Stage IV MBC Fitness
Comments
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Moth, my strategy with fatigue and to avoid overdoing it or even just lack of motivation is to do five minutes at a time. It does not take long to get to an hour and I sometimes find that 5 minutes really makes a difference. This is when on the treadmill. I leave running shoes on and either do a survey or some chore that needs doing. I even get changed that way. I get tired getting ready for the day, I change the top half and then the bottom half, showers are done the night before. Easier to microtask a big task and avoid being tired. Housework is one room at a time too. Exercise can be like this. Longer distance walking occurs outside. The only thing I am missing strength training other than lifting out the washing machine and spinner from the bathtub.
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Moth, I microtask things that make me tired. If I am super tired, I will walk for five minutes at a time on the treadmill, sometimes with one minute off and back on until an hour is done, one room of housework at a time etc. Even dressing is split up, freshen up top half, put my shirt on then freshen up to put on pants. I shower in the evenings.
Overall, doiing smaller amounts of walking or whatever exercise several times is just as valuable and can avoid injury etc. The mulitiple walks can also help keep some energy going throughout the day.
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Small goals until I work up to my pre surgery activity level but back at it
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Nice scenery though Mae, good for you on the walking.
I only walked 20 mins today, the weather was poor, rained hard and could not bother to go out in it.
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oh wow Mae, it looks lovely & pretty warm too! It's a miserable 5C and raining hard here. I love, love, love rain but it needs to be warmer. I used to be ok with 5C and up but now with the neuropathy & all the joint pain, I prefer 10C & up.
Dh & I walked with Olive this morning though and I got in extra steps running around the cancer agency for my rads. And we'll do another walk tonight. I might get over 6K steps today which would be a good change.
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Moth, it was about 72 (22c ?) this morning. Winter in Houston, Texas is usually very mild. However, it is snowing tonight at our mountain cabin out west between El Paso and Mexico.
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Momchichi, beautiful family, good job 5k walking.
Moth, very good discussion about fatigue of C or medications, tiredness of limited moving because of C and medications. I second Sondra and Mae, I don’t push myself anymore, as I hurt my back a couple of times and that cost me staying in bed for days. My goal is up to 20 minutes walk if I can, less than 20 minutes is also acceptable! My old physical therapist and pcp suggested minimum of 250 steps per day is necessary to avoid blood clots. I add pt exercises to that 20 minutes if I feel I can though.
Good to see you all here, happy new year!
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We have freezing rain on top of heavy wet snow that already fell earlier. As usual side streets are not done well for plowing. I plan to put some cleats on and go for some walks tomorrow. The cleats are quite exceptional. Even one pair of my winter boot shoes, which are ankle high, have vibram which makes them less prone to sliding on ice are very good. I just like the cleats for some extra security as well. I will see what it is like tomorrow, I don't see the snow and ice melting anytime soon and my city is not the quickest with the plowing and sanding.
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Moth, I have exactly the same question about whether exercise is helping me or hurting me. All I know is to try to tune in and discern if I am feeling a little more energized, or just exhausting myself further. Sondra and Illimae, yes! If I do too much, I get injured and then miss more exercise. Like I made a big effort in online yoga class and did too much gardening in one day, and ended up sidelined for a week. As many of you say, pacing, small steps should help. On a tired day I say to DH, “Shall we take a short, slow walk?” Or I approach it experimentally, as in “let me see if I can do this one small thing”. Yesterday I said, let me see if I can plant something, and I planted nine plants! Today, nothing. Trying to be ok with that, too.
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I’m 64 and just decided to i start jogging/running last summer. I’ve never been a jogger, so this was new! I started off walking a mile each day and then ran a fourth mile and then ran a half mile each day. I got up to running one and and a half miles a day! Yay! For weeks i did this each day...I was feeling great and so proud! Then two things happened that got me off track. First, i began to have prolapsed bowel and intestine issues and second i tripped badly on a pothole while listening to ‘love shack’ and split my nose. Luckily, my prosthesis cushioned my fall or my nose would have broken! Hehe....After my nose healed, I started walking each day agai, but I’m afraid to run bc of the prolapse. I think it has healed. What do you think-does any know about this issue?? I’d love to run again, but unsure.
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Lynn, it is understandable to be nervous after taking a fall like that and I am not sure about the risks of running when you are dealing with a prolapsed bowel as running can weaken the pelvic floor. Check that out with a doctor first. Continue walking as you have done and if the doctor clears running with the bowel, go gradually and do a mix of walk/run. You can also walk super quickly without all the impact of feet hitting the ground during a run. That may be a compromise with what you truly like to do. I am sorry you fell. That alone can make a person doubtful. My right foot used to drag along sometimes and leave me open to tripping over the space between sidewalk pavers unexpectedly and painfully. I actually trained my leg two ways to avoid this. One way is that when I walk outdoors, I keep an eye on the spaces between pavers to step over each one, the other is that I strengthened the right leg to be able to lift it easier. I set up my step bench in the entryway of the hall going to the kitchen and bedroom area. I had tripped over that as well since it was not level, just slightly higher than the living room. With the step bench there, I use my right leg all the time and I continue to employ the foot lifting. When I walked outside learning how to do this, it felt practically like marching but it has worked for a good long time and made me more confident walking.
One thing I will say we have in common, Love the song Love Shack. I worked at a grocery store when that came out and myself and one of the boys who packed the groceries would sing it to each other when it was quiet and no customers around. So much fun.
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When i listen to great songs or podcasts I feel like I walk/run further, but i need to watch where I’m going, too
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I hear you on that for sure. I keep my eyes down part of the way when walking outdoors so I can see the gaps between the sidewalk pavers. Though I always lift my feet, that is my weakness if I am going to fall. It has been almost a year but I still feel nervous about it. Last year, tripped and landed hard on my knees. I called my brother because I could not get up. Promptly passed out cold afterword. Don't want that to happen again.
