Yiannis Spetsakis

Cancer Survivor | Posts on cancer treatment recovery through exercise, nutrition, and sleep. Founder of Minoa Cancer Thrivers. Join below ⬇️

[Yiannis Spetsakis @YSpetsakis]

I was diagnosed with stage IV cancer 3 years ago.

The doctor said to me:

“The CT shows a rather large tumor right next to your heart.”

Those words shattered my reality.

Cancer.

Aggressive Stage 4 Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.

[Yiannis Spetsakis @YSpetsakis]

I'll end this thread with my favourite quote on this.

"Success comes down to doing the obvious thing for an extraordinary period of time, without convincing yourself that you’re smarter than you think you are."

- Shane Parrish

[Yiannis Spetsakis @YSpetsakis]

The 3 recovery principles that have served me the best after my stem cell transplant are:

1) The "Non-Zero" Mentality

🧵

[Yiannis Spetsakis @YSpetsakis]

But by sticking with the daily walks for long enough, I was able to build the right foundation to start lifting weights again.

[Yiannis Spetsakis @YSpetsakis]

What’s great is that the progressions are endless.

You can:
•Go deeper into the squat
•Add more reps
•Add pauses
•Add weight

Try them during your next workout.

And if you do, avoid stairs for the next 24 hours.

[Yiannis Spetsakis @YSpetsakis]

As of September 2025, 70% of my left hip is “dead” and my right hip has a drill bit stuck in it from a procedure I had back in 2023.

I have had avascular necrosis in both my hips for the last 3 years.

Which is a fancy way of saying that the bone in my hips are dying slowly. 🧵

[Yiannis Spetsakis @YSpetsakis]

For anyone who has tried these before, you know how difficult they are.

The first time I tried them, I struggled to go up and down stairs for the rest of the day.

But as I’ve continued to do them, my legs and my knees have felt better and better.

[Yiannis Spetsakis @YSpetsakis]

Finishing cancer treatment is way more anti-climactic than you expect.

It usually involves 24 hours of excitement followed by the realization that you don’t know if the cancer is in remission, all while needing to go through a long recovery before you can feel normal again.

[Yiannis Spetsakis @YSpetsakis]

You’re unmotivated because you’re not thinking beyond yourself.

We are okay with letting ourselves down. But not okay with letting others down.

Find someone you'd hate to let down, and do it for them.

[Yiannis Spetsakis @YSpetsakis]

Every cancer patient after they finish their treatments asks themselves:

“How am I possibly going to recover from this?”

And their answer depends on whether they believe there is something they can do to support their recovery.

[Yiannis Spetsakis @YSpetsakis]

You're not always going to feel motivated to work out.

But I've found that if you have a reason to start the workout anyway, the motivation will kick in after the first few sets.

[Yiannis Spetsakis @YSpetsakis]

The best training plan isn’t the one that science says is the most “optimal.”

It’s the one that you can actually stick to.

Especially when you don’t feel like it.