Should I prehab with a friend or partner?
Should I prehab with a friend?
Prehabilitation, like any form of exercise or rehabilitation, can be done individually or with a friend or exercise partner. Whether or not you choose to prehab with a friend depends on your personal preferences and what works best for you.
There are potential benefits to prehabbing with a friend:
1. Motivation and accountability: Having a friend to prehab with can provide motivation and accountability. You can encourage and support each other, making it more likely that you'll stick to your prehabilitation routine. When your prehab partner is expecting you to show up to help with their preparation for treatment, you have a role in their care too! Similarly, you might feel that extra nudge to participate on days when it may feel easy to put it off – all because you know someone is there to do it with you.
2. Social support: In the context of any health behaviour, social support generally refers to the assistance, encouragement, and understanding that individuals receive from their social network, such as family, friends, or groups, to engage in and maintain those behaviours. It can take various forms, including emotional support, informational support, and practical support. Emotional support involves providing encouragement, empathy, and motivation. Informational support includes sharing knowledge, advice, and guidance about exercise. Practical support involves tangible assistance, such as exercising together, providing transportation, or helping with childcare. Social support can play a crucial role in promoting adherence to health programs, enhancing motivation, and creating a sense of belonging and accountability. Being with people you like, who you care about, and who care about you can make the process of prehabilitation more enjoyable, which can its own independent effects on your mental well-being.
3. Safety: Having a friend present during prehabilitation exercises can provide an extra level of safety. Here’s are some reasons why a partner can make is safer when you’re exercising:
a) Spotting: Having a partner can provide an extra set of eyes to ensure proper form and technique during exercises that require spotting, such as weightlifting or certain yoga poses. They can help prevent injuries by providing assistance or guidance when needed.
b) Emergency assistance: In case of an accident or injury during exercise, having a partner nearby can be crucial. They can provide immediate assistance, such as calling for help or administering basic first aid, if needed.
c) Sharing knowledge and experience: Exercising with a partner allows for the exchange of knowledge and experience. They may have insights into proper form, technique, or safety precautions that you may not be aware of. This shared knowledge can help reduce the risk of injury.
When thinking about prehabbing with a partner, it's important to consider a few factors:
1. Compatibility: Make sure you and your partner have similar goals, fitness levels, and schedules. It's important to find someone who is committed and reliable.
2. Focus and distraction: Prehabilitation requires focus and concentration to perform exercises correctly and safely. If you find that prehabbing with a friend leads to distractions or a lack of focus, it may be better to prehab individually.
3. Individual goals, needs, and preferences: Your surgery and preparation may be similar to your partner’s, or maybe not at all. Maybe you and your partner have very different conditions for which you need surgery and have different types of health concerns that you have to manage during your prehab. Or, perhaps the person you have decided to join you on your prehab journey isn’t prehabbing at all – they just want to be helpful and supportive. Remember – your prehab program is individual and although engaging in prehab exercises with a friend may help you stick with it, you should be doing what will help YOU prepare for YOUR treatment.
Ultimately, the decision to prehab with a friend is a personal one. Consider your own preferences, goals, and the dynamics of your relationship with your potential prehab partner. Whether you choose to prehab alone or with a friend, the most important thing is to stay consistent, follow your healthcare provider's recommendations, and prioritize your own well-being.
Need someone to prehab (or rehab) with but can’t think of anyone appropriate?
Sometimes, the right person to partner with is not necessarily someone who you already know – it’s a stranger who knows what you’re going through, and is going through it themselves. Such people can truly sympathize with you, in the moment, about your challenges, worries, and questions which can be reassuring to you that you’re really not alone during a difficult time. But, it’s not always easy to find those people – and putting your name on a community bulletin board saying “looking for a friend with X condition, a surgery date of Y, and in Z location’ doesn’t necessarily feel like a great idea for many people. Well – because partners are important, especially ones that understand your situation, AND because they can be hard to find – a team of cancer and exercise researchers developed a program called ActiveMatch.
ActiveMatch is a free online service helping individuals to find their (near) perfect exercise partner or small group. The purpose of this service is to help women who have been diagnosed with cancer connect with similar women who are looking for support and guidance to help start, continue, or change their exercise routines.
Learn more in this short video: https://youtu.be/rn_MecDScIc?feature=shared
To learn more about the importance of social support during prehabilitation and other health behaviours, check out these research papers:
Maximizing patient adherence to prehabilitation: what do the patients say?
