It’s ironic. My two main tenets of cancer recovery seem to be opposite in intent. Do everything that you can to recover from cancer well, and don’t do too much of anything, including exercise. Let’s look closer at this.

I believe that a mindset of “I will do everything I can to beat cancer” is crucial. I wanted to rally; I wanted to show cancer that I was serious about my recovery. Practically speaking, I wanted to use every reasonable remedy or approach that was available.

For me, my tools included: routine acupuncture, an herbalist’s consult, music therapy, guided meditation, yoga, and a nutritionist’s guidance.

These were some of my tools. I took all those tools out of the toolbox to fight cancer. I wanted to use all the tools that made sense to me. I got expert advice where I could, and I was always very careful to follow my doctor’s advice. Anything additional had to fit with my doctor’s advice.

For me, my “do everything” approach meant that I would have no regrets later if my cancer came back. I knew that I was doing the best that I could to fight cancer.

On the opposite side, my goals included “don’t do too much” of any one thing, including exercise. Normally, as an athletic person, I liked to tire myself out sometimes with long runs or events that I do. However, there’s a time to push yourself and a time to respect your limits. Being in cancer treatment is not the time to test your limits with exercise volume or intensity.

The simple exercise guidance that I used was: Don’t push myself to the point where I’m drawing from my reserves or exhausting myself.

So, take it easy! Low to moderate levels of exercise are super helpful. Enjoy! And be good to yourself.