Skip to main content
Submitted by PatientsEngage on 18 October 2020

Here are 3 inspirational stories from breast cancer survivors who developed their own regimen to develop and regain fitness after breast cancer diagnosis and surgery

Pragna Shah 

In her 60s, first diagnosed in 2013, radical mastectomy soon after. Pragna was particular about fitness even well before her diagnosis. She had an active exercise routine of at least 1 hour daily, involving any of stretching, aerobic dancing and yoga . The diagnosis was therefore quite devastating and tough to accept as to why someone so fitness conscious could still get breast cancer. Luckily her son, who is based in the US, would motivate her with stories of women in the US who ran marathons after breast cancer surgery and spur her to re-start her fitness regimen. This helped Pragna get motivated into renewing her fitness. She took help from professional trainer in her quest to run marathons, with a few key learnings

  • Start small, with walks
  • Work on lower body strength, climb stairs, squats, lunges
  • Maintain proper posture while running to avoid heel pain etc
  • Continue yoga, recitation , pranayama 
  • Most importantly, to enjoy the process of fitness and Live for Today

Asha Rajini

In her 60s, first diagnosed in 2007, radical mastectomy soon after
Also has diabetes

Asha didn’t start exercising soon after the surgery, but did go back to work immediately and maintained her work routine (she was a Professor of Veterinary Science) which also involved climbing stairs to reach her office. She had grown up in Ooty and had been used to running the hills then. But she again started running when she was 61, after her surgery. Started slow, and made sure she had professional assistance to ensure the correct running stance. Her diabetes would result in fatigue which she soon realized was due to lowering of sugar during running. She adapted to this by taking some gels etc during her run to maintain sugar levels. The distance was increased over time as she learnt to maintain the correct posture while running and manage sugar levels. Weight training started more than a year after surgery, again started small 

Shilpa Aneja

In her 30s, mastectomy in April 2017

Shilpa used to be an active gym goer well before her diagnosis, and used to do weights regularly. After the birth of her child she started weight training again. After the surgery, she waited for 4-5 months before initially starting with yoga. She started going to the gym shortly thereafter, but started with small weights of 2.5 kg or the minimum weights in a particular machine, before slowly increasing the level. She continued yoga also to increase stamina along with weight training. With regular activity she has now almost regained her earlier strength levels.

Each of the 3 remarkable women followed very different routes to getting fit again after breast cancer, but a few common threads emerge 

  • Stay active, start with walks, eat healthy
  • Do whatever makes you happy – could even be dancing to fast music
  • Start small, Listen to your body and adjust your activity level
  • Ensure you have professional help 
  • Choose your hobby that makes you move
  • Be positive 
  • Getting fit again should be a purpose driven goal
     
Condition