Stage IV MBC Fitness
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Cowgal. My red cound has dropped on Ibrance which is probably the cause. My MO is monitoring them closely. I have been getting blood work more frequently then every 2 weeks. My plan is to keep doing what I can even if it is slower then pre-recurrence.
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I’m glad to see everyone working to keep moving! I went to the swimming pool on Monday after two weeks of no swimming. It was heavenly. Swam about a half a mile. I have some wonderful friends who get me out walking too.
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Brutersmom, if your red blood cells are lower, black beans can help increase, would help mitigate some of the side effects, easy to add a few to each meal. Assuming you are not allergic to them. I was anemic and low RBC before I started eating more beans myself.
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Well, taking it easy whilst still moving today. Will be indoor marching around the apartment, deliberate movement of arms and 300 to 500 steps at a time, goal of 6000 to 10000. I am not willing to do a long workout since I want to earn some extra money online with surveys, searches and mobile games. I also have cute dog videos that pay with each ad and a cooking channel that pays with each ad on the laptop. Planning to move around every 20 mins or so. Still waiting for dry sidewalks before venturing out again.
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Road the therapy bike for ½hours and did a legs and back workout. Followed this with a hydo massage of the back and shoulders. I always feel so much better on workout days even if I can't do what I used to.
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I got a fair amount of exercise today, went for a walk around the mall with older DB and wife, had a coffee and donut then walked around picking up groceries. She also gave good advice about being too fearful of falling to walk. She just said, put the right footwear on, pay enough attention to your surroundings and ignore the ice, step over with confidence. I did that on the way home and it seemed to work. Also helped to have my brother take my groceries up for me.
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Mara - I too fear falling and took a bad fall probably a little over a month ago and I was laying in my yard at night and had to call my husband to come out of the house to help me up. I have two fake knees and can't get on my knees and in this case, the fall hurt both my arms where I wasn't able to use them to help me get in position to get myself up. Here is a video that may be helpful for those of us that have problems getting up:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ETgQD8QhZs . My last fall, I don't think it would have worked because I couldn't move my arms due to the pain but I think it could help in a lot of scenarios.0 -
Cowgal-Thanks for posting that video. I normally use the basic way she is showing to get up off of the floor-sometimes it is called the "spiral technique." It's really nice to see all those other options in case I am ever in a pinch. Today is the one year anniversary of breaking my leg, so I have been feeling kind of anxious these past few days, even though my break caused the fall and not vice-versa. Making sure to eat my calcium foods and to space my calcium supplements.
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Falling is a real concern. My MO has referred me to a PT for strengthening of my right hip. My eval is at the end of the month. I'm going to ask about balance and fall recovery. My DH wants me to take my phone with me when I go out to our detached garage in case I fall. I've lost my balance a couple of times recently and although I haven't fallen, I've come close to it. I've also felt like my legs are going to give out on me sometimes. I have my cane with me when I'm out and about, but not around the house or when I'm just going out to the garage.
Stay safe, everyone!
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Please excuse my warped sense of humor. I googled something about letrozole today and use in body buying came up. I went to the gym this afternoon.for small group coaching legs and back. I got to thinking on my way home now that I am on letrole is it possible at 70 I could finally have a muscular body I have worked for for 5 years
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Please excuse my warped sense of humor. I googled something about letrozole today and use in body building came up. I went to the gym this afternoon.for small group coaching legs and back. I got to thinking on my way home now that I am on letrole is it possible at 70 I could finally have a muscular body I have worked for for 5 years?
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brutersmon, our warped sense of humor is what gets us through this show!
Carol
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Brutorsmom - I keep hoping after all these years on anti-cancer drugs that I will eventually get a GOOD side effect.
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Trying to get back into more activity since the weather is improving. Today was a short trail on my neighbor’s property, not lengthy but very rocky, so it does take effort. DH needs to walk more too and we plan to increase the laps weekly until we’re satisfied. Felt good to get started.
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I appreciate the videos online as well, I rarely push myself out of my seat so that part is fine, falls are less with the cane and I did not make myself to walk in the winter. I salted my stoop, step, sidewalk up to the driveway. I needed to be able to at least get in the car.
Tonight will have a mall walk which will be fine, need some movement. I did not walk earlier as I thought it would sap my energy too soon. I enjoy walking around with my brother and his wife.
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Not sure what happened but tonight, had to actually sit a couple of times during our mall walk. Just felt tired. I am going to have to walk more and find a way to strengthen legs so I can also get up if I fall. My motivation to walk is still strong, faster and more confident with my cane. I will need to take myself to the mall a couple times a week, also need to plan meals to cover what I am doing. If going out, need to add carbs. I only had a few slices of cheese with peanut butter, good protein, no energy food, will work on everything.
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Mara51516. Glad you made it out. Add some carbs but also increase your total protien throughout the day then carbs right before the work out and protien afterward. I recommend ice cream but because you earned it. 😉 keep moving nothing wrong with using a cane.
