Can I lift weights after lymph node removal?
Previously, after lymph node removal surgery women have been told
to avoid, vigorous, and repetitive movement
involving the surgical site.
During this time you may have been told you can’t lift more than 10 lbs.
The biggest concern with lifting more than 10 lbs is that it could trigger lymphedema.
Lymphedema is swelling and caused by a build-up of lymph fluid in arm(s) or leg(s), breast, chest and underarm areas or other parts of the body closest to the surgery.
Sometimes it develops quickly, but it can also develop slowly over several months or years.
Since the number of lymph node removed greatly increases risk for lymphedema
There is fear that lifting weights, particularly over 10 lbs could cause lymphedema
But if that were true…
the…
something as simple as rocking a 9-12 month old baby to sleep should be avoided.
Clearly, that is not the case.
But there is some truth to this concern and proper guidance must be warranted.
Yes, you shouldn’t lift more than 10 lbs
SHORTLY after lymph node removal.
Once the incisions are recovered, skin has healed, and you are cleared.
you can now start exercising and slowly progress into lifting weights.
Therefore in this blog you will know
The benefits of lifting weights after lymph nodes removal
How much weight you can lift after lymph node removal
What is the best exercise after lymph node removal
WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF LIFTING WEIGHTS AFTER LYMPH NODES HAVE BEEN REMOVED
It is very common to have fears surrounding how much you should lift after lymph node removal.
Fear of lymphedema and risk of injury is a common concern.
Leading you to take extra care of the trauma side.
Causing lack of movement and activity on your shoulder or legs.
But the most important thing to know is that in the case of lymph nodes removal
There is more risk in LACK of movement, than there is in lifting weights.
Lack of movement increases your risk of:
blood clots (after a hysterectomy)
frozen shoulder
future injuries
constant pain.
lymphedema
The good news!
is that exercise is EXTREMELY beneficial
and even if any of the above has occurred
due to previous lack of exercise
weight lifting can still help.
Previously, doctors advised not to lift more than 10 lbs, avoiding repetitive motions, and strenuous physical activity.
However, a group of breast cancer survivors challenged this notion and joined a dragon boat team.
and a group of researchers found that exercise has been beneficial for patients at any age.
Wether you are a stage I–III breast cancer survivor weight lifting has been shown to help:
Reduce stiffness and tightness around the surgical area
Improves range of motion, flexibility, and shoulder mobility
Increase lymphatic flow and drainage
Reduces risk of lymphedema
Boost body imagine and confidence in your body and wellbeing
Strengthen your body to reduce other cancer treatment side effect
all while toning muscle
increasing strength
building confidence
And reducing stress,
without increasing your risk for lymphedema.
It is amazing how much more your body is capable for lifting weights after lymph node surgery.
We have had online coaching clients achieve incredible feats such as:
hand stand (she grew gymnast and felt cancer took that away from her)
hand stand push ups (she loved cross fit and felt cancer took away her health)
planks (she wanted to start F45)
travel (she was able to visit machu pichu AND climb to the top)
general strength for wellbeing (she wanted to pick up her new born grandkids)
join dragon boat team (she had never exercised but wanted to get started and join a team)
So do not fret
your body is able and capable of more
and the benefits of lifting weights
go beyond the physical.
For starters, it brings peace of mind knowing that by exercising it reduces risk of lymphedema
it boost body image by seeing results such as muscle toning
and reduces stress and other cancer treatment effects.
HOW MUCH WEIGHT CAN I LIFT AFTER LYMPH NODE REMOVAL SURGERY
Can you lift weights after having lymph nodes removed?
“My doctor said I shouldn’t lift more than 10 lbs,”
But then she asked me
“how much are you lifting?”
so I told her,“20 lbs…”
surprisedly she laughed as I showed no signs of lymphedema
and quickly said, “Ok, but no more than 20 lbs”
—64 year old 3x breast cancer survivor
In that moment she knew her doctor was not fully sure how much weight she should lift.
Generally there’s so much information to know about every single cancer treatment
that many oncologist over look general exercise recommendation.
as there are many things your oncologist hasn’t told you
This is to no fault of their own
as it can be due to lack of time, knowledge, and understanding.
After lymph node removal however, there are a couple things to be mindful
1) Right after surgery
it is important to pace yourself, but this is where the advice to not lift more than 10 lbs matters most.
Begin to use the affected arm for light activities such as washing your face and brushing your teeth.
other light housekeeping activities such as sweeping and meal preparation are okay as well okay.
The more you use your arm for daily activities the more likely you will gain full range of motion.
Be mindful that during this time you should avoid:
activity that bounces or jostles the breast
running
jumping
elliptical
rowing
and repetitive and vigorous movements
vacuuming
moving heavy furniture
hard scrubbing
you want to avoid this for 2-4 weeks depending on your surgery and doctors orders.
A mastectomy with 19 lymph nodes removed may require more time to heal than a lumpectomy with 3 nodes removed.
Your body will not feel the same and you may experience a “pull” sensation with certain movements
Thats normal.
DO NOT work through the pulling “sensation” on your own,
if needed, meet with a physical therapist to help with the “pulling” sensation.
