Building up to your previous activities
When you leave hospital, you may not be feeling as fit and well as you were before your surgery.
Aim to slowly and gradually build back up to your previous activities. If you are unsure if you are well enough to exercise, or worried about it affecting your recovery, talk to your doctor or physiotherapist about the type and amount of activity suitable for you.
Additionally, if you have any concerns about your recovery, speak to your healthcare team as they may help direct you to available rehabilitation services at your hospital or local community.
These steps may help you reach your activity goals
Step 1
Set a goal that you want to achieve with your activities. Make sure your goal is small, achievable, and for a specific amount of time so that you know when you have achieved it. For example: Walking the dog for 20 minutes, 4 days per week.
Step 2
Write down the amount of time, distance, or number of times that you can currently do the activity without a pain or fatigue flare-up. For example, I can currently walk the dog for 5 minutes, 4 times a week.
Step 3
Gradually build up your physical activity over time, by increasing your time/distance/repetitions by a small amount each week. Monitor your progress using a diary.
Tips for pacing
- Add in rest periods
- Build up slowly. Do not do more activity than you have planned, even on a good day
- If you have a bad day, try to keep to your plan but be kind to yourself
- If your pain or fatigue flares up, go back one level and pace back up again
- Reward yourself when you achieve small steps or goals.
Managing your fatigue
Now that your surgery is over you may think you should be full of energy. But often this is not the case. If you were unable to be active during treatment or had a long hospital stay, you may have lost some muscle strength and fitness. This could make your fatigue worse. Many people say that fatigue has a big impact on their quality of life in the first year after treatment.
Getting enough of the right amount of sleep for you is also important to managing fatigue. If you are not sleeping as well as you would like, speak with your cancer team to get some tips.