Hi Amy,

When it comes to advice, run it past your doctor first before actually doing anything - it's not that you might get bad advice here, it's more that you might not have mentioned something that would have changed that advice.

With that out of the way, exercise really does help the immune system. It also preps you nicely for surgery so it can be a win-win thing for a lot of us here. The key to doing it right, in my opinion, isn't the intensity - it's the regularity. Aim for something you can do at least twice a week for 30 minutes a session, and build up to every other day. Then just keep on doing it (that's the hard bit).

What ticks the box for a half hour exercise session? Walking does it way better than most people would think, and is great for starting off. Get used to the routine of just doing it, and take it easy. Then up the speed as you feel more comfortable with it to a level where it counts as exercise. It should end up being enough to make you breathe hard but not actually get out of breath, so chatting should just about be possible. That kind of rules out jogging (yay!), doesn't get you sweaty, doesn't make you look like an exercise nut in front of the neighbours, but does get the job done.

I'll skip a lot of diet advice - you really should know all about that by now. Just concentrate on your food for being healthy rather than for weight-loss.

kind regards
Steve