2) Once you are cleared.
The sky is the limit
There really is no limit for what you can and cant do.
Currently, there is no evidence that lifting heavy weights
(and I mean heavy) flares lymphedema,
or causes it, even when at risk for lymphedema.
But this also holds true for body weight exercise such as:
push ups
hand stands
and pull ups.
Meaning that even if lymphedema is present there is no current limit to what can and cant be done.
Lifting heaving weights or light weights has not been shown to irritate lymphedema or cause lymphedema flare ups.
Therefore whether you prefer to do 3 light sets of 15-20 reps or 2 heavy sets of 6-8 reps both are safe do to.
The key is to progress properly and slowly.
Keep in mind “heavy is relative to what your body can do” after surgery however your body will have muscular imbalances, weak points, limits in range of motion, and stiffness.
rather slowly give your self time to work on muscular imbalances, improve strength and flexibility.
WHAT EXERCISES CAN I DO AFTER I’VE HAD LYMPH NODES REMOVED
As mentioned above if you don’t use it you lose it.
So proper progression is key.
But the exercises you do right after surgery vs after being cleared will differ.
1) Right after surgery is a time to focus on light stretches and general range of motion exercises.
You can start 2 days after surgery and want focus on repeating the exercises several times a day (2-3x)
Focusing on full ranges of motion (side, front, rear, circular) to get your mobility back.
In addition, as soon as pain seems controlled and you feel comfortable.
this is a great time to start incorporating physical activity back in through some light low impact walking.
Walking during this time a great way to improve your fight off fatigue from surgery and boost energy, reduce nausea, and stress and anxiety.
You want to focus on light 10-15 min walks 2-3 times per day.
And if pain has not subsided focus on doing some diaphragmatic breathing, and relaxation techniques to help to manage pain.
2) Once you are cleared to exercise or return to normal. You can progress with each exercise. But here’s what you need to know.
FREQUENCY: Focus on lifting full body 2-3 days a week or uppers 1-2x a week and lowers 1-2x a week for a total of 4 days per week.
TIME: You should spend 10 mins warming up, 20 mins on the work out, and 5-10 mins on cool down exercises/ stretching. In this order.
A) Warm up: Start by doing 5 mins of general full body warm up.
This should be a brisk walk (trying to reach a SLIGHT sweat)
or you can set the treadmill between 3.2-3.6 mph (this is the average walking speed for most people, anything above will require you to jog).
Then go into doing 5 mins of chest and shoulder mobility exercises. Emphasizing proper motion on the chest wall, shoulders, and arms. This should be done 5-8 reps each repeated twice. Before getting into your work outs.
Focus on rotation:
standing arm swings
shoulder pass throughs
rotator cuff rotation
Focus on the fly:
reverse fly
chest fly - with a big wide stretch
B) Work out: Whether you are doing 3 days of full body or 4 days
splitting up lower and body work outs its important to split up your routine into upper and lower body focused.
Upper body focused days you want to focus on doing free weights first.
Once you can do at least 5 lbs on free weights for arm or shoulder exercises you can then incorporate machines. If you want to also do lower body on that same day stick to machines for lower body.
Safe upper body work outs you can incorporate include:
chest press
shoulder press
lat pull down
bicep curl
triceps pull down
On lower body focused days. Start with machines first and then incorporate free weights or barbells.
the reason being is because free weight or barbells will tire your arms faster after surgery than they will your lower body.
Therefore if the goal is to focus on your legs get a good leg work out first and finish off the work out with some free weights so that your arms are not the limiting factor in your work outs.
Safe lower body work outs you can incorporate include:
leg extension
leg press
hamstring curl
goblet squat
lunges
C) Cool Down/ Stretch: Stiffness, soreness, tightness is common after surgery so taking some time to stretch as a good healthy practice is important.
Each stretch should be held for 10-30 seconds per arm and repeated twice.
Focus on 4 stretches and take time to really see how your body improves.
You should go for a mild stretch not aches, numbness or pain.
The goal is to feel better.
Couple stretches to focus on:
cross arm stretch
door way stretch
child pose
over the head side arm stretch.
INTENSITY: Should be moderate or hard for 8-12 reps, 2-3 sets.
Moderate is defined as being able to do between 8-12 reps and you felt like you worked out your muscle.
Hard is being able to achieve between 8-12 reps but not 1 or 3 more reps than that.
We know this can seem like a lot.
Thats why we designed 101 work outs so that you don’t have to if you want at home and gym work outs already designed for you to get started at home
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Lastly, post-operative fatigue is normal. Chemo fatigue is common, and even radiation can add to the fatigue.
Fatigue, is part of experience unfortunately and some discomfort and pain to go along with it.
The important thing is that you start slow by incorporating light house hold activities early and slowly start by adding weight lifting.
Start light, even if its 2-3 lbs at the start every movement counts to help reduce strain on the muscle.
Remember starting is important, but not the end. Where you end up and how much you improve is up to you :)
Like we said early the sky is the limit. This disease does not define you and YOUR body has the ability to imporve.
You can go build muscle, tone your body, and increase strength by lifting weights, after lymph node removal
