Weight gain

Congratulations on being cancer free.  I have seen several posters comment on their increased appetite after a nephrectomy.  I have no idea what is, or is not, normal.  Personally I am 6 weeks post surgery and have recently noticed some increased appetite.  I am working to keep off the weight.

Good luck.

Izzy

Larnie said:

I had a radical lap nephrectomy  for a small 'unusual' tumour (they didn't give it a type) on December 2012. Nine months now and I can't fit into any of my trousers or skirts and look pregnant at the end of some days. I've had a frozen shoulder since April which is not helping. Every other part of me is slim and I have not gained weight but my belly seems to be covered in much more fat than before!

I still get a tight bloating feeling in my upper belly if I move bags of compost or dig for too long in my vegetable patch. Lifitng a full shopping basket and I can feel some discomfort in my stomach. I had a daily yoga practice for over a decade until the op, cycled and walked but I am still struggling to get back to a similar level of activity as my stomach becomes uncomfortable and swollen later. Walking on grass is about the least problematic exercise I can do at the moment. Perhaps it depends on activity level before - that it takes longer to get back to 100% .

I am hoping that once I get back to more exercise the fat will reduce (?) but I wonder if anyone else feels this tightness and hardness in their belly still and that pregnant look?  (Ps I don't really feel like a cancer survivor, just someone who is struggling to find information on recovery to former actvity levels. I there are so many posts here I don't quite know where to start!

L

 

Hi Larnie, 

I think it does take a long time for the muscle and tissue to recover. I still have pain around the drain site, any pressure on that area is very uncomfortable. I don't have a problem with bloating anymore, thank goodness, and I had my op last March. The only problem I have is if I bend for too long, I get some sharp shocks. I haven't gained weight either, in fact I have lost 12 lbs since the op. I have made some changes to my diet though, I think that and just the overall experience has caused the pounds to drop off. 

I walk quite a bit, but I think that swimming has been the best form of exercise for me. It definately helped me get back into shape.

Djinnie

I have gone up a size since mines partial nephrectomy in July.   I eat healthy yet I can't seem to rid myself of this extra weight. I hate it. 

TillieSOK said:

Boy, do I ever hear you!  I

Boy, do I ever hear you!  I am walking or biking 2 miles + twice a day! eating mostly veggies and fruit with small serving of protein! have cut out sugar, carbonated drinks, almost all salt, and have been drinking gallons of water and ....... Nothing!  Not one single ounce has departed from my butt or waistline!  I'm so tired of carrying this extra weight around!  I want to be able to wear a bathing suit without the locals calling in the national guard because they think a whale has been beached!  As far as cravings go, I have been craving......drumroll, please......broccoli and grapefruit juice, not necessarily together. LOL. I need help!

In fact there is a secret to losing weight slowly, steadily, and easily. It turns out to be the same approach that can be extremely beneficial to all cancer patients.

You should consider the benefits of a modified low carb/high (saturated) fat diet.  An excellent introduction to the topic is the book:

"Why We Get Fat - And What To Do About It" by Gary Taubes.

Here’s the short version of what I follow: I don't eat processed grains (especially wheat); I don't eat sugar; I don't eat any kind of processed vegetable oils; I get plenty of sunshine; I eat good-quality meat and fish, organs (liver, etc.); and I cook in butter or coconut oil only. Many kinds of complex carbs are acceptable, as long as they come from root vegetables, green leafy veggies, and small colored fruits and berries (preferably).

I have spent the last year researching nutrition and biology with particular emphasis on normal and abnormal cell metabolism.  I also have been experimenting with my own diet during this period.  As a result I have prepared a 65-page .pdf document that explains the science and rationale behind what I call a "proper" diet for cancer patients.  You might find it of interest.

If you send me an email at:

n.feldman@videopost.com

I will be happy to email you back a copy.

Best wishes,

-Neil (NanoSecond)

TillieSOK said:

Boy, do I ever hear you!  I

Boy, do I ever hear you!  I am walking or biking 2 miles + twice a day! eating mostly veggies and fruit with small serving of protein! have cut out sugar, carbonated drinks, almost all salt, and have been drinking gallons of water and ....... Nothing!  Not one single ounce has departed from my butt or waistline!  I'm so tired of carrying this extra weight around!  I want to be able to wear a bathing suit without the locals calling in the national guard because they think a whale has been beached!  As far as cravings go, I have been craving......drumroll, please......broccoli and grapefruit juice, not necessarily together. LOL. I need help!

