deeper sleep which is essential for body healing
•    Help keep appetite up
•    Improve and maintain self-esteem
•    Significantly reduce the incidence of secondary cancers

It’s essential that you talk to your doctor or healthcare team before starting any exercise because some physical activity might have a harmful effect on your treatment (especially if your treatment affects, the heart and lungs, you have had surgery or you have high blood pressure). Your team will be able to recommend the most appropriate exercises for you and help plan a schedule to give you the maximum benefits.

The exercise you do will depend on the type of surgery you have had, your treatment schedule, whether you exercised before you were diagnosed with cancer and the state of your health right now.