Exercise and Breast Cancer
Regular exercise is an important part of being as healthy as you can be. Being physically active can reduce your risk of developing breast cancer. And if you’ve been diagnosed, exercise may reduce the risk of the cancer coming back (recurrence). Exercise can also help ease troubling treatment side effects, like fatigue, pain, depression, and lymphedema.
Recent research has shown that exercise has so many benefits for people with a breast cancer diagnosis that in 2022, the American Society of Clinical Oncology advised doctors to recommend regular aerobic and resistance exercise for people receiving cancer treatment.
Benefits of exercise
Research keeps finding more benefits from exercising. In fact, there are so many benefits that many doctors think it should be a key part of any breast cancer prevention and treatment plan. Some doctors have begun referring to it as “exercise as medicine.” Research also shows that the benefits of exercise don't decrease as you get older, meaning you should make exercise part of your daily routine no matter your age.
We know that women who exercise have a lower risk of developing breast cancer than women who don’t exercise. Doctors don’t fully understand how exercise lowers risk. But many doctors believe being active helps regulate insulin and estrogen — hormones that can cause breast cancer to grow. Maintaining a healthy weight with regular exercise can also help regulate hormones, reduce inflammation, and keep the immune system healthy.
A number of studies have shown that women who exercise regularly have a lower risk of recurrence and are also less likely to die from breast cancer. Doctors don’t fully understand this benefit, either. But many think that — as with breast cancer risk — it may have something to do with maintaining a healthy weight and keeping hormones like insulin and estrogen regulated.
A 2025 study found more daily steps were associated with a lower risk of dying from any cause among post-menopausal women with a history of cancer. Women who took 5,000-6,000 steps per day reaped the greatest benefit, reducing their risk of dying by 40%. Looking specifically at heart issues, each additional 2,500 steps per day was linked to a 34% lower risk of dying from cardiovascular disease.
Research shows that exercise can help you have fewer treatment side effects and lower the intensity of the side effects you do have. Exercise benefits people of all ages who have been diagnosed with cancer. Studies have found that exercise can:
ease fatigue and depression
lessen anxiety
reduce the risk of lymphedema
improve physical function
strengthen bones
ease bone and joint pain
In Exercises to Relieve Side Effects, a series of short videos, Sami Mansfield, a certified cancer trainer and founder of Cancer Wellness for Life, demonstrates exercises to ease side effects, like fatigue and bone and joint pain — along with some for people with bone metastases. In this video, she focuses on anxiety.
As most women age, they tend to lose muscle and gain fat. Chemotherapy and hormonal therapy medicines can suddenly throw you into early menopause. The decrease in estrogen that comes with menopause is linked to decreased muscle mass. Strength training exercises can help make sure you increase lean muscle mass and reduce body fat — so it’s easier to carry groceries, pick up heavy things, or even just do things around the house.
As you age, you lose bone mass. If you’ve been diagnosed with breast cancer, maintaining healthy bones is especially important since some breast cancer treatments can lead to bone loss. Plus, women are about twice as likely as men to develop osteoporosis after age 50. Osteoporosis is a bone disease that thins and weakens the bones so they are more likely to break. Weight-bearing exercise, such as jogging or walking, and strength training can all strengthen bones and slow bone loss.
Scar tissue that forms after breast cancer surgery, reconstruction, or radiation can make your arm and shoulder muscles feel tight. If you don’t use your arm and shoulder as much after treatment, the muscles in those areas also can lose flexibility. Over time, careful stretching exercises can improve range of motion in the arm and shoulder.
Types of exercise
There are three main types of exercise: aerobic exercise, such as walking or biking; flexibility exercise or stretching; and strength or resistance exercise, like lifting weights or doing push-ups. Each type offers different benefits.
Exercising safely
Exercise — before, during, and after treatment — offers many benefits, but it’s important to exercise safely, especially during treatment or if you have breast cancer that has spread to the bones.
The experts at the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) say that exercise is safe during and after all breast cancer treatments, as long as you take any needed precautions and keep the intensity low. The ACSM brings together exercise oncology experts so they can review research on exercise for people diagnosed with cancer, as well as research on exercise and cancer prevention.
Your ability to exercise during and after treatment, especially exercising after surgery, depends on what your overall health and physical condition was before your diagnosis. If you didn’t exercise at all before you were diagnosed, then it’s a good idea to start slowly and carefully. If you exercised regularly before your diagnosis, then scaling back a bit on your old routine may help you feel more like yourself. Either way, it’s important you have your doctor’s OK before you start exercising again.
You may want to visit a physical therapist with experience in diagnosing lymphedema for a structural evaluation before you start exercising — either after surgery or during other breast cancer treatments. Besides looking for lymphedema, a physical therapist can check for any other issues unrelated to breast cancer that may limit your ability to exercise. The physical therapist also can help you develop an exercise plan that’s right for you.
The American Cancer Society supports the American College of Sports Medicine’s general physical activity recommendations for people who’ve been diagnosed with cancer:
Avoid inactivity and return to normal daily activities as soon as possible after diagnosis and treatment.
Take part in regular physical activity.
Start slowly and build up the amount of physical activity over time.
Build up to at least 150 minutes of moderate or 75 minutes of vigorous intensity activity each week.
Exercise several times a week for at least 10 minutes at a time.
Include resistance training exercise at least two days a week.
Do stretching exercises at least two days each week.
If you’re experiencing a low red blood cell count (anemia) or a lack of muscle coordination (ataxia), don’t exercise. It’s also a good idea to skip aerobic exercise if your platelet count or white blood cell count is low. A platelet is a disc-shaped piece of cell that helps the body form clots to stop bleeding.
