EXERCISE

The benefits of exercise in prostate cancer

Published June 2021

The benefits of exercise in prostate cancer
The benefits of exercise in prostate cancer

The benefits of regular exercise to your general health and wellbeing are undisputed, with proven benefits to both body and mind. An active lifestyle that includes regular exercise can help your body by keeping you healthy, decrease your chances of developing serious diseases like cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes, and can also benefit your emotional wellbeing, by lifting your mood.

Exercise can also benefit you if you have advanced prostate cancer. Regular exercise can help you cope better with the side effects of your treatment and help you to manage your emotions if you are feeling overwhelmed or distressed. Always check with your healthcare team for advice on what types of exercise are suitable for you, and make sure you get medical clearance that you are fit enough to exercise, especially if you are thinking of trying something new. Every man is different, and your exercise routines and goals should be based on your personal health status, so that you can be as physically active as your conditions and abilities allow.

Men are generally older when they develop prostate cancer, so may carry excess weight and have more bone and muscle loss than younger men. Hormone treatments for prostate cancer can make these factors worse. Because exercise influences all hormonal systems in the body, an exercise programme appropriate for you (designed with your specialist healthcare team) can specifically address these issues by helping to build muscle strength, improve functional capacity and your ability to perform tasks of daily living, and also improve your overall quality of life.

Several ongoing clinical trials are specifically looking at the benefits of exercise in people with advanced prostate cancer. Patients taking part in these trials are receiving tailored exercise programmes consisting of aerobic and strengthening or resistance components, and they will be continually monitored by their healthcare teams.

Here is a list of benefits to be gained just by introducing half an hour of exercise to your routine approximately 3-4 times per week:

General health benefits
  • Help keep your weight down
  • Lower your risk of cardiovascular disease
  • Better management of high blood sugar and diabetes
  • Help you maintain bone density and muscle strength
  • Help keep you alert and your mind and memory sharp
  • Improve sleep
Emotional benefits
  • Reduced fatigue
  • Improved mood
  • Better outlook on life
  • Able to cope better emotionally

Intrigued? If you are feeling ready to introduce more exercise into your daily routine, why not have a look at these top 5 tips on getting started. If you struggle with motivation, this article on overcoming the mental barriers to exercise might help too.

For more information on living with advanced prostate cancer see our full list of articles here.

SOURCES:
  1. Benefits of exercise. NHS. Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/exercise/exercise-health-benefits/. Accessed October 2025.
  2. Campbell A, et al. Interventions to promote activity in people living with cancer and beyond cancer – evidence-based guidance. Macmillan Cancer Support. Available at: 
https://www.macmillan.org.uk/documents/aboutus/health_professionals/physicalactivityevidencebasedguidance.pdf. Accessed October 2025.
  3. Newton et al. BMJ Open. 2018; 8(5): e022899. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5961562/. Accessed October 2025.
  4. Hart et al. Current Opinion in Supportive and Palliative Care. 2017; 3: 247-57. Available at: https://journals.lww.com/co-supportiveandpalliativecare/FullText/2017/09000/Exercise_medicine_for_advanced_prostate_cancer.19.aspx. Accessed October 2025.
  5. Brown et al. Pilot and Feasibility Studies. 2019; 5, article number 102. Available at: 
https://pilotfeasibilitystudies.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s40814-019-0486-6. Accessed October 2025.
  6. Galvão DA, et al. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2018;50(3):393-399.
  7. Keilani M, et al. Wien Klin Wochenschr 2019;131:567-575.
  8. Bjerre ED, et al. Sports Medicine 2019;49:145-158.

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Suggested Reading

Take a look at our recent articles on advanced prostate cancer, including articles on how treatments work and additional support for your wellbeing.

MAT-GB-ENZ-2025-00003 November 2025