This episode is a little different than the others.
Our guest today is Alaina Newell, and she's a Physical Therapist for Oncology Rehab here in Denver.
So we're not only talking about fitness in this episode, we're talking about cancer.
This hits home for me as I'm sure it will many of you.
If you read the about page, you know that my wife had ovarian cancer.
The sad truth is, for now, that many of us will get cancer or have someone close to us get cancer.
Cancer is scary and an awful experience to say the least.
But it's people like Alaina who are helping people survive cancer, maintain some sort of normalcy, and thrive long after the treatments are behind them.
Alaina is involved from the very beginning of diagnosis to recovery years down the road.
As she says, it's never too early to start rehab in Oncology.
Alaina shares how her experiences have shaped the way she approaches rehab with her clients.
"When I look at the timeframes for recovering from surgeries, I have a much bigger perspective. Slow it down, step by step, day by day."
"We're going to have life-obstacles, but that doesn't mean that we can't go back to the things we love. We may just have to do it in a different way than we did before."
Some suggestions for anyone going through cancer:
Stay active. It's a very emotional time when a lot of people want to close in. You need to move around.
For an average patient going through treatment, Alaina recommends cardiovascular exercise two to three times per week.
This should be at a low level where you're able to have a conversation while walking or on a scale of zero to ten, it should be about a three.
This needs to be consistent through treatment. Even on the days when you think you can't get out of bed, get up and walk around the house for ten minutes.
A lot of people going through chemotherapy experience chemo induced peripheral neuropathy.
This is a numbness and tingling in the hands and feet which can affect balance.
Movement, even moving your hands and feet during treatment, helps with this a lot.
Alaina sees that women who knit tend to see benefits from that.
During this process it's hard to eat and it's hard to eat the foods that provide you the most nourishment.
But keeping up with your nutrition will help you recover more quickly.
So how do we avoid cancer?
Alaina says to reduce inflammation and stress as much as possible.
Avoid processed foods and give your body and mind a chance to recover.
Oncology Rehab is now partnering with Akasha Mind-Body Wellness to offer monthly meditation classes. Classes include instruction on various meditation techniques, followed by time to meditate using the technique learned that night.
Studies show the effectiveness of meditation in reducing stress, blood pressure, anxiety and depression, while increasing immune function, feelings of well-being, and pain relief. It is also effective in improving clinical conditions of cancer treatment symptoms, chronic pain, PTSD, and insomnia.
Takeaways and Resources mentioned:
Rehab in Oncology is never too early or too late to start. If you're noticing any impairments during your treatments or following, reach out to Alaina, [email protected] and Oncology rehab and on Facebook.
American Cancer Society, First Descents, Dr. William Li and eattobeat.org
Upcoming events and giveaways:
Crossfit Roots in Boulder will be doing a Challenge Chalk Talk Presentation with Inside Tracker covering background, challenge structure and tracking biomarkers on Wednesday, April 13th at 6:30 am, 12:30 pm or 6:00pm.
Kleen City is back!
KLEEN 3 Sunrise Yoga, Dance & Wellness Celebration at Aveda Institute Denver, Thursday April 21st at 6:00 am.
The Feed out of Boulder has partnered with Backpa...
