Read Online 100 Perks of Having Cancer: Plus 100 Health Tips for Surviving It by Florence Strang - Free Book Online

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    point in your treatment and recovery when you will be able to increase your
    intensity. Wait for it. If you’re not sure what you should be doing, get some
    help either from a resource in your doctor’s office or from a certified per-
    sonal trainer that has had experience with cancer patients.
    Make It Enjoyable
    There are many activities to choose from when looking at starting an exercise
    program. You don’t have to purchase fancy equipment or buy expensive
    clothes. Find something you like, and go with it. You can also mix it up for
    variety—biking one day, walking the next. Try ice-skating, rollerblading, or
    roller-skating at a roller rink for some serious fun. Yoga is also a great option,
    especially when recovering from surgery or illness.
    Think of Your Exercise as Part of Your Treatment
    Just like your medication or your follow-up doctor visits, exercise plays a
    big role in reducing your risk of declining health or future reoccurrence.
    Would you skip taking your medication because you just didn’t have the
    time?
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    100 Perks of Having Cancer
    Keep a Chart
    Charts help you see your progress. Just like kids who need to see gold stars
    on their behavior charts, adults need this, too, especially since you won’t
    see the effects of your hard work right away. If you are starting an exercise
    program to lose weight, weigh yourself weekly, not daily.
    And remember that after you have about six weeks of exer-
    Exercise is the one
    cise behind you, you will start trading fat for muscle. Mus-
    common factor in people
    cle weighs more than fat. This means you can be getting
    living longer, healthier,
    fit and losing fat and inches, but you may not see it on
    and happier and is a
    the scale. When I first started working out, I lost 7 inches
    proven risk-reducer when
    total on my body. I looked and felt better and my clothes
    it comes to cancer and
    fit better, but I didn’t lose ONE POUND! If I had only
    other major illnesses like
    looked at the scale, I would have thought I was failing!
    heart disease and diabetes.
    There are many great resources for exercise. If you
    belong to a gym or fitness center, see if you can schedule several sessions
    with a certified personal trainer to get you started. Certified personal trainers
    have gone to school or have taken courses and have passed a test that make
    them experts in designing a safe exercise program specific to your needs.
    Some trainers will even come to your home if you don’t have access to one
    at a gym. Just make sure they are certified and they have experience with
    whatever you happen to be going through, either chemo or surgery.
    Visit these sites for more information on how to get started:
    ● Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Physical Activity
    (www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity)
    ● President’s Council on Fitness Sports & Nutrition (www.fitness.gov)
    ● Health Canada (www.hc-sc.gc.ca)
    With any exercise program, you should always check with your doctor
    before starting one, especially if you are over forty years old or have a major
    illness, as you could have some underlying issue that might make certain
    types of exercise unhealthy for you.
    When you get the green light to exercise, however you choose to do it,
    get started and don’t ever stop!

    Perk #8
    I Didn’t Have to Wax
    My Upper Lip
    I was mortified when, just prior to starting chemo, my aesthetician sug-
    gested that I should get my upper lip waxed. Me? With facial hair?
    Well, she is the expert. I was haunted by thoughts of how it would
    grow back. Would it be all prickly and manly? Would I look like a
    fuzzy peach? My fears were unfounded, however, because once my
    chemo started, my upper lip remained as smooth as a baby’s bottom,
    and my eyebrows looked perfectly groomed for months afterward (until
    they eventually just disappeared all together!).
    For that “just out of the salon” look that lasts for months,
    have your waxings done before you start chemo.
    HEALTH TIP