I could maybe handle the grapefruit juice with a shot of vodka, and I'd have to have quite a few shots of vodka to stomach broccoli...just sayin. But, at least your cravings are healthy, Tillie. 

twinthings said:

ewww to broccoli

I could maybe handle the grapefruit juice with a shot of vodka, and I'd have to have quite a few shots of vodka to stomach broccoli...just sayin. But, at least your cravings are healthy, Tillie. 

I've been eating a shredded broccoli salad with nuts and cranberries and it is soooo good.  I took a header off my bicycle the other day.  Scared to poo out of me.  I was so afraid I was going to hurt the surgical area, my left kidney,  or my hip...turned out the way I fell I shredded my left knee and bruised the heck out of the right one, bruised both palms and left side ribs and bonked my head.  Took ibuprofen (800 mg) last night and I'm not too sore today. Rode my bike again tonight and everything was ok.  I'm thinking with the regular exercise and healthy diet I'm eating, that one reason I'm not losing weight is that I'm building a few muscles and losing fat.  My clothes are actually fitting looser, so that's good I guess.  Oh, I went ahead and "fired" my surgeon as far as continued follow ups and have made an appointment with the oncologist to continue with my follow up scans.  I'm getting braver!

MeMeJoy said:

Sorry I haven't come back in a while

Twinthings - I hear ya' on the craving chocolate!!! And the sweets in general. Right after my surgery I didn't want anything sweet. It all sounded syrupy and gross. For a while the sweetest thing I could handle was fruit. But now....it's like I have a sweet tooth that just can't be satisfied! But yet , still nothing (sweets) tastes right. In 2 weeks I have bought/made everything from cupcakes, fudge, candy, ice cream, cheese cake...you name it... and I take one bite and think, " Nope this isn't it" It’s like some part of me wants something that simply must exist somewhere but my brain has no idea what it is.

I did join a gym last week - I haven't gone yet, I planned to start this week but my youngest son broke his arm. The gym uses a program called Activtrax, that develops a plan and tells you exactly what exercises/machines to do and how to do them. I’m hoping that since it takes the guess work out I might actually stick with it.

 

I think my biggest problem is that I know I should cook/eat healthy but I HATE cooking, I'm simply not good at it at and it isn't the least bit enjoyable to me.

 

Neil - I don't suppose your guide includes recipes?????

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MeMeJoy.  I am afraid not.  I pretty much hate cooking too.  But my wife is a great sport and is willing to try out whatever I suggest.

To be honest though, it is much more a matter of what you need to cut out and cut back on.  It does not require adding any fancy new dishes.  Of course, no processed foods.

I know you don't want to hear this but I must say it as often and clearly as possible.  The single most important thing that we all can do is to cut out all the sugar(s) and cut back on the refined carbohydrates.  One more thing: cut out all the vegetable oils, period. If you can do these few things I guarantee that you will reap great rewards.  You will effortlessly lose weight while you fight your cancer with an arsenal of very potent weapons that are completely drug and side-effect free.  OK, how can this be?

- Low carbohydrate/high fat diets work far better than any other dietary approach for improving all the biochemical markers of internal inflammation. Inflammation is a major force behind tumorigenesis.

- The ingestion of high levels of carbohydrates will turn on epigenetic switches of inflammation while simultaneously stimulating rapid insulin release.  These insulin spikes promote the release of a hormone, IGF-1 (Insulin-like Growth Factor-1), which then stimulates all of our cells (including tumor cells) to grow.  These insulin spikes simulaneously decrease the amount of another hormone, IGFBP-3 (Insulin-like Growth Factor Binding Protein-3), which normally functions to prevent unregulated tissue growth.  The presence of IGFBP-3 induces apoptosis (cellular death) in cancer cells.

- The bottom line is that carb-induced insulin spikes can provoke indiscriminate cell growth while working to prevent cancer cell death.  But if you follow a low-carb diet you will not be contributing to these two unwanted events.