Perpheral neuropathy can occur during or after treatment for cancer. The damaged nerves can cause numbness and pain, making exercise challenging --there can be issues with balance amd coordination. If the symptoms are severe, it may be wise to consult with your oncology team to detemine if a referral to a physical therapist would be your first step in becoming more active. The good news, research is finding that exercise can help to reduce pain and increase range of motion.
If you are experiencing balance problems cardiovascular exercise on a stationary bike may be a better idea than walking outside on uneven surfaces. You may want to avoid
high-impact, repetitive exercises, such as jogging or step aerobics, as those activities could lead to fractures in the feet. There may be some challenges in a resistance program due to pain from holding weights. Remember, you don't want to have a "white knuckle" grip on the weights, just hold them firmly.
The recommendatons for exercise are 30 minutes a day, 3-5 days a week for your aerobic
component, and 2 days a week of resistance exercise. You will want at least one exercise for each major muscle group doing 2 sets of 10-15 repetitions. Rest 24 hours before repeating your resistance workout.
Here are some exercise suggestions for back and biceps; chest, triceps, legs; and, core and stretches using a resistance band. Keep in mind, if you have a port, catheter, or PICC line do not do resistance work for that muscle. For example, if the port is in the chest, eliminate the chest work (chest fly found on the upper body page). Of course, you can do the exercise on the side not affected by the port.