Kicking LEs butt!! Exercise & Self Care Log
Comments
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Good going, Carol. I missed the gym yesterday, but I hit it today. Really trying not to miss two days in a row, but sometimes that's challenging. Did my 30 mins today, but I'll miss it again tomorrow, as I have to go to a brunch and then work afterwards.0 -
Nothing for me today. I spent many, many hours in the car driving to a memorial service and back. One of our bco sisters lost her husband in a tragic accident. It was good to represent some ladies here by attending the service. My arms are fine, I am happy to report, thanks to stops, water, compression, elevation.
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Jeannie, what a wonderful gesture. I'm so glad you were able to keep your LE under control during the long driving hours.
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hi ladies...I am a regular on the rads summer 2014 board and have finished treatment, chemo , rads, and starting tamoxifen....I was fitted for a sleeve by my pt and will get it sept. 24....right now I don't have LE and have exercises to strengthen arms...my question is when were you able to start an aerobic exercise ritual ...chemo ended June 2 for me but my legs are still achy and weak and at the end of my work day I need to rest for a couple of hours off my feet....I returned to teaching and my fitbit racks up 10,000 steps by the evening but I have not done more than my normal walking in school....I do feel I am slowly getting my strength back but I do think about the need for aerobics...how does it help specifically to ward off lymphedema...thanks! Rosie
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Welcome Rosie, 10,000 steps is great. Carol on these boards has made an excellent phamplet on getting back to exercise. She should be along in the next few days to post it.
Remember if your doing aerobics or any strength exercises start off slowly. PAL program for LE suggest starting out with 1 lb weights which allows your compromised arm to get use to it. Starting slow like this doesn't sent LE fluid rushing in to your arm which could trigger LE. Drink tons of water which is good for LE and in general. If your already lifting heavier weights and use to it then proceed by adding small increments or weight. Belly breathing is excellent for LE or otherwise. Mores LE fluid.
Do keep us posted and you are so smart preparing to keep LE beast away. Hard to control once established.
4 1/2 miles then 10 min dog walk in the eve. Having right knee issues since I starting up my regular walking. Can't figure out if it's from an injury when I fell on my knee late July or if it's good ole arthritis but every step I took I could feel it deep inside. Going to ice next. Loved my walk, perfect temp today on west coast.
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Rosie, here's the document hugz mentioned: http://stepup-speakout.org/Handout%20doc%20for%20...
I don't recall seeing any research showing that aerobic exercise helps with LE, but I think it makes common sense that being in shape helps minimize LE flare-ups. I say that because we know that raising core body temperature can trigger swelling, which is why it's not a good idea to do 'hot' yoga or spend time in a sauna or hot tub. Hard cardio exercise raises core temperature, so you'd think that would be a no-no, but I believe that like weight training, when you build up slowly, it increases your capacity to do more exercise without taxing yourself. So, if I'm fit enough to be able to climb four flights of stairs without getting all out of breath, I probably am climbing those stairs without getting in a sweat, raising my body temp, and tempting LE to flare. Again, I have no scientific evidence for that statement, I just think it's logical. By extension--try to do cardio where and when it's cool in temperature, stay hydrated, and pause periodically to take deep, slow belly breaths. Deep breathing stimulates the largest lymph transport organ in the body.
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Thanks for saving the day Carol. Ok this is weird. I iced my knee because it was sore from walk and today I walked for 45 min and had no pain. hum...Oh well all is good and I shall march forward.
Carol, What happened at knee docs office today?
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hugz, maybe the icing tamed the inflammation? In any case, I'm glad you could get back out there today.
The ortho surgeon got me into a sturdy brace to help with exercise, and I'm going to try a series of synvisc injections. This is all about picking which poison I want to deal with...inactivity and likely overweight, or dealing with repeat injections that may or may not help, and which I sure do hope live up to their reputation as having no serious side effects. Getting older sure does come with some asterisks.
