Well, I wasn't expecting so soon but, I started treatment. My symptoms had reached a point that my oncologist and I decided to pull the trigger and start me on Imbruvica. My hot flashes and lymphadenopathy reached the point that we needed to.
I'm looking to get back into my gym and start back on my weight training and swimming. I'm a veteran and have always tried to maintain a very active lifestyle and exercise. I have found quite a bit of positive research in regards to exercise, but very little of use when it comes to weight training. I know that I will have to start off very easy and listen to objections from my body much more than before. I'm just curious if anyone here has gone back to working out after their diagnosis and especially on Imbruvica treatments. I would love to hear some anecdotal responses. For the curious.. My WBC count has not been insanely high only about four times normal at my highest to date. I am still working fulltime as a single dad. I want to be around for my kiddos and try to stay as active as possible for them.
THANK YOU!
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POKEY1168
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I read them, and thank you! It looks like as long as I'm careful and don't get nuts with it I should be good. I'll try and keep a pretty good log of how it goes and hopefully it can help others too. Thank you again.
Hello POKEY1168. Thank you for serving our nation from a career military Vet's wife.
I never stopped working out while on Ibrutinib. As long as you clear this with your doctor, as each patient is unique in their health profile, it's important to continue some sort of activity while on treatment.
I will share that you if you engage in anything like boxing or wrestling you will have to pause those as you will most likely bruise easily and you want to avoid any risk of internal bleeding. Also, during these COVID-19 times, you will need to check with your doc how they feel about your attending a gym. Even prior to COVID and while on treatment, I always wiped down each machine with wipes and dried them. I also wore workout gloves/crossfit gloves that also cover finger tips and washed after each workout. You want to mitigate germs as you'll be immunocompromised.
Your energy may wane a bit at times. Also - ask your doc how much you should push yourself or not due to due your personal health history and various potential side effects.
As a final note, working out helped me stay in control of something in my life during treatment and was beneficial in many ways including physically and mentally.
I will definitely keep up with progress updates. We measured body fat percentage last night at work and it calculated out to 13-15% on two deferent methods. I have done between 20&25 thousand steps a day for the last few months. It helps restore my energy quite a bit.
Thank you for the advice it helps so much. I worked in surgical oncology for quite a while, but this is completely outside my knowledge base.
I hit the gym since my post, nothing crazy but medium weights and reps. I feel better, however if did add a day to my post workout recovery. My swimming put me in pure heaven. Keep me in the loop with your progress. Virtual workout buddies to the rescue!
Hi, I just completed a 42 hour fast and finished it with a heavy strength training. It went better than I expected,just like in the fed state. Then I ate some meat and 1 banana (it's an exception to the rule that I eat any carb and only happens once a week after a fast) to jump start the anabolic process while my growth hormone levels are still sky high. Next training on Thursday and next fast on Sunday. I give this body plenty of time to recover before I push it to the limit again. 😉
Most of my life I have exercised, the problem has been junks of time when I did not due to circumstances and commitments.
That said, I am on Ibrutinib as a follow up to a multi drug cocktail. I am not sure if it’s my age but I do seem a little prone to injuries. I walk, cycle, row, lift and do some basic yoga to stretch out.
Over the past few years, I have weight trained at home. For me circuit training meets my goals, it’s relatively quick and spreads the load so to speak. I have also found that dumbbell circuits do not seem to aggravate my joints as barbell circuits did.
I am 86. On Imbruvica for CLL since two years. Very good results, almost back to normal CBC. I walk one hour each day on my indoor treadmill, and walk up 15 floors once a day. I lift two ten pound weights twice a day and noticed muscle increase with such little exercise. Muscles and their exercise seem to increase the effectiveness of therapies.
From my husband, the one who actually had CLL: I trained throughout my 2 year treatment with ibrutinib and venetoclax (in a trial). The clinical study Doctor was fully supportive. If anything, it might inadvertently have been a performance enhancing drug. Because of my personal desire to avoid inhaling other people's spewing during my workouts, I kept a mask handy in case someone obviously contagious came to the gym. I did only run the first two weeks waiting for tests to see if my kidneys were at risk from tumor lysis syndrome because the ibrutinib was killing cancer cells so fast.
I set a world record for my age and weight class (60-64, under 198) in the bench press in December 2019. My drug treatment trial was February 2018 through May 2019.
Even though I am now MRD negative and off all CLL drugs, I won't return to the gym until covid-19 is in the rearview mirror. So I am on a break until that happens or I build a home gym.
Warm up, of course. You may find that your hair thickens and your fingernails are more apt to break off funny, so be extra careful changing plates. Those side effects probably vary by person. Also, I had zero afib symptoms, and you should check with your personal physician about that if you do.
Thank you. That’s some great news for me. I’m trying to work out around The ‘Vid. Working nights the way I have been may be a blessing in disguise. I can hit the gym in the slow times of the day.
Having the diagnosis really is a strange motivator. As odd as it sounds, I am probably living a more full life because I don’t want to miss anything now. It’s kind of silly I know, but I’m a single dad with sole custody. And I have so much more to do with my kiddos. And, I checked before starting treatment... I couldn’t find an expiration date on me anywhere!!! Time to live and show my kids the time of their lives and to never give up. 💪🏽😝💪🏽 Thank you again!!!
I had some blood work today, and a quick check with my oncologist. My WBCs have dropped, my lymphocytes are down as well.
I have actually put on a few pounds (yay!) mostly muscle. My Dr told me to lift as I see fit, but to be mindful of my body’s response. I.e. if fatigue is an issue, light work and swimming to get my energy up.
Okay, an update that is well over due. In December I contracted COVID and had about five weeks away from doing much. I took everything nice and slow to help my body recover. I have been back to work and have started my exercising regiment anew. It is taking time to get up and going at the same level that I had been. My area is starting to lift more and more of the restrictions. So swimming should be back on the schedule for me soon. I have been able to maintain about an 11-12% bodyfat through out it all. My muscle gains from the last update were mostly lost, but made my adventure with COVID easier to manage. I am back up too about 5 miles a day when I get out for my hikes. It's not as much as I wanted to be right now, but I'm not quitting.
Thank you all for the comments ! It means more than I know how to express!
pokey1168, I started weightlifting 2 months ago based on book called Body by Science. Twice a week, 5 exercises which don’t take long. I definitely feel better and stronger and recommend for any seniors.
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