If you have any shortness of breath, pain, or tightness in your chest, stop exercising immediately. Tell your doctor so you can work together to develop an exercise plan that is right for you.
Finding a certified trainer
If you’re planning to exercise during or after breast cancer treatment — especially strength training — you may want to work out with:
a certified trainer with experience working with people diagnosed with breast cancer
a physical therapist trained in lymphedema diagnosis and management
A qualified trainer can help you start slowly, explain which precautions you need to take, and push you enough but not too much.
It’s important to make sure your trainer is certified by a national organization. There are a few well-known, respected organizations, including the American College of Sports Medicine, the National Academy of Sports Medicine, and the American Council on Exercise.
A trainer who is certified in cancer exercise training by the American College of Sports Medicine has done additional work with people who’ve been diagnosed with cancer. The American College of Sports Medicine’s cancer and exercise training program prepares trainers to understand how cancer therapy — especially surgery and chemotherapy — can increase the risk of injury and other complications, such as lymphedema. The organization also offers an exercise program directory you can use to search for a certified cancer exercise trainer and exercise and rehabilitation programs specifically for cancer survivors via its Moving Through Cancer program. For best results, put in only your two-letter state abbreviation.
Although a college degree isn’t necessary to be a good trainer, it’s helpful to have a degree in a field related to exercise physiology.
Here are some questions you may want to ask a potential trainer:
Have you worked with people diagnosed with breast cancer before?
Are you certified? If so, which organization is your certification from?
Are you certified in cancer exercise training?
May I have the names of three of your current clients as references?
11 ways to stick to an exercise routine
For many people, the hardest part of exercising is sticking to a steady routine. Once the initial enthusiasm wears off, you may find yourself making excuses not to exercise. Here are some tips to help keep you motivated.
If you like being around people, you may want to take a yoga class or sign up for a local biking or hiking club. If you’re happier on your own, try walking in a park or location with a nice view.
Walk one day and lift light weights the next. Ride a bike, dance, take a yoga class — doing anything is better than doing nothing.
A 2023 study found that even just three to four minutes of vigorous exercise a day — like climbing stairs — seemed to reduce cancer risk. If you find it hard to make time to exercise. Try running up and down the stairs a few times each day.
If you make a commitment to exercise with someone else, you’re more likely to stick to a routine than if you work out alone. Plus, you get to catch up with a friend and keep each other motivated.
Think of exercising as a necessary part of life, like breathing, sleeping, and eating. You also can think of it as an important part of your breast cancer recovery plan. It’s what you do to be as healthy as you can be. Schedule exercise like you do any other important activity. Put it on your daily to-do list.
Some experts say you’re more likely to stick to your routine if you exercise in the morning. As the day goes on, you’re more likely to come up with excuses or have delays in your schedule that can make it hard to exercise. Another bonus of morning exercise: you’re energized for the day ahead.
If you can’t exercise first thing in the morning, working out on your way home from work is the next best thing. Make sure you don’t go home first. Once you change and sit down, it’s difficult to motivate yourself to go back out again. A bonus of after-work exercise: you melt away the day’s stress and irritations.
Exercise makes your brain release endorphins, which elevate your mood and make your whole body feel better. You also breathe more deeply when you exercise, which can make you feel calm and relaxed.
Write down the exercise statistics that are important to you: how long you exercised for, how far you walked (or ran or biked), how much weight you lifted, and how many reps you did. Seeing your progress can help keep you motivated to keep going.
Set some goals and as you achieve them, reward yourself. When you’re able to walk for 30 minutes without stopping, consider buying yourself a new pair of walking shoes. When you stick with your routine for a week, binge-watch your favorite TV show. Do whatever works for you.
If you’re truly too busy or feel run down, take a break. The important thing is to continue to make the effort when you’re feeling up to it again.
Exercise resource guide
Here are some helpful resources that may help as you put together an exercise plan to review with your doctor before getting started.
Dr. Sharon Cowden, pediatrician, golfer, and breast cancer survivor, and Janette Poppenberg, a cancer exercise trainer certified by the American College of Sports Medicine and the American Cancer Society developed the Strength & Courage: Exercises for Breast Cancer Survivors program for breast cancer survivors.
The American Cancer Society offers a list of exercises that people diagnosed with breast cancer can do in the first three to seven days after surgery. Each exercise has an accompanying illustration.
The American Cancer Society releases updated nutrition and physical activity guidelines every five years. The organization includes a detailed summary of the guidelines, as well as a link to the full guidelines written for health professionals.
LIVESTRONG at the YMCA is a 12-week, small group exercise program for adults who’ve been diagnosed with cancer. The program is in more than 791 YMCA locations. You can learn more about the program and how you can bring LIVESTRONG to your local YMCA.
Athleta brand ambassador Kimberly Irvine helped to design a mastectomy sports bra and shared what the experience taught her about the role of self-esteem in living a healthy and active life.
Dana-Farber research Christina Dieli-Conwright, PhD, MPH, is studying how personalized exercise programs can improve cancer outcomes.
If you’ve been diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer, cancer exercise specialist Sami Mansfield offers some tips to help you start exercising and gives examples of exercises you can do safely at home.
Exercise for People Diagnosed With Metastatic Breast Cancer
Feb 23, 2019How does breast cancer treatment affect your ability to exercise? Breastcancer.org Professional Advisory Board member Kathy Miller, MD, discusses how you can figure out a safe level of exercise during chemotherapy or radiation, or when you’re recovering from surgery.
How Breast Cancer Treatment Affects Your Ability to Exercise
Oct 19, 2016— Last updated on May 31, 2025 at 6:32 PM