Rosie, today I thought of a study I read some time ago, but I cannot for the life of me find it again. The study had half of a BC-patient group exercise after treatment that included node dissection, and the other half did not. I think the exercise was cardio stuff. As I recall, the exercisers had a much lower incidence of LE by the end of a year. The trouble with the study was I think not following up longer than that; also the study authors were maintaining that a lot of the swelling they saw in the first year was not LE, but rather post-surgical swelling, and I don't think they did anything to intervene, i.e. treat it as LE. I believe their conclusions were that women who exercise are less likely to have their post-surgical swelling turn into 'real' LE. One of the lead researchers was Sandra Hayes, who is affiliated with an Australian university and who does a lot of LE-related research, especially concerning exercise.
Other LE researchers, including Jane Armer, believe that early swelling is quite likely to signal likely LE and should be followed and treated as appropriate.
You might google Sandi Hayes' work and see what you can find. In my search for this particular study, I bumped into a list of her in-process research, and one of them aims to find out if wearing compression during exercise really has any protective benefit for us. I'm glad she's doing that study and hope it's well designed and thus credible, whatever the outcome.
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Did my lebeds too
Carol. Wow you got some heavy info on the knee. I can't wait to hear about the brace. I think it may work with the tramp. I hope it does. My knee acted up a bit just before midnight but is ok. Will test it out tomorrow.
Yah....sucks that we are falling apart and we are trying so hard to keep it together. Asterisks is right! Dang, dang, dang
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thanks Carol! I will be getting a sleeve in a couple of weeks and my PT doesn't see signs of swelling but said to wear the sleeve if I do repetitive motions , eg. Kayaking...I was setting up classroom and pushing heavy bookshelves and did not wear a sleeve...just a tad puffy but it was ok after a day and some pt.
I am just frustrated now as my legs are still weak and I know I need to start a walking routine and haven't...I also want to wait until it's cool outside as the NC heat tends to make my arm feel swollen...sometimes I am not sure of it's lymphedema or just leftover chemo effects. Thanks for the info. And I will read the article and google Sandi Hayes. Rosie
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Rosie, I was walking outside and its just too dang hot. Do you have a nearby mall where you can walk inside in the AC? A gym where you can walk on the treadmill? Might be a way to get started until it cools off
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I did a lot of mall walking when the weather was bad here. It adds up!
Today I ran around in the pool for an hour and walked the dog. Feel good.
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This could be great!
http://medicalxpress.com/news/2014-08-breast-cancer-imaging-surgery-world-first.html
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Took a beautiful sunset walk with dog.
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Jeannie, that WOULD be great, so I hope it pans out.
Hugz, wow...that is really beautiful! Were you too busy gawking to actually walk?
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That is a lovely sunset.Thurs/Fri: 30 mins cardio and Lebed opening and MLD.. It's a record to do all two days in a row. We won't talk about earlier in the week. **blush**
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Yesterday: in the gym for strength training, plus 20 minutes of cycling furiously on a recumbent bike, to see how hard I have to work to get my heart rate up without a lot of resistance (I'm protecting the bum knee, and per orthopedic surgeon, cycling yes/resistance no). Otherwise, today I'm blushing right alongside glennie--no activity worth talking about.
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Hugz, I'm drooling. I wanna go for a walk with you!
I'm still jogging (indoors--temps still in the triple digits, and it's humid to boot) and tossing corks, though some days I simply jog for half an hour on the clock and forget the corks.
By the way, did you know corks can be cut into chunks and spread on the soil of your house plants to help retain moisture? Totally off topic, I know, but your houseplants will thank you.
Binney0 -
Tossing corks???0 -
Yes, well…hmmm. I have this path around the house, see? A kind of circular track that goes through several rooms. I keep track of how many laps I've jogged by popping a cork into a bowl every time I pass by. I realize that sounds nuts, but many, many pages back on this thread the gals here offered me a cork-tossing event of my own at the next OLymph-ics, so I'm trying to stay in shape to beat any challenge to my cork-tossing title.
Of course, the more wine you drink, the more corks you end up with, and the further you have to jog, so it's also a limiting factor for over-indulgence, in case that should be a problem. But then the more corks you cut up and sprinkle on your houseplants, the fewer laps you have to run. So there's a lot of strategy to this sport as well. Keeps the brain healthy.