I only did 30 mins of walking and 30 mins of the cubii. That was due to all the calls I needed to make today plus all the packages coming from amazon.
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ShetlandPony, thanks for sharing information about the clinical therapy, I followed up with them but unfortunately they only recruit patients of the doctor who is running the program. It’s a bit strange as I thought a clinical therapy is open to whoever meets criteria.
I just wanted to add to our discussion: I started walking March last year, few minutes per day (sometimes not every day), I faced combination of fatigue, shortness of breath, muscle weakness, and balance issue. together with pt exercise, I am able to walk 20 minutes now. Yes I did push myself but I assume 20 minutes is my highest level, at least for now. I tried to push more but the outcome wasn’t pleasant, so I’ll stick with this plan for a good while.
I wish everyone a happy Monday! 🤗.
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Great job Snowdrop!
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my friends - I did what I wasn't supposed to do
I overdid it on Tuesday & yesterday I was soooo tired I spent large chunks reclining & only did 1 thirty minute walk. I had a bit of a vision problem too. I get migraine aura but often without the migraine - luckily! I sometimes get those when I'm more fatigued and I swear it's my body being very logical because it forces me to lie down.
Anyway. Hopefully lesson learned. I tried to add too much too fast, aiming for an arbitrary fitbit step target and doing too much Zumba (once the endorphins start I have a hard time stopping dancing! I really love zumba...)
I will be a bit more patient. Part of my frustration is that I'm likely going back on chemo next week (been on a break for radiation treatment in December) and I'm feeling better than I have in almost a year so I want to build some muscle & cardio health now as I worry once I start again, it will be harder again.
I feel it's hard to build muscle when on treatment. Is that a thing, do you think? I think maybe chemo esp destroys so many cells the body is struggling to keep up with rebuilding everything.Anyway. Let's keep moving - safely and within our limits!
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Back to work today so it was back to the bike for 20 mins (easy) followed by "weights" workout (mostly bands, one set only of hand weights for arms) and stretching for almost 40. I may take a walk tonight just out of boredom and to get out of the house. If I don't keep this back moving I get worse problems and thats been true even before the mets moved in to my lumbar. I truly miss swimming, though, that was my happy place. Pools shut until probably Easter at least.
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It's hard finding the right balance. It's like the three bears.
I'm recovering - but I skied 8 days with my brother/nephew/friend in December. It was nice to get family time. The weather for part of it was awful - freezing rain - but it felt so good to pretend that things were normal.
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thanks Mara, I wasn’t alone in this, your encouragement and tips helped a lot.
Moth, couldn’t agree more “keep moving within our limits” 🤗
Lehrski, seems you had fun up there 👍🏻
Sondra, pools have been closed since first lock down in here and never opened, cases are surging sky high...
I walked slowly and done some pt exercise today. Probably tomorrow I can walk a bit more, just being tired for no reason today.
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I did not get too much walking this weekend, none on Saturday, took it easy. A little today when my brother offered to take me shopping. I did get my groceries and preordered food from my burger place which was nice.
I will have more walking tomorrow morning since I have a CT scan scheduled and I always walk to and from the hospital which will be nice.
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I did my regular walks plus a bunch of chores which required going up and down the stairs. Made bread and we put away a bunch of ornaments which involved a lot of squatting, sitting on the floor and getting up again which was good functional exercise.
& I love logging my steps with the fitbit. It said I had a good day yesterday
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Mara good luck with your scan, Ned for many years.
Moth, home projects are the most energy consuming activities! I like the way you calculated Squatting, stepping etc
)I am sticking on 20 minutes walk and pt experience, yesterday was ok, today I need to finish a short writing first (I postponed it until the very last day!! Lazy me) then walking!
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Woot - I did two days in a row on the bike, 30 mins each, nice and easy. Oh and I did bands and weights yesterday. Feeling very good and walking in the evenings too, which means I will probably hit the wall tomorrow and sleep most of Saturday
I scored a Disco Ball fro the FitBit for my efforts.0 -
moth, I have a fitbit, too. I've had the One for many years. They don't make that version any more. Too bad. Since I take shorter steps, it takes me about 12,200 steps to hit 5 miles. I have a Cubii under desk elliptical and I put my tracker in my sock when I'm using that. I'm trying to keep moving, but some day are harder than others.
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Is anyone interested in a fitbit group for stage 4s? I'm in the general bco fitness one but wonder if there are enough fitbitters here for a separate group? All it does is track your steps and generates a leaders for the week.
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Moth, I am in for weekly challenge, and I use my phone health app, it only tracks miles or my steps (the number is not accurate though, depending where my phone is, in my pocket or in my armband!) I don’t have activity tracker/ Fitbit but I am keen to buy one.
Yesterday was one of those days, but I managed to drag myself out for 30 minutes slow walking, yes adding 10 minutes punishment for being slow!!! Interesting to know that my total steps was less than normal -20 minutes walking- days.
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I will have walked an hour to and from chemo today which is good. Mostly doing outdoor walking and cubii when I need mindless pedaling as well. No fit bit here.
For cubii users, to get a step count divide the stride total by two. Eg 10000 strides on cubii equal to 5000 step.
Snowdrop, good job on the extra steps.
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Moth, I’m still in the Fitbit group that Z started but I may be the only active one left. I’m totally in if you want to start one or if anyone just wants to be Fitbit friends.
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illimae, can others join that group or is it closed now that she can't add people?
this is me https://www.fitbit.com/user/69TB9G
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Moth, I searched but could not find the old group, maybe it was lost due to inactivity. I friended you.
Here's my Fitbit profile too.
https://www.fitbit.com/user/4CKJGD0
