Diet, exercise and physical wellness
What is wellness?
Wellness is not about being totally free from illness, it is about you, as an individual, understanding how you feel when you are at your best and also understanding ‘triggers’ that are early signs which mean you are not quite as well as you could be. This knowledge helps you to take better control of your choices.
Keep active
We understand that living with lymphoedema or a leg ulcer can be challenging, however, it’s still important to be active each day to prevent your condition getting worse. Taking control of your daily exercise, a good diet and a sound night’s sleep are some vital components in you reaching your overall feeling of wellness. Exercise can boost your immunity and your confidence whilst supporting your sleep pattern, so why not get started?
We’d recommend keeping a record of your chosen daily exercise plan allowing you to feel good about your achievements and keep check on your progress. Keeping pictures of your affected area can also help you see improvements from exercise and motivate you further to achieve your long-term wellness goals.
Keeping mobile with simple exercises is a key part of the solution for helping you better manage your lower limb wound or swelling. Nothing too strenuous here but some approaches from Accelerate that are easy for you to do and will reinforce your determination to keep your legs healthy.
Seated exercises that are safe for people with lymphoedema, leg ulcers or foot ulcers
Simple Theraband exercises to do at home
The movement of your ankle directly links to the important pump in the calf at the back of your leg – this muscle keeps blood flowing to the feet. These simple exercises with a Theraband will help you work towards achieving good movement in your ankles which, in turn, will help reduce swelling and improve healing for your wound.
Please always take advice from your health professional regarding what is best for you, and above all enjoy it.
Specific leg exercises for lymphoedema
If you are interested in specific exercises for your leg or arm swelling you will find links to useful films produced by Cancer research.
Specific arm exercises for lymphoedema
Healthy and sensible eating
Eating well can help us feel our best – and it can also make a big difference to our long-term health. Remember what you put in your body can support your immune system which can help healing and boost your mood and energy levels. Public Health England have produced the Eatwell Guide to direct you on which foods and portions are best. Cutting out that one biscuit a day is a great start but for further support please see the below advice
Always seek advice from your GP if you have food allergies / intolerances.