Horsham-based female personal trainer, Becky, is a qualified cancer specialist, working with those who are on cancer treatment, recovering from it, and living beyond cancer. Here, she shares her thoughts on the recent BBC documentary, “Strictly Amy: Cancer and Me”… Before I go any further, I’d like to acknowledge how challenging these kinds of programmes …
Category archives: Cancer exercise
Royal Marsden Exercise Oncology Study Day 2024
Horsham-based female personal trainer, Becky, is a cancer exercise specialist, and recently attended an exercise oncology study at London’s Royal Marsden hospital. Here, she shares her thoughts on the experience… Exercise oncology is a rapidly expanding field of work and study, which is operated by a huge range of professionals, from academics and exercise physiologists …
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Personal training for young adults with cancer
Horsham-based female personal trainer, Becky, is a cancer exercise specialist. Having been through cancer in her early 30s, she feels particularly strongly about helping younger adult patients and survivors. Here, she explains further… There’s some debate as to what constitutes an “AYA” (adolescent or young adult) cancer patient, but common wisdom lands in the neighbourhood …
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Cancer survivor’s guilt: how to handle it
At a Christmas party, I had a conversation about cancer survivor’s guilt. I know, festive. I was sat next to someone who’s been through cancer treatment, we already knew this about each other. And among the buzz of a raucous party, we had a quiet and important chat. This person had recently struggled with their …
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How to find a cancer exercise specialist
Something that still tends to not be discussed when you receive a cancer diagnosis is exercise. Fortunately, there’s an increasing amount of help at hand in the community. Here, cancer exercise specialist, Becky, who’s based in Horsham, West Sussex, shares information on how to find support on your cancer journey… When I was diagnosed with …
Breast Cancer Awareness Month: allyship over slactivism
October has snuck up on me, and that’s a privilege. In the UK, this is when Breast Cancer Awareness Month takes place annually, and the backlash has steadily built year on year. However, big brands often still aren’t paying attention to this fact (top tip: when something like this happens, it’s because money is being …
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Strength in the Face of Adversity: How Fitness Empowered My Recovery from a Desmoid Tumor
In 2018, my life took an unexpected turn when I was diagnosed with a Desmoid tumour – as September is Desmoid Tumor Awareness Month, it feels like the right time to discuss this issue. For those unfamiliar with the term, a Desmoid tumour, also known as aggressive fibromatosis, is a rare type of cancer, forming …
Two years as a cancer exercise specialist: what I’ve learned
It seems surreal that it’s two years since I spent many hours on Zoom, lots more reading, and several panicking about exams and assessments. Receiving my cancer exercise specialist certification was the realisation of a goal set only a year previously, with no personal training expertise to my name. So I think a bit of …
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Learning from a scare
Last week, I shared that I’ve recently been through the whirlpool of a potential tumour recurrence. Thankfully, there was nothing to be found and I was cleared again – see last week’s post for details. The experience taught me some valuable lessons, and I wanted to share them in case they can be of benefit …
Living through a scare: the cancer survivor nightmare of possible recurrence
I survived a benign and aggressive sarcoma. I had a Desmoid tumour (and a LOT of muscle) surgically removed in October 2018, and whilst I didn’t require further treatment, my medical team continued to monitor me until November 2021. “I can do nothing more for you,” my surgeon said that day. “If you are ever …
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