Download my “How to Train According to the Experts” guide
Discover my premium podcast, The Aliquot
For decades, exercise was considered an optional part of cancer care—something beneficial for general health but not essential. The evidence is now overwhelming: exercise is not just supportive—it’s a therapeutic intervention that recalibrates tumor biology, enhances treatment tolerance, and improves survival outcomes.
With over 600 peer-reviewed studies, Dr. Kerry Courneya's work has fundamentally reshaped our understanding of how structured exercise—whether aerobic, resistance training, or high-intensity intervals—can mitigate treatment side effects, enhance immune function, and directly influence cancer progression.
Timestamps:
- (00:00) Introduction
- (04:31) Why exercise should be effortful
- (05:17) How to meaningfully reduce risk of cancer
- (09:06) What type of exercise is best?
- (10:43) How exercise reduces risk—even for smokers and the obese
- (13:32) Weekend-only exercise
- (16:33) 150 vs. 300 minutes per week (more is better—up to a point)
- (18:47) Why pre-diagnosis exercise matters
- (21:53) Why resilience to cancer treatment starts with exercise
- (23:45) Why low muscle mass drives cancer death
- (26:42) Why BMI fails to measure true obesity
- (30:35) Why daily activity isn't enough (structured exercise matters)
- (32:18) Breaking up sedentary time—do 'exercise snacks' help?
- (34:34) Supplements vs. exercise
- (35:16) Where exercise fits with chemo and immunotherapy
- (38:14) Why rest is not the best medicine
- (44:04) Aerobic vs. resistance
- (44:57) How weight training improves 'chemo completion'
- (47:25) Why exercise creates vulnerability in cancer cells (limitations do apply)
- (49:53) Why exercise might be crucial for tumor elimination
- (55:47) Why cardio may be better at clearing tumor cells
- (59:02) When cancer spreads quickly—and when it doesn't
- (1:00:27) Why liquid biopsies may prevent over-treatment
- (1:05:40) Exercise-sensitive vs. exercise-resistant cancers
- (1:08:50) Prostate cancer therapy—why strength training matters
- (1:10:54) When exercise is the only therapy—does it work?
- (1:12:10) Why HIIT reduces PSA in prostate cancer
- (1:14:24) Avoiding overtreatment—can exercise buy you time?
- (1:14:44) Why high-intensity exercise boosts anti-cancer biology
- (1:15:55) Turning a diagnosis into a wake-up call
- (1:18:55) Why oncologists are rethinking exercise
- (1:21:34) Why exercise eases anxiety about cancer—proven psychological benefits
- (1:27:44) Before, during, and after treatment
- (1:29:46) Why exercise is unique among cancer therapies
- (1:31:00) Why cancer patients stop exercising—the risky mistake almost everyone makes
- (1:33:25) How to get sedentary cancer patients exercising (realistically)
- (1:35:59) The $1 million per patient case for including exercise
- (1:37:40) Why recurrence trials haven't convinced doctors—yet
- (1:40:20) The bottom-line message
- (1:40:39) The myth of a cancer panacea (exercise included)
- (1:46:51) What's the best $50 investment for staying active?
- (1:47:24) Only 15 minutes per day—what's the best anti-cancer exercise?
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist
It’s 1996 in rural North Carolina, and an oddball crew makes history when they pull off America’s third largest cash heist. But it’s all downhill from there. Join host Johnny Knoxville as he unspools a wild and woolly tale about a group of regular ‘ol folks who risked it all for a chance at a better life. CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist answers the question: what would you do with 17.3 million dollars? The answer includes diamond rings, mansions, velvet Elvis paintings, plus a run for the border, murder-for-hire-plots, and FBI busts.