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Bruters Mom, agreed. I was foolish tonight at home, put myself on the floor to try getting back up. The first time I got on hands and knees with hands on a stepbench and made it up but almost toppled forward. I should have called it a day but decided to try again. Such a dumb thing to do when I don't have the leg or push strength to get back up, I eventually lay down for a minute to gather energy, butt walked across the room to my couch, got to hands and knees and failed the first couple of times pushing arms and legs and finally reminded myself that I got my self into it, need to get out of it. Need to start training the muscle groups including push strength in arms, leg strength, especially glutes and hamstrings as well. Walking ability will improve quickly but need many more sit to stands to strengthen my muscles that will allow me. I am going to ask my RO when I see her if I can get PT as I am not having much success. Balance is mostly solved with the cane, now I need the ability to get up. I am only 51 for heavens sake. I'll start with walking, extra sit to stands without pushing off with my hands, wall pushups since I cannot just lie on the floor and practice every day. As said, I feel pretty confident with my cane, spring is coming and the outdoors awaits. Just need to take my strength more seriously. I do watch youtube and know the theory of getting up, just need the strength to accomplish it. Interrupt the sitting I do earning money online and get steps and strength in. I want a PT to advise on the best exercises to help me get up alone but will wait. I realize that I have not been able to get up myself since I have to stop having baths and use a shower chair instead. That has been for a great many years. Oh well, will work my way back up. I'll start at home with the different exercises, wall pushups will be good and maintain it daily. Sorry about the verbal diarrhea.
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Mara-Good for you for trying and eventually getting up off the floor twice! But I think your idea of getting some PT is a very good one. They might spot something in your mechanics than can be fixed-maybe it is not so much strength you need as much as technique. Also their recommendations for exercises and supervision can be invaluable. One of the good things that came out of breaking my leg was the PT-they got me back to weight training and it has really helped my strength. Initially I was told not to lift weights with my bone mets but it doesn't seem to be a problem and I mainly do light repetitions.
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Chicagoan, you are right, I will mention PT to my RO on the 30th when I get brain MRI results. I am also approaching all this slowly, getting steps, at least inside, and will do 2 to 3 sit to stands when I need to get up, will do a couple of wall pushups as well. Walking will be smaller step counts throughout the day. My reasoning for this is because it is just as beneficial to do small amounts throughout the day and makes it more likely for me to do them. Also tightening my glutes and lower abs a couple of times as well throughout the day. Just need to keep up consistency. It is super rainy so outdoor walking is off the table to get to my MRI, have to UBER instead.
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Mara Good luck with your MRI today. When I was first diagnosed in 2015 I was not in great shape. I was still working and my job requires I be able to walk. I reached a point on Arimidex where I hurt so much I would mostly sit. Pretty much gave up life. I was stage I and decided to stop the meds. No quality of life. My surgeon suggested that they were seeing promise in some studies with exercise having a positive benefit for people like me in stage I why not do that if I won't take aromatase inhibitors. He did caution me that the results weren't in fully just a few studies. Since I was not about to go back on aromatase inhibitors I decided why not. I hate pills and it gave me control. I joined a gym. I started working on the equipment. I would walk up to a machine. They would be set on 100 lbs. I could barely do ten. There is music playing through the loud speaker and I would hear over and over while I was there. "Were are glad you are here. This is a no judgement zone. Keep doing what you are doing." Occasionally coaches would walk through the gym between clients and give you pointers. As I grew stronger, I started looking at taking classes. I wanted to get stronger and felt ready to take the next step. So I joined a class. Leave it to me. I joined a class that was more like a football training program (Not true, just my opinion at that time LOL) than an exercise class. While everyone else was using 10lbs. the coach was running to get me 1 lb. weights and modifying every exercise so I would not hurt myself. A jumping jack was stepping to the right then the left. The other class members were amazing. They encouraged me so much. I have never caught up with them but they are in there 30's, 40's and 50's I am 70. They are so supportive. When my cancer returned this January the coaches were there cheering me on via text message. Since I returned to the gym they have helped me modify my routine to keep me moving and the other classmate interaction keeps my spirits up. I don't look 70 most people think i am in my late 50's maybe early 60's (sorry its genetic. Got it from my dad) so I love having fun with that. Now to the important part of the story. Work on getting stronger. Core strengthening is extremely important for stability. As you suggested that is an easy exercise that you can do anywhere and it does work. (Don't over do it and make yours self sore.) Add more as you get stronger. My gym offers a silver sneakers exercise class. I see people walking in with canes and shuffling gates. I have watched them go from sitting in a chair no weights exercising to adding weight. Some even venture to the therapy bikes and treadmills on the other side of the gym after a while. One woman even went from silver sneakers to my weight class. She is my age. We have to watch her because she thinks if I can do it so can she. The difference is my 6 extra years of training. Before my recurrence I was flat pressing 75 pounds she can barely do 30 but she is just starting out. So every step you take every movement you do is the step in the right directions. I don't know if you can afford it but something like a mini exercise bike or elliptical for under the desk might help you while you work on the computer. Using food cans as weights for arm exercises to strengthen your arms. Silver sneakers has lots of chair activities on youtube for variety. Also don't forget stretching.
