Being gracious about the evolution of movement through our healing is a mindset shift and practice.  What we “used to” be able to do can’t be the bar we set for comparison or judgement forever.  Things change, our bodies change, and our needs change – whether from cancer, or as we age or when we are in menopause. In today’s episode, Dina and Maggie share the shifts and adaptations they went through with movement and exercise as well as their thoughts and judgements about all of it… before cancer, during their treatments and currently.

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About the Guest: 

Marla Ulstad from LoveME Healing and co-collaborator on the Healing Inside & Out podcast team, joins in the conversation today on how she journals to heal… utilizing journaling to process her own personal life challenges and opportunities.  Healing and journaling are not just for those with breast cancer – we are all healing from something

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About the Hosts:

Dina Legland is a Certified Life and Wellness Coach who uses her personal and professional experience to support clients in remission to conquer fears to achieve a life filled with joy, freedom, and inner peace. As the founder of Wellness Warriors for Life, LLC, Registered Nurse & EMT for over 30 years, Dina spent her life caring for others.

As The Inner Warrior Coach and Cancer Survivor Dina says, “Cancer Saved My Life and My Fears Almost Killed Me!”

Her Mission is to share her experiences, wisdom, tools, strategies, and humor to conquer uncontrollable fears and to seek inner wellness with freedom guilt-free.

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Maggie Judge is an energetic, passionate explorer of healing; mind, body and spirit. Her career was focused on helping teams innovate and navigate business problems with tools and support. A Breast Cancer diagnosis empowered her to tap into that previous experience and create tools that she needed to help her navigate her unpredictable, challenging journey. She founded LoveME Healing as a way to share her tools with others. Maggie says "My cancer diagnosis was devastating, but the healing journey has been transformational."

Her mission is to help others in breast cancer by sharing her experience, insights, tools and community to heal.

https://www.lovemehealing.org/

https://www.instagram.com/loveme_healing/

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I am strong, I am healthy. What if we shift our mindset around the physical, and what we used to do? Everything counts when we consider the healing power of movement. Welcome back to heal inside and out. I'm excited about this episode. This is something that I love to talk about. And it's all about the healing power of movement, which goes way beyond the physical. There's, there's an emotional and mental benefit to, you know, movement. And it allows us to release and let go of our emotions, some of our anxiety, and even our stress. And we there's a way to move through our emotions too. And I really want to discuss what movement may have looked like before breast cancer, during breast cancer. And after breast cancer, in remission and beyond our healing and beyond. Because it's, it's an amazing journey, as we all know, because we have talked about it in many episodes, our healing journey, which is ongoing. And Maggie, I would just love for you to tell our audience, what is healing for you when it comes to movement. Because it looks different for all of us.

It does and it evolves. Every day, I have a right of anxiety about this topic. I'm not gonna lie, it's a hard one. But I love how you said that piece about before cancer, the during treatments and all that sort of thing. And then in remission and beyond. And for our listeners. It's like we always say it applies to any sort of healing, right? Something that throws you into your focus on healing, what was it like before, the during what your active healing is about and then the ongoing healing and I look at my before breast cancer. I've always been an avid exerciser. But then I always looked at exercise as I only really focused on the physical benefits of exercise right now, looking back, I know there were other benefits. I know what helped me with stress. I mean, I was I was the one that okay, so I was a competitive swimmer from age seven to 18. And then I went to college. And in college, I was one if we were going to sit down and watch a movie, I'd be doing leg lifts on the floor. Oh, you were one of those squats I would be like I was always moving. And it's interesting because that carry forward even post college. Okay to working out at home. We have a treadmill, we have a an elliptical I have one of those total gyms, we have some weights, I have a TRX thing I've got let me down there. I get bored so easily. Oh, so that's sort of why I have to have the versatility, right. And so, and I don't mind doing the ones the virtual ones on on videos and things like that, too. But I have to mix it up. Right. I was always making it a priority to work out. And then breast cancer. So with breast cancer, especially my first six rounds of chemo that my energy is so important to me and my energy was so zapped that I found myself not able to not wanting to not pushing hard enough or whatever it is. I felt defeated. I felt upset. I felt frustrated and when I don't work out I get crabby. So I actually didn't work out for a long time. Now it's so

now in plays on the mental Yes. And the emotional. Yeah. Okay. I didn't mean to interrupt you. But absolutely. I want to make I want to make that point very clear because here it is. We're talking physical. And here it is. It grabs you that mental and emotional. Well,

and I love that too. Because here's the thing. I am looking back, I was almost just going to leave it at I didn't work out during all of that treatment, all of my treatment. However, I had a really dear friend of mine that was a personal trainer that came over and showed me because she knew how how upset I was about it all she showed me movements that were stretches that I could do every day to at least keep my body limber, more flexible. I almost didn't count that. Because it wasn't my full blown workout.

