How long does it take to regain energy after chemo?
The general rule of thumb for recovery after chemo is that it takes about two months of recovery time for every one month of treatment before your energy returns to normal.
Many of our online coaching clients find that:
1) By the 6-month mark, their energy increases 5-fold,
2) They return to their pre-cancer weight in about a year
However, this is not always the norm.
Research shows that between 23% - 49% of adult cancer survivors of:
cervical
lower gastrointestinal
breast
lymphoma
colorectal
prostate
and mixed cancers
Still experience constant levels of fatigue even 5 -15 years after diagnosis.
Unfortunately, most cancer survivors believe that fatigue is
“just something you have to deal with.”
But that’s just not the case.
There is a lot you can do to get your energy back, but you have to understand:
What factors influence cancer fatigue
How long it takes to get your stamina back after chemo
How to speed up the process to get your energy back after cancer treatment.
What factors delay recovery from cancer fatigue after diagnosis?
How long the process takes greatly depends on your:
age
cancer treatment
fitness level
Unfortunately, cancer fatigue affects those who are young more than the elderly.
1/4 survivors of adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancers feel chronically fatigued 5-30 years after diagnosis.
In addition to age, the type of cancer treatment you went through also plays a role.
Research shows that 56% of breast cancer survivors receiving aromatase inhibitors e.g.
Anastrozole (Arimidex)
Exemestane (Aromasin)
Letrozole (Femara)
report moderate-to-severe fatigue up to12 months after diagnosis.
So, the combination of treatment you are under can either increase or decrease how long it takes to get your stamina back.
Fatigue affects up to 90% of cancer survivors, and while your age and the required cancer treatment is not something you can control, your fitness level is something you can control.
Fitness helps improve your stamina after chemo
Your fitness level plays a significant role in bringing your stamina back after chemo.
The truth is: if you wait for your body to “passively” or “naturally” get energy back, you might be waiting a long time.
There’s between a 21% and 52% chance you may still be experiencing severe fatigue up to 3 years after being diagnosed.
“I am nearly 1.5 years out of treatment now, and I still feel awful. I’ve been wondering if it’s normal to still feel so weak, sick, and fatigued”
Much of cancer fatigue is either directly or indirectly related to the toxins in the body, which increase inflammation.
You can decrease the inflammation your body experiences by increasing your fitness daily.
Cancer survivors who can increase their fitness through exercise significantly lower fatigue, decrease risk of cancer spread, and reduce risk of a second cancer, heart disease, and diabetes,
This is not a quick fix.
But, if you are willing to fight through the tough parts and muster up the energy to get moving, you will be a completely new person in a matter of 6 months.
How to improve your fitness to increase stamina after chemo
The specific recommendations for cancer survivors is to reach either 150 mins of moderate intensity cardio a week OR 75 mins of high intensity cardio a week.
Moderate-intensity exercise should make you breathe heavy, but not so heavy ]that you can’t carry on a conversation.
150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise can be broken down to 22 minutes per day, 7 days a week, or 30 minutes of exercise 5 days a week.
High-intensity exercise, on the other hand, is where you can answer a question during exercise with with only 1-2 words.
The exercise, in this case, would be so high you couldn’t hold a conversation.
Generally, the more intense the exercise, the less time you need to exercise. So, instead of 150 minutes, your body would only require 75 minutes of high intensity each week.
This can be broken down to 15 minutes per day 5 days per week or 3 days of 25 mins workouts.
The best is to do a mixture of both, but the most important thing is to choose one and be consistent with it.
The more consistent you are with it, the more benefits you will see, and the faster results you will get.
Will I ever feel normal again?
Chemo leaves you drained, sick, weak, and fatigued.
The best thing for you to do is give yourself time to recover and follow the right steps to rejuvenate your body by getting rest, improving your nutrition, and staying active.
If you wait for cancer fatigue “naturally” go away, you will find yourself like the majority of cancer survivors—fighting fatigue for many years to come.
But, if you slowly implement the right practices, you will be able to properly heal, recover, and proceed mentally, physically, and emotionally, cancer free.
Most chemotherapy side effects go away in time, but some can linger.
This is not to say that you will be fully healed from fatigue, but you could greatly reduce it.
All who go through chemo eventually feel somewhat back to normal, but how long that process will take you is only up to you. The process takes time and effort.
There is no magic pill for recovery after chemo, but many of our online coaching clients have found that the more consistent they are, the more results they see.
There is no need to rush the process. Stay consistent focus on your nutrition, getting rest, and staying active and you too can speed up your recovery.
For an extensive guide on how to reduce fatigue check out: How Do You Get Rid Of Chemo Fatigue.
Grab your free fat-loss guide
If you don’t know where to get started with exercise and nutrition, check out our free fat-loss and exercise guide.
It comes equipped with 101 workouts, along with a breakdown of the number of daily steps, protein, and calories you need to get started on a sustainable fat-loss and strength-building journey.
Grab yours today.
