How to Battle the Cancer Bulge

By Michele Meyer; From Beyond Fall/Winter 2006

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Tailor a Workout to Fit You

Consult a physical therapist and tailor workouts to changes in your body. For example, a TRAM flap breast reconstruction will decrease core body strength due to the absence of abdominal muscle, says Carolyn M. Kaelin, PhD, MPH, author of Living Through Breast Cancer (McGraw-Hill, 2005). Likewise, reconstruction using the back latissimus muscle affects shoulder range of motion, she says. To help guide women, Kaelin created a Breast Cancer Survivor's Guide to Fitness DVD with Reebok master trainers Josie Gardiner and Joy Prouty. Profits go to the Quality of Life fund at Brigham and Women's Hospital, which supports educational outreach for breast cancer survivors. Kaelin's latest book, The B.C. Survivor's Fitness Survival Plan (McGraw-Hill, fall 2006), also offers custom-tailored exercises for rehabilitation after surgery and chemotherapy.