Exercise - Working Back to it After or During Treatment

Hi gritgirl



Glad Butch is getting better.



No real exercise had a check up day at the hospital. So all my energy went in stress.

Will try to do better this week.



I forgot I did walk down the dreaded hill.

Mara

The dress sounds pretty Rhody, I think raspberry is a flattering shade, for most skin tones. I am pretty confused just READING about the pathology vs. the oncotype. I really hope they can get things straightened out before the wedding. Honestly, I hear so many strange stories about tumor pathology reports, I can't help but wonder if a tumor, on any given day, could change its characteristics. I mean, why not? It doesn't seem like researchers have a handle on many truths about cancer tumors. And we've been told that cancer recurrences can change hormonal status. It's so confusing and I see that you are at the beginning of your journey with treatment, which makes the unknown worse. My DH just bought a stress ball chair for his home office. I don't think he's doing crunches, although I may suggest it, hee hee. 

Mara, I wish stress burned calories like exercise. 

It's a lovely day here today but I have already jogged/walked 5 miles in the past week, so I'm not doing anything. How about everyone else? 

Hi all

Had a really lazy day today but gritgirl I promise to eat healthy and get moving. Just a bit overwhelmed from the hospital visit does it to me every time.



Tarheel wouldn't it be great if stress equalled calories I would be so slim.



Envy you your furry friends gritgirl give them a hug from me.

Mara

Great news, gritgirl. Whatever you've been doing, keep doing it.





Martha, what's a MUGA scan?





Hope everyone has a lovely, mobile weekend.

But you know, Martha, chemo is YOUR choice. And even the test is. That's just the way I look at it, as a means of saying, you DO have control over some things here. I haven't had chemo or a MUGA, but I'm guessing gritgirl has had one.

All this heart stuff ... it seems to be the one organ that doesn't get cancer, but it suffers so much from the treatment. Hoping y'all have healthy hearts for a long time. And keep sharing, it certainly helps my fear level to be able to share and listen. 

I don't crave junk much either. I definitely have cravings, usually lasting about 6 weeks. I do believe my body is telling me what it needs. Lately it's been seafood. Sometimes it's leafy greens. 

My DH is training for the NY marathon, so it's definitely influencing my motivation to exercise. I wish that healthy eating and exercise were all it took to combat cancer, but at least it's making us feel better. 

I only got as far as putting the exercise clothes on today, lol!  Oh well, I have been running aorund the house cleaning and organizing and then went grocery shopping - in my exercise clothes, so I am counting it!

Rhody - I posted on the other thread concerning your pathology and Oncotype issue.  On the MUGA issue, they are a pretty standard test (I had echocardiograms) to check ejection fraction.  Sometimes it can take a few weeks to schedule one of these tests so your onc may be having you do it in case you do need to begin chemo you will not be delayed.  There is a window of opportunity for maximum efficacy with chemo.  With the confusion regarding your receptors, etc. and waiting for the Oncotype results your onc may trying to get your "ducks in a row" so to speak.

You can see by my sig line that my path was crooked as well, I know it is scary and frustrating- I did not start chemo until 14 weeks after surgery because I kept having more surgery!  That is why I am thinking your doc wants the MUGA done - so you are not delayed further if you do need chemo.  It is a routine test, so don't worry too much about it - as I said I had echos, not MUGAS, but I have had 5 or 6 over the course of treatment, and anyone on Herceptin long term, like gritgirl, has them periodically to check EF.  Since you are Her2-, I think they just want to get a baseline in case you need Adriamycin.  It is actually a good thing, not all docs check, so your is being thorough and appropriate.

So I got the call from MO today......turns out when tumors look similar they only test one. The larger tumor was ER+/PR+, the smaller was in fact triple negative. I guess the good news is that the two lymph nodes that were positive were also ER+/PR+. She tells me that the triple negative is aggressive.....so we will go to see her tomorrow to start the plan. 4 cycles of Adriamycin and Cytoxan then 12 weeks of Taxol. I go for the MUGA scan on Thursday.

I'm sure that everything will be fine, but I must admit that I am scared!

Martha

rhody - I can only speak personally, but I have found through this process the anticipation of either surgery or chemo was worse than the actual experience.  They are very good these days at mitigating side effects from chemo drugs and it sounds like your doc is already on the ball requesting a MUGA prior to giving you Adriamycin - as I said above, not all do that, so I would take that as a positive sign.  I found a great deal of support and sisterhood from my chemo group, I recommend finding the Aug or Sept 2013 ladies - we were all going through the same stuff at the same time.  I can advise you a bit on the Taxol part - I had Taxotere, but a number of the potential SE are the same, just let me know.  I think there are also some AC-T threads that may have specific advice.  You can get through this, but I know it is scary.

Rhody- sorry you have to go through this but glad to hear you are getting a plan in place. Just keep thinking of your favorite RI beach and imagine yourself in that "happy place" if the going gets rough.

Rhody, I'm glad you got it straightened out finally.   It's good you had the Oncotype to find the difference, or maybe you wouldn't have gotten the full treatment you needed.  I also recommend getting in touch with the chemo group starting when you do as it helps so much to trudge through with others. 

Well my exercise has been sporadic the last few days, even though this is my "good" week before my next treatment.  I did go shopping Saturday.  I think we count that, right?  Sunday I only walked about 10 minutes.  Yesterday I tried to weed my flower bed and really pooped out quickly.  It's hot and humid and I didn't sleep well the night before so maybe that didn't help.  

So we saw MO today. Plan is first chemo date is 9/6, the day after we get back from my daughter's wedding. She does not want to wait another week since it will have been 12 weeks since my surgery. Time to start the new chapter....hard to believe that 12 weeks ago we thought it was just DCIS........Now they are telling me that in one of the films they could see this other tumor NEXT to where the needle went in for the original biopsy. Pretty scary, it could have been missed completely. But I keep telling myself that there is too much karma or serendipity going on tha so many things should have been missed but were caught. Getting my head readjusted thanks to all of your encouragement.

Newchallenges, what part of Rhode Island are you from? We lived in Woonsocket when we were first married, and later lived in Greenville. My hubby went to URI.....we now go to Narragansett every year on vacation. Always love it~

Martha

Newchallenges, I'm just amazed that you can do 3 miles so soon after a mastectomy and during your chemo. (Applause!!!) There's no comparing the old you and new you when it comes to fitness. Everything we do is a positive step in the right direction. I can't run 3 miles at all, but happy to run 1-2 miles then walk a mile. What's your pace? I've found keeping records helps me celebrate little victories and notice when I'm feeling weaker. (I have pleural effusions and lung tumors, so breathing is hard for me). I use the Nike Running app on my iPhone. I count walking & running in my total. I keep track of my routes, pace per mile and total distance. I'm in the foothills of NC, so there can be a big difference in a 3-mile run, depending on steepness of hills.



Martha, I am going to applaud you every step of the way on your journey. You won't be alone. You know we are all here. I am glad you can wait until after the wedding to start chemo.



Claire, that hiking/biking trip sounds wonderful! Your picture alone tells me so much about how you approach life. I'm working on my gratitude as well. This wasn't the life I expected but I have so much to love about my life.