Is exercise with ADT the Secret Sauce?

Exercise is an essential element of using ADT. You really need to exercise with the equivalent of weights and aerobic exercises. There are a lot of seminars on exercise for prostate cancer patients. After being on Lupron For seven years and Orgovyx for a year my testosterone is low. I walk about a mile on a track twice a day and go to the gym three days a week to do weight training. I thought that was sufficient then some review I heard said that if you’re over 65 you should go to the gym four times a week. Thanks a lot!!! I do benefit from all this exercise because I don’t have the fatigue problem. I’ll work hard in the gym and come home and walk out to the track.

During the ancan.com advanced prostate cancer weekly meetings Exercise is a constant topic. When people mention fatigue as a problem, multiple people will comment about the need for exercise

I have found exercise the cure for fatigue. I find the push away the hardest part. The push away from the table, the easy chair and the house. Always rewarded when I do and with favorable weather around the corner, I will be busy getting after it. My body is my medical study. NO real local support groups in my area that I am aware of. All of you on this Mayo site are it.

Biking definitely helped me a lot. Like you, I got an e-bike because I was afraid of fatigue meaning I'd be unable to make it home but for the most part I ride with pedal assist off and only use it when I want to go for much longer rides. It's also saved me from being hit by cars a couple times--I just go full throttle and it gives me a quick burst of speed.

I also find swimming a really good exercise that makes my entire body feel good.

I lift weights every other day which means 3x a week one week and 4x a week the next. I don't like it but I don't mind it either.

I find it most difficult to push out of that easy chair or similar to go and exercise. I try to make an extra effort to least get in some extra steps by walking daily. I tire easily. I used to be so active and had some decent stamina. But not now. I also got some 5 lb weights but can't get into rhythm of using them. Maybe as you guys are implying, I need to make more of a mental change to exercise.

I'm 84, so a lot of exercise and weights etc., brings me lingering arm and leg muscle pain due to my age and a slow recovery of muscle micro-tissue repair. I do engage in a very active hour at tennis each week after popping a Tylenol. I actually get a runner's high out of that activity which is cool. I'm looking forward to playing golf again soon and in the past I've avoided using a cart when possible (depending on the course). Biking I have done as well.
'I've got to keep on movin' from Matthew Wilder's song, 'Break My Stride' is a rhythmic upbeat motivator tune for me. In some weird way ADT has led me to a better diet, exercise plan, etc., so maybe from a disagreeable, albeit necessary, therapy comes some good. P-cancer will NOT break my stride if I can help it.

It is all mental for me. I have to ask myself what's the payoff? The answer is I actually feel better, sleep better and keep my weight in check. My next activity will be weightlifting. Used to love to lift now I need to go to protect the mass I have left and have been procrastinating. Responding to you got me motivated to go for a ride. It works!

Yes, exercise makes a huge difference for minimising side effects on ADT. My one caution is that overdoing it (with strenuous exercise) can send me off a fatigue cliff for a few days — much more so than before I have cancer — so for me, at least, it's a case of slow and steady wins the race. You don't need to run a marathon or bench press your weight. Just stay active, work out regularly with light weights and high reps, go for long walks, etc. YMMV.

That has also been my experience. I use a chest strap heart rate monitor as a throttle to keep me in the aerobic range and out of higher ranges. I can so relate to the "fatigue cliff". Wounds me for 2 or 3 days, so now avoid it. Great point!

Yes to resistance training, at least for me.

I had a funny encounter with a future neighbor. I've decided to go ahead and spend my life savings building a summer home in the woods (Cancer be damned!). So a future neighbor stopped by, while I was resting on the tailgate of my pickup. We chatted for awhile, and then he glanced down at my large pickaxe, and said "Oh my God! I'm glad I have power equipment!"

I tried to explain to him that I enjoy widening my driveway with the pickaxe because I need to do lots of exercise to counteract the effects of an anti-cancer drug I'm on.

He just looked at me like I was from another planet.

I should add that the local "soil" is about 90% rock with a bit of clay between the rocks. It's a great workout!

I hear you. A snowblower wouldn't really work in my urban neighbourhood (narrow laneways between houses, etc), but I wouldn't buy one even if it would, because pushing the snow all the way around to the back fence gives me a great natural workout every winter.