Exercise Preconditioning With Cancer Surgeries

Studies have shown that people who are more physically fit prior to surgery do better after surgery. For this reason, it may be helpful for people who are going to have abdominal surgery for cancer to exercise before surgery to increase fitness. In this study, patients will be assigned to either maintain their current activity, or increase activity to 5 days a week, 40 minutes per day, of either continuous moderate activity or intervals of moderate and vigorous activity (three groups). All participants will wear an Apple watch, and participants in the exercise groups will use a smartphone application to get feedback on activity and encouragement to reach activity goals.