The Link Between Weight Loss and Cancer

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I spent half of my life overweight and obese.  I chose a path to get healthier and lose weight so that my future would be longer, more enjoyable and in general better.  Yet here I am, close to what I weighed in high school and I might have cancer.

I've been struggling with how to motivate myself to get back to the gym.  The problem is that I don't sleep well and getting up at 4:30am to head to the gym seems unreasonable.  The truth is that intellectually I know that when I exercise for 45-60 minutes a day, my day is better overall.  I eat less, I drink more water, I'm more energized and I sleep better.  I just need something to push me out of the cycle that I'm in, get me over the week long adjustment period to waking up early and do it.

I started reading about being a previvor, breast cancer, genetic testing, reconstruction...  I did it so that I was more knowledgeable and felt more in control of my life.  But then I started reading some statistics and some studies and I found my motivation.

Among women with early-stage breast cancer, some research has found that obese women have an increased breast cancer mortality risk as high as 33% compared to non-obese women.  Force Newsletter
 

Now I knew that being overweight was a risk factor for cancer.  And it still took me years to do anything about it, but I did.  Ironic that once I did lose weight, I had this mammogram and these cells.  Could it have been in my breast longer and because they were more full and dense, just not seen?  Who knows.  And while I can't change the past, I can change the future. 

Reading The Breast Reconstruction Guidebook by Kathy Steligo I've come across several references about weight and exercise.  Mostly she talks about studies and research that shows that women who are in better health and better shape come through the other side of their surgery with better outcomes.  Having less fat makes surgery easier.  Having better muscle tone leads to easier recovery.  Eating right and drinking water promotes good recovery. 

So what more motivation do I need?  Honestly, I need Pete to help me be accountable the first week.  To help me get out of bed at 4:30 and get to the gym.  To remind me that I need to do this. 

I also need to start posting about what I'm doing.  To be accountable to myself and make it public.  So if you don't see my stats at the top of the post, call me on it!

Have you read about Angelina Jolie ?  Sometimes I think the universe is talking to me and this is one of those times.