Binney0 -
My goodness, Binney, you are indeed quite the strategist. Cork tossing is definitely a feature event at the next OLymphics games.
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You would be gold medal winner at the cork tossing event!0 -
Haha! Olymphics. I like that and cork tossing, too.
We hiked in the Mt. Rainier area yesterday. It was called a "moderate" hike and not terribly long but there was a lot of up and down. It was hard but at least I feel like I achieved something. The hike led to two beautiful lakes, with the Mt. always present, a clear day. Doing nothing today except getting out of my chair once in awhile to help the stiffness!
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Jeannie, we'll need to come up with an Olymphics event that includes up-and-down trail hiking. I think you'll have some stiff competition--BeckySharp hikes some pretty tough trails in the Smoky Mountains. She hasn't posted here in a while, so maybe you'll have that event to yourself after all!
I got 10,876 outdoor-working-like-a-crazy-woman steps in today. Fall planting, mostly, but that included lots of moving soil around. We created some new planting areas this year and DH brought me some lovely topsoil in his truck, and he kindly shoveled and dumped it into the general vicinity of where I wanted it. Then, it was rake and hoe, rake and hoe. And finally dig and plant, dig and plant. I'll confess that my arm is verrrrry tired this evening! I also cleaned up a bunch of leaves and sticks that fell during a nasty storm the other day, so add repetitive-motion sweeping and raking to the abuse I gave my poor arm.
I absolutely adore my Solaris Tribute, because when I do this to myself, or spend a day paddling my kayak, the Tribute somehow magically makes it feel all better by morning. And I am incredibly thankful that my LE is mild. Those of our swell sisters here who have it much worse, have my enormous respect and admiration for dealing with it while keeping sanity intact.
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Oh my goodness, You girls got me laughing my head off. I went away for weekend camping and no technology so I totally missed the Olymphic events your talking about here and so I want to get in on it now.
My LE event this weekend was to forget my sleeve glue and anti friction stick for my inner elbow and so I couldn't walk more than 200 ft without jacking up my stupid, stupid stupid custom fit sleeve that slips. This non event sport is called "spectator only" Yes, I deposited my butt onto a lawn chair as I watched my DH leash up the dog and leave me behind for the 4km hike around the lake that I wanted to do so badly. The only thing I could do was uncork a bottle of wine and so Binney the cork should be arriving at your door soon for your cork tossing event!
Tried to get out to walk and get another sunset picture this eve but my company would not leave. Dang, dang dang. Nothing good to report except I had a mouth party this weekend.
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I started back into walking today. Joint pain (knee and hip) have kept me sidelined for awhile. Decided to get out and enjoy the fall sunshine and just shut the aches out for awhile. Even took DH along for the slow stroll. Waiting for doctor appt in 3 weeks to see what's up. What a beautiful day here.
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well off day for me, I am going to be working with a new trainer starting on Wed. My cute little past guy is now teaching at 2 dif colleges and also still studying so time is limited. We mutually decided on a change and I think the new person will be good. She has a great background. New problem is I have become sensitive to the chlorine in the pool! Dang but that pool is something I use for cardio 5 times a week. New trainer gave me a cream to use that helps but I come out sort of itchie~~
Got a meet with my ENT tomorrow so maybe he will be able to help me figure this out. The gym I go to also has other locations and some have salt water pools but all are farther.it is always something huh?
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Does it help if you shower off the chlorine right away? Can you check and see if it is the right amount in the pool? Maybe they are over-doing it?0 -
glennie, yeap have always showered off and use my own bar soap! figure with bar soap ,I can suds up all over? regarding if the gym over chlorinates the pool....I do not know but it is the same place I have been swimming at for over 10 years and never had any issues until recently when I upped my visits from 2 to 5 times a week after I retired! oh dear, will see what the ENT says in the morning but likely he will talk about allergy testing first...
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PTS, you might check with the gym folks and see if they've made any chemical changes lately, or if someone new is supervising the pool. And ask around whether anyone else is having issues lately. That's a real bummer!
Be well!
Binney0