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Thank you for the encouragement. The rain is easing up so I will walk to the hospital. Getting plenty of carb and protein and it will not be digesting on my walk which should be easier, if I cannot do it, will simply hop on a bus. The walk is almost an hour there and back. I will see how it goes. Still doing two sit to stands each time I stand up and doing a small marching step to add extra steps throughout the day. I must also say, I am doing ab tightening and glute tightening as well, I can really feel those as well.
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Mara, you are a super star! I think that one thing that has been important to me is to not give up on my lack of physical abilities and you certainly haven't.
I am always trying to preserve what mobility I have left and hopefully improve on it. I have a lot of exercise DVDs that I used to do and I gave some away that require me to be on my knees since that is pretty much out after having both knees replaced but I hold onto a lot of them that I am not sure if I will be able to do again but don't want to give up on them yet. I saw my PCP this week and I am going to try to see if I can get by with lowering my Gabapentin usage in hopes that maybe I won't be quite as tired and we will see how that goes.
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Tonight I didn't have my ussual coach. I do a lot of modifications due to cancer and knee injury. He just kept bushing. I wear a myzone belt and try to keep it in the mid yellow. He set one exercise up and I went into the red and started feeling overly out of breath. Gave me a hard time about decreasing the weight. I felt like throwing a kettle bell at him. Other than that I had a great workout and fun with friends.
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I am glad you had a good time with friends, I know that would be motivating.
My workout is not heavy today, expecting Amazon so staying in. Getting laundry done and hung up on my heated tent dryer is first since it blocks my front door. Clothes take no time at all in there.
Tomorrow, may have a bigger workout as it is garbage day and some jackass put several HUGE bags right out back. The other residents will not help and I really don't blame them as it should not be our job. Emailed property manager but they don't clean the building so doubt they will help. Tomorrow is quite pleasant so I may put out the garbage left there one bag at a time, assuming I can lift them.
The weather is turning nicer as there will be less snow and leftover ice, weather is above freezing. We are cold today from windchill but it is not too bad otherwise. Walking will be in order either at the mall or outside. I am leaning toward the mall to get more regular endurance training but will work outdoors as well to acclimate to the eventual heat. I am also working balance by standing on one leg hanging on to a chair until I can perhaps learn extra balance that way to reduce fall risk.
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mara, I have all kinds of ideas as to what you can do with all that garbage, but none of them are printable, so I'll just keep quiet. Nice, though, to think of it as part of your workout! Be careful out there!
Carol
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The managers wound up taking the garbage out but I don't think the garbage men wanted them. Oh well, not my monkey, not my circus.
I had my Herceptin infusion. I got wise to what I should eat for the walk there, made one pancake with butter and plenty of syrup, knew that would give me the kick of energy to get there and then asked for cheese, digestive cookies and a ginger ale for the walk home. Pretty good walk both ways
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I did manage a walk to the grocery store, was 4 miles round trip including the store. I did have 1 tbsp of peanut butter and added some honey and maple for the energy boost, seemed to help though I did take microbreaks here and there, less than 20 seconds and plodded on. Sat on the bus stop bench before going to the store and then again in the store, went and got my eggs, store gave me a water since they don't sell them individually, I forgot mine. It really helped. I used a knapsack and wrapped the eggs in a couple of bags after paying, figured that would keep them safer and the knapsack left the other hand mostly free. Felt better going home, did not stop as much. 9700 steps which I consider pretty good for me. I did not feel unstead even with shoulder wraparound bag and knapsack, the cane makes me feel much steadier, even on more sloped ground like driveways or curbs. I always feel like I am going to start going forward so stay as far away as possible from that. Nice day.
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Mara, keep up the good work. I have had a busy week and not able to make all my classes at the gym. Got there tonight for a legs workout. I always feel so much better after exercising.
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Well, struggle of a walk to and from the grocery store, likely due to lack of sleep. I tend to stay up later than I need to. No stumbles thanks to the cane, went up side streets on the side of road mostly, can take longer steps that way. Stopped at a bench when I got in grocery store for cooking spray had a sip of water, bought what I needed, sat on bench near the exit as well and ate a granola bar and drank a bottle of water. Trip home was just as tiring and I do tend to lean to the left so fighting that, but no stumbles thanks to the cane. Nice sunny day, admired many dogs enjoying walks, I do live in a friendly neighbourhood. Steps overall 11000 ish, over 4 miles round trip and almost two hours. I don't aim to be fast, I aim to stay upright. Planning a mall walking day tomorrow, much easier and can stop at Timmies for pop and donut. I don't think walking to the mall is a practical thing right now until it is not such an effort. I do like my bright red face because I know it means I put a good effort. I think it is because I am fair skinned and did not notice this until I stopped wearing makeup.
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