I know we disregard things like that. Yes. Yes. It's

like, I feel like if it's not like we when we look at a workout, however we define it in our own mind, if it's not that full blown workout, if I can't go to the gym and workout an hour and a half, it doesn't count. That's shit. That's just it's not true. And it's not true. No, it's not true. absolutely not true. Well, and so then I look at after cancer. And the biggest thing for me is that given you know, I went through my cancer treatments during COVID. And I started the hormone blockers right away. So I literally shifted from low energy and then only stretching and things. Primarily, to now my joints are just killing me. So to do a downward dog, kills me to do a plank kills me. Okay, well, for God's sake, do a plank on your elbows don't feel like you have to do it like you used to do it. That's what Marla tells me. Different ways, yes, finding ways to modify modifications, or say we have to modify the movements in order to serve our body and whatever healing we're going through at any given time, and it still counts. So it's just for me, it was really getting over that defeatist mindset of wanting to exercise like I always exercised, right, or fear of becoming so sedentary or becoming weak or losing use of my muscles or my joints or anything else, because we're also aging. Yes, we all have to face that fact. Yeah. So what about you, Dina?

I just I wanted to add ladies that you know, this is a good point, where can you do everything at 50 that you could do at 20? But yeah, but we think our exercise should be right on par. He knows. So it's like, we don't think about all those little facets of of this, you know, okay, that is a brilliant

point. Absolutely. It is a brilliant point. And it's so funny, you bring that up baller because I say that to my 81 year old Dad, you're not 50 dead, you're 81. So I just love that point. As far as my phases of movement and exercise, I had a huge weight loss. And this was before my cancer, and I got to be the fittest I have ever been in my entire life. And I was doing boot camp classes, I was flipping tires. I was bench pressing. I mean, I was doing all kinds of different things. I was jumping on boxes, like my knees didn't bother me, everything was great. And I was also 45 years old. Okay, so we're talking a good 30 years ago, at least, right? And then the cancer hit. And I continued with this specific gym that I was going to. And I was determined to go through bootcamp classes, at my own pace. And the trainers were great. But what I loved about going to this gym was the community. They kept me going through my cancer journey. So I loved the whole community. And then COVID hit. Alright, so I was already going through it COVID Hit. And I was in remission at that point. And then he took his gym and made it completely virtual. And I hated every minute of it. So I stopped. I was like, I'm not doing this. He was doing it was every morning, same time. I didn't have certain weights. I didn't have kettlebells I didn't have this and I just got so frustrated. And I said forget it. I'm not doing this. And now I play this. I'm in remission. I'm seven years out. I've gained some weight back. I want to get back into working out but my body has totally changed because I'm postmenopausal All right, and I play that comparison game with myself. Before cancer. I was pretty fit during cancer, believe it or not. Some people are like, What are you talking about? But I was and now I'm not as strong. I have osteo Arthritis, I have osteopenia, and I know working out with weights, is what I need to do. But I need like you said, Maddie, I love the word that you said mindset. I need to have that mindset of this is what I need to do to heal physically, mentally, and emotionally. You know, I have to stop that comparison game. And it's not really and it's not a comparison game with other people. It's myself.

Yeah, it's bad enough when it's with other people at the gym that are just killing it right. Now, let's add, let's it's,

it's not even that ourselves. Yeah. And I just had another thought being away. For a weekend, I was scrolling through my pictures, and I saw the picture of myself, you know, really fit. And I just pin that picture. And I was like, and here I go again. It was it was after I was in remission, and I was fit. And I was just like, I need to keep that picture, in my view, in my eyesight, not so much to beat myself up. But to say, with each baby step I take, I could get back to that, I will get back to that. It's going to take time, which we're going to talk a little bit about that in a minute. But that is a reminder that I know I can do it. You know,

I love that. And I and I will just say quickly on that note, one of the things that I have been trying to do myself is just tell myself, I love my body. I Are there things I want to change about it. Yes. But guess what I'm working on it. And in this moment in time, I love my body, and I appreciate my body and all it does for me because when we're beating ourselves up and doing the comparison game and all that other stuff. We're just creating disconnection from it. Right? It doesn't, right, it's not serving us, it's anti healing. Right.

