6 Helpful Tips to Stick to Your Exercise Plan
Regular physical activity and exercise routines are instrumental in the continuing health of someone that has overcome cancer. In many cases the body has been weakened by the treatments that were to fight the disease, so it is extremely important that someone counteract that with some form of exercise. In fact, regular physical activity has been linked to extended lives of cancer survivors. One such way to improve a survivor’s quality of life is implementing physical activity into their daily routine. This won’t just benefit your body physically, but will have a positive impact on your emotional and mental self, as well. Below are a few tips to help stick to that exercise regimen.
- Set short term and long term goals. It is good to be working towards an “end goal” or “ultimate goal” when starting out an exercise program, but one must remember that it can take a long time to work up to that. When figuring out what you want to achieve from doing this routine it is important to set milestone markers or short term goals. If your goal is to run five miles or run for a certain amount of time without having to walk, then you certainly don’t start out to run that entire five miles on your first try. Begin with the first mile, working your way up by a half mile or mile after you have been able to achieve that benchmark. This will also help to keep you focused and not become discouraged.
2. Make having fun a focal point of your workouts. Exercise isn’t necessarily the most fun thing to do for most people (at first). In order to keep yourself motivated and enjoy your daily activity make a game out of it. You can do this by challenging yourself to beat the time or distance from the day or week before. Actually playing a game isn’t out of the question, either. Playing basketball or shooting a round of golf (without using a cart) are great ways to stay active while having fun.
3. Along the same lines as having fun with your exercise, it is important to keep things different. By changing up your routine and engaging in different activities your exercise program won’t become dull. This makes it less likely for you to get bored or fed up with the doing the same thing day in and day out (unless you like that kind of routine). If you have never done yoga or Pilates, then give that a try. Keep your activities fresh and you should be more likely to stick with it.
4. In order to stick with your exercise routine it might take more than your own will-power. The support of others, your family and friends is incredibly valuable in your journey through post-cancer life in general. There will be times when it is difficult to muster the energy or ambition to exercise, but the motivation from others may be just what you need to keep going. They were there for you during treatment and they will be there for you through this phase, as well.
5. Keep record of your activity. Make a chart of your progress, when you exercise during the day, what exercises you do and for how long. This simple task will help you organize your days and therefore help you manage your time efficiently so that you will keep enough space open for your workouts. Use stickers if you must, but just track your activity in whatever way you want.
6. Now that you have an exercise chart and are tracking your activity it’s time to make good use of it… make it into a rewards chart. Set rules for your chart and treat yourself to a little fun every time you meet a quota of a certain exercise. Those short term goals of yours that you have set are also good times to recognize your healthy behavior. Have an ice cream cone, go out to dinner with your significant other or go that movie you have been wanting to see. Do something for yourself, because you deserve it.
Whatever you do, however you do it and whenever you can fit it in, just do it. Your health and your life may depend on it. Good luck and get going!
