“I embrace creative, authentic living, making my life post-cancer a joyful exercise in reinvention and adventure,” wrote the ‘Bollywood/Hollywood’ actor.

Lisa Ray may be 51 years old, but there is no stopping her from working out at the gym, and looking and feeling her fittest and healthiest. The cancer survivor and mother-of-two recently shared a heartfelt post on Instagram — along with an inspiring video of her workout sessions — on why staying physically active and fit is important to her, what drives her purpose, and why she prioritises self-love over everything else. In 2009, the model and actor was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, which is a rare cancer of the white blood cells called plasma cells. The following year, in 2010, Ray announced she was cancer-free after undergoing an autologous stem cell transplant using her own stem cells.

“My name is Lisa Ray. I’m 51 years old and I’m committed to a lifelong practice of transformation. I have a genetic predisposition to challenging the status quo,” Ray began her post. Alongside ran a video montage of the various high-intensity workouts that she performed at the gym. They comprised lifting weights, doing kettlebell exercises, and chest workouts. She called exercising the ‘best non-refundable thing’ in life.

“…when it comes to the ‘normal’ things that are expected of me, I say, ‘What rules?!’ I embrace creative, authentic living, making my life post-cancer a joyful exercise in reinvention and adventure,” wrote the ‘Bollywood/Hollywood‘ actor.

“My guiding mantra is: ‘At the end, I don’t want to think I should have, I could have, I would have.’ Rather, I tried,” Ray added. She also shared that in 2024, she has committed herself to becoming the best version of herself as a menopausal mom. “I’m a proud mom of five-year-old twins. And keeping up with them is a priority.” Ray and her husband Jason Dehni married in 2012 and welcomed their twin daughters via surrogacy in 2018.

The actor said in her post that she has been working out with fitness coach Suhan Khan to ‘get real results, get fit, disciplined and have a blast’. “I’ve been working out with weights for decades, but it used to feel like a burden, almost a punishment and a way to chase some unrealistic body standard, fed by fear and insecurity,” Ray confessed.

Now, however, her fitness is ‘driven by inner wellness and self-love’ and a ‘desire to feel strong and limber rather than chase an external ideal’. According to Ray, eating clean, staying on track with her workouts, pursuing her spiritual and self-development interests, along with a generous dose of ‘bio-hacking’ give her a ‘strong foundation’ from which to do anything she pleases.

“Taking care of yourself, ladies, is not selfish. And it is not optional. It is essential. And I found that out the hard way. Follow along. I’m so kicked to be alive,” she ended her post.

According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), there are specific studies that suggest physical activity may help cancer survivors live longer by reducing the risk of cancer recurrence or slowing cancer progression and reducing the risk of other life-threatening diseases, including second primary cancers.

“The results generally show that higher physical activity is associated with lower rate of breast and colon cancer recurrences, cancer specific mortality and all causes of mortality,” it states, adding that the main health-related types of exercise are: aerobic, resistance and flexibility. And the best mode of exercise depends on the person’s goals, health status, exercise history and cancer experience.