Skip to main content

How to Thrive When You Survive: The Importance of Exercise for our Physical + Emotional Wellbeing

My first thought was, I want to live. At age 23, I was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma. I was fresh out of college and ready to tackle life. Growing up an athlete, I led a healthy lifestyle and was completely sidelined. Going through this life hurdle at such a young age helped me to put life in perspective and changed the trajectory of my entire life.

I fell in love with mindful movement after my treatments. About one year after my stem cell transplant, a friend introduced me to Barre classes. My teachers helped me discover strength I didn’t know I had.

My mantra is Yes. You. Can. I believe that everyone has the ability to lead his or her best lives. We must be relentless in the pursuit. Cancer taught me that. I start all of my classes by saying “it’s a beautiful day to be alive.” Because, it simply is.

The research speaks to all the benefits of exercise. Through research, we know regular exercise strengthens muscles and bones, reduces the risk of cancer recurrence and improves sleep patterns. Exercise also helps people maintain a healthy weight, reduce fatigue, boost energy levels, improve mood and reduce anxiety. All winners in my book.

We lead lives full of goodness and it’s important to take tiny steps to reach our fitness goals. Time can feel limited. If you have an open pocket of 5-15 minutes, try to shift your mind directly to movement. This could be simple stretches, a quick walk or core exercises. Core exercises help to improve our posture and move through our day with more ease.

When the pandemic hit last year, I knew I wanted to create a dynamic online community -- including cancer thrivers. I offer my weekly virtual Pilates Fusion classes free for the cancer community. I feel so honored to hold space for my “Chi Chi Lifers”.

Exercise is a pillar of self-care. When we come together in community, we soak up the positive energy and motivate each other. Showing up wholeheartedly with consistency will guide you to a solid path. You will see and feel your progress. You will get stronger. You in?

----

Chi Chi Life Founder Lauren Chiarello Mika is a two-time cancer thriver + twin mama who leads corporate wellness workshops, weekly virtual Pilates Fusion classes and is a Cancer Exercise Trainer at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

----

Are you part of the cancer community and interested in Lauren’s *free* virtual Pilates Fusion classes? Email Lauren lauren@chichilifenyc.com to get started.


Are you based in NYC? Join Lauren IRL for a *free* outdoor Pilates Fusion at Meatpacking Sweat Sessions on Tuesday 8/3 @ 6:30p. RSVP here.



If you are interested in participating in our Vented Uplift Community Blog as a guest writer, please reach out to Becca at becca.vented@gmail.com

And check out our website to see the beautiful jewelry with a purpose! #BuyoneGiftone

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Life is Short, Lick the Spoon and Laugh...a Lot!

Christmas is almost here! I’m so excited! I absolutely love Christmas and everything about it. I do admit it comes with some stress like gift buying, wrapping, cooking, decorating, bills, work, parties...goodness, I stressed myself out just writing all that! This year I am having a stress-free Christmas. Y’all know I’m on a health and fitness journey and that is stressful enough without adding in the holidays. I have a spoon rest in the kitchen given to me by future daughter in law that says “Life is short, Lick the Spoon.” I’m going to live that this year. I’m not even going to pretend to eat healthy this week. I am going to unashamedly enjoy every single bite of holiday spirit I can shove in my mouth. It’s okay to do that, next week I’ll crawl out of my carb coma and get back to business. My mom is making my most favorite cake of all time: homemade red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting . I absolute refuse to eat red velvet cake from any shop, store and heaven forbid, a mix...
1 comment
Read more

Find the Calm in Calamity

Are there days in which you sit in the calm ealry hours enjoying the peace and stillness sipping a cup of coffee? Do you talk to God in that time? Do you hear the words that pop into your mind or heart? Do you put those words from pen to paper? Or do you let the words be forgotten and fly away with another thought? Do you hear those words as a message, a thought, a purpose, your mission, a whisper from God? Or do you simply ignore them and not give those words another thought? I myself, hear them, write them, feel them and seek then when I get these little "divine downloads". Last month, in the still of the morning, while taking in the sunrise doing my daily readings and pondering LENT, a few words were whispered to me. "Find the CALM in CALAMITY." So I grabbed a pencil and my journal and sribbled the words down. What do these words mean? I started to ask "Well, how does one find CALM in CALAMITY?". I decided to literally take CALM out and looked ...
1 comment
Read more

Combatting Cancer through Fitness

My name is Rori, and I currently live in New York with my amazing husband and 2 Frenchie furbabies. I'm 34 years old, an avid athlete pursuing a Personal Training certification, and I am currently battling Triple Negative Breast Cancer. The mental game is just as important, if not more important than the physical, when it comes to cancer. Being able to stay active during treatment is just 1 component of how I've been able to put up a good fight against this disease. I believe that everything happens for a reason, & getting diagnosed with cancer showed me what I was meant to do in life: help other women fight their toughest battles. Every woman undergoing a Breast Cancer battle will face challenges on how they feel about their body. Utilizing a mantra I began saying to myself helps remind me that my body has gone through hell and back: "Fake, Fit & Fabulous." Every woman should feel inspired & accomplished by what their body has been through. Be proud of yo...
Post a Comment
Read more