Many structured cardiac rehabilitation programmes encompass both an exercise and education programme. Programme lengths, frequency and format vary. Irrespective of format, the exercise component must include a warm up, conditioning phase and cool-down. Exercise prescription can be adjusted to meet the requirements of the patient. For health benefits, patients are encouraged to adopt an active lifestyle and incorporate physical activity into their daily routine. The recommendations to achieve this are to accumulate 30 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity on most days of the week. If the patient goal is to improve cardiovascular fitness then 2 -3 sessions of 45-60 minutes of continuous moderate intensity activity is recommended (inclusive of a 15 minute warm up and 10 minute cool down). Exercise should be monitored using heart rate, blood pressure, rating of perceived exertion (RPE), observations, or a combination of these.
A rehabilitation goal should be the self-monitoring of all physical activity and exercise by the patient. Consider Johns diary and how his activity has begun to form part of his changing lifestyle.
| Day | Week 1 | Week 8 |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | Cardiac Rehabilitation Class | CR Class |
| Tuesday | 15 min walk | 20 min cycle |
| Wednesday | 15 min walk | 30 min brisk walk |
| Thursday | Cardiac Rehabilitation Class | CR Class |
| Friday | 20 min walk | 30 min cycle |
| Saturday | – | Washed car |
| Sunday | – | Gardening |
Pulse point
All patients should engage in an exercise programme, tailored to their individual needs. This can be undertaken in a hospital, community or home setting. To produce a training effect the exercise prescription should consider the FITT principle:
- Frequency (how often)
- Intensity (how hard)
- Time (how long)
- Type (which mode)
Progression of physical activity should be based on agreed individual goals and on review of appropriate outcome measures eg functional capacity. Progression should also consider all elements of the FITT principle. It is usual to progress the duration of activity to recommended levels, before increasing exercise intensity.
Reference ACPICR : Association of Chartered Physiotherapists in Cardiac Rehabilitation
Page last reviewed: 27 Jul 2020