But to take it one step further with that, we are healthy. Yeah, go for our doctor's appointments. You know, we have our blood tests, you know, you and I both see alternative medical doctors as well as our oncologist, and everybody, every, all the tests that we take in everything we're doing, we're healthy. So that's another thing that we need to say to ourselves every morning, I am healthy. I am strong. Those great positive affirmations as well as the power of movement.

You said I am healthy, I am strong. And I have one of those yoga mats that has all those items on it. Oh to do and downstairs I have my brown yoga mat. And up here I have that one with all the words on it. And sometimes I'm like, No, I need the one with the words and my husband's like, what's the difference? Well, there's a difference

you know, the healing power of movement looks very different for each and every one of us because we're all so unique and so different. And, and no matter what you're going through, once again, whether it's breast cancer, a different type of cancer, the stress alone, the anxiety, even depression, our emotions, you know, we have to realize that the type of movements that we do will release all of that especially the emotions and the anxiety and the stress. So just you know, like he said you and I like to work out with weights there's other you know, use the workout for an hour and a half I used to work out for a little over an hour, you know, today's you can break up your your so cold workouts 10 minute increments, okay, you can go walking, you can go dancing, turn the radio on a dance for five minutes, you know, it's things like that besides lifting the weights. You know, I try to still go back to some of the videos like I'm saying videos but you can go on YouTube and look up all of these exercise gurus and and do you know 20 minutes 30 minutes, five minute ab workouts like there's just so much out there today. And I

will add to that one of my favorites that I completely forgot about it until I saw an her ad on Instagram this morning. Which body groups I I bought it years ago, and it's literally this woman triple o doesn't. She dances, she dances and it's all freestyle dance. And she's got the greatest music. And it's five minutes here. 10 minutes there, and I love it. And I can turn it on on my computer and do it right here in the office. It's like a

while wow. Oh, I've seen her. Yeah, I gotta look her up again.

It's awesome. I do love it. So well, back in

the day, I used to do stepper robots. Oh. And I just tried that recently. And I was like, Oh, boy. I was like, oh, but you know what? It was? It was an experiment. Actually. I said to myself, I'm going to do this. It's been a very, very long time that I did something like this. And some of the movements I could not do because of my knees. So I just tap the step. So I had to modify,

yes, you know, modifications, right.

So once again, you have to be gracious with yourself. When you are starting a new exercise or movement plan or whatever you want to call it, well going back to it. Or if you got injured, and you're going back to it or whatever it might be, you know, everything counts, right?

Yep, five minutes to an hour to an hour and however you want to do it. Every Day Counts everything. Can

I expect them? Just walking up the flight of stairs once or twice? That counts? You know, I even did that. The other day. I said, Oh, it was when I was away. I went to the gym at the hotel. And there's 18 steps, I counted them. And I said, All right, you're not a runner. Your knees are so so. But try to get up the steps as fast as I could. And I did it. Why would I was winded when I got to the top of it. But I did it. You know, and we truly need to practice by. And what I'm going to say about this is stop the comparison. All right. What you used to be able to what I can't do now what you know, you know that thing our minds have to shift and say, This is what I'm able to do. And I'm okay with that. Because I'm still moving and go in and grooving. I love that word. On

that one. I will add I have a favorite yoga app and instructor that I was really struggling to get back into yoga because I was kept trying to do her sessions. Right? Well, I just found another guy. And he is absolutely amazing with the stretches. And I'm loving it. So now I'm actually feeling really good about that movement instead of beating myself up because I'm comparing what I used to do with that woman.

So Right. So you tried something different? Yeah. You tried somebody different? You know what?

Totally ties to that. The last thing that I think is really important is experimenting, right? You brought this up earlier experimenting and trying different ways. Exactly.

Absolutely. One of I actually downloaded I saw it. I don't know if it was on Facebook, YouTube. I have a pool. And I decided when I moved to Florida that I was going to buy the equipment. You know, they look like dumbbells, but you put them in the water and the gloves and the belt that you wear. Well, I found some YouTube videos to do exercises in the water. So I'm going to start trying to I'm going to experiment with that this weekend. So I'm thinking about doing that on the weekend, like 20 minutes. I know to start out slow. So it's time to experiment. You know, supposed to be good for the knees and the joints.

Water is amazing. Yeah, yes. And,

you know, as we started here, healing through movement extends beyond the physical and healing truly is inside and out.