Exercise After A Heart Attack

What is the difference between aerobic and anaerobic exercise?

Aerobic exercise promotes cardiovascular fitness by raising your pulse to a targeted level. It helps to strengthen the heart strengthen your heart, and allows the heart to pump more blood.. Some examples of aerobic exercise are walking, jogging, bicycling and swimming. Heart rate has to be maintained for at least 15 minutes to obtain the cardiovascular benefits.

Anaerobic exercise focuses on specific muscles and their size,endurance, and strength.Weight lifting and resistance training are examples of anaerobic exercise. 

How long should each aerobic exercise session be?

This varies depending on the patient’s physical condition and goals. In general 1 hour a day at least 5 days a week is recommended. For aerobic fitness shorter durations of 10-15 minutes two to three times a day may be beneficial. For weight loss, longer exercise durations of at least 30 minutes is preferred. Longer is better: at least 30 minutes with 40 to 60 minutes preferred to burn fat. Here are some studies with their recommendations 1.

How many times each week should I exercise?

Aerobic exercise is recommended every day as best and at least 5 times a week.

In general CR (Cardio Rehabilitation) programs last one hour [15 min warm up and strength exercises 30 min of aerobics (walking, biking, dancing etc. - always based on heart rate guidelines of 70% of maximal safe heart rate and 15 minutes cool down with stretching and relaxation) There is no benefit to attempting to obtain a higher heart rate above 70% your maximum. Everyone is encouraged to exercise daily for at least 30 minutes with specific guidelines based on their heart health etc. Most people go to formal CR classes 3 times per week. Levels are advanced based on capacity and other criteria such as orthopedic concerns, age, balance, other co-morbidities.

Wouldn't hard exercise make it more likely to have a heart attack?

This depends on your physical condition. If you are in a good physical shape then appropriate exercise should not cause a heart attack, but if you are not conditioned then increasing physical demand on your body and heart may cause symptoms or heart attack.

However, it should be noted that there are those who are in good physical shape but who experience a heart attack due to plaque rupture and not to is chemia. It is unknown if these ruptures may be triggered by exercise.

What range should you try to keep your heart rate in when you exercise?

A general rule is 190-your age which equals 85% of maximum heart rate. An exercise prescription may also be given so that if the exercise is supervised then the patient can go to 85% of maximum heart rate obtained on a treadmill test. If the exercise is unsupervised, then the goal is 70% of maximum heart rate obtained on a treadmill test. Use this calculator for a rough guide, but ask your own doctor for personal exercise recommendations.

Is there a minimum heart rate I should try to achieve during exercise?

To provide a benefit to your heart you should try to attain at least 50% of your maximum heart rate during a aerobic exercise session.

How many times each week should I exercise?

Aerobic exercise is recommended every day as best and at least 5 times a week.

In general CR (Cardio Rehabilitation) programs last one hour [15 min warm up and strength exercises 30 min of aerobics (walking, biking, dancing etc. - always based on heart rate guidelines of 70% of maximal safe heart rate and 15 minutes cool down with stretching and relaxation) There is no benefit to attempting to obtain a higher heart rate above 70% your maximum. Everyone is encouraged to exercise daily for at least 30 minutes with specific guidelines based on their heart health etc. Most people go to formal CR classes 3 times per week. Levels are advanced based on capacity and other criteria such as orthopedic concerns, age, balance, other co-morbidities.

What is supervised aerobic exercise?


Most times this refers to participation in a cardio rehab program. You attend an exercise session at a center staffed by nurses and physical therapists trained in working with patients post heart attack. During exercise you wear a heart rate monitor and the staff keeps a close watch on your heart rate.

How can you tell what your heart rate is?

You can check your own pulse, but a much easier and more reliable method would be to get a personal heart rate monitor.

What is a personal heart rate monitor?


These devices usually consist of two parts. An elastic strap with a transmitting device goes around your chest. Heart rate data goes wirelessly from the transmitter in the strap to a special watch on your wrist. You can read your heart rate on the watch as well as other useful functions. Some models sense your heart rate right from your wrist and do not require a chest strap.

What other functions do heart rate monitors have?

Almost all act as a standard watch, most as stop watches. Many have alarms to let you know if you are excersizing at a heart rate too low to help your heart as well as an alarm if you get your heart rate over your target to where it might present a danger. Some models interface with a computer for tracking. Often standard treadmills, exercise cycles, steppers or other cardio machines in a gym have heart monitors built in that read the signals from your regular chest strap transmitter on their own display without the need to wear the watch part.

How much do personal heart rate monitors cost?

The most well known personal heart rates monitors come from Polar, you may even see on cardio machines that they work with Polar equipment. In some cases people use "Polar" for heart rate monitors like they use the name "Kleenex" for tissues, but Polar represents a specific manufacturer. Polar heart rate monitors start at about $80. Other brands without the Polar name will do the job too and even work with Polar cardio machines as they all use the same frequencies to transmit your heart rate from the strap to the receiver either in the heart monitor watch or the gym equipment. You can find personal heart rate monitors starting at around $40 or less. With fancy features you may see some personal heart rate monitors priced over $400.

Where do you buy personal heart rate monitors?

Online, many sites will even offer free shipping on Polar or inexpensive heart monitors. You may find personal heart rate monitors in a local sports store too, try the running department or sports watch areas.

Are there special personal heart rate monitors for women?

Yes, a personal heart rate monitor for a woman might have a smaller watch face on the monitor and a smaller wrist band.

If you are wearing a personal heart monitor with an alarm in you exceed your target heart rate would that be considered supervised aerobic exercise?

No, for definition as supervised exercise you need trained staff with you in addition to having your heart rate monitored. This should not belittle the benefit of wearing a personal heart rate monitor when you exercise on your own?

Why would you want a personal heart rate monitor for unsupervised aerobic exercise?

Patients find these devices very helpful. Keeping your heart rate in the desired range during aerobic exercise holds the key to gaining the cardio benefits of the workout. If you do not get your heart rate up high enough you are not doing enough to help your heart. If you increase your heart rate too high you risk another heart attack. Taking your own pulse while you exercise can be difficult and inaccurate. Personal heart rate monitors help you to keep in the proper range and get the most out of your aerobic exercise time. Many people also find comfort in the heart rate readings to know they have a safe pace. People instructed by their doctors not to exceed a certain maximum heart rate might find themselves scared to push to hard and not workout hard enough, or go too hard because they have no accurate way to see their own heart rate and risk problems. A personal heart monitor helps on both ends of the spectrum, allowing the patient to exercise with more comfort and confidence. After a heart attack this can become quite important.

Where should you set the upper and lower limits on your personal heart rate monitor?


While you can use some of the information above as a start, this question really should be answered by your own physician based on your own age, health, risk factors and medications.

What do medications have to do with it?

Drugs such as beta blockers change your heart rate, so when recomending the proper heart rate for aerobic exercise the effect of the medicine must be taken into account.

What should you do if you exceed your target heart rate and the alarm on your heart monitor sounds?

Generally slow down. In most cases you should not abruptly stop your exercise unless you also have other symptoms. Look and the monitor and slow up until your heart rate gets back into the proper range and continue your workout. You can check you your own doctor for a personal answer to this part, but sometimes for a very short period of time if you have the proper conditioning going over a bit can be acceptable. An example of this would be someone who has returned to good physical condition and exceeds their target heart rate just before the top of a hill while bicycle riding. Going a little further at just a little over the target rate would be alright, but ask your own doctor what you should do in such a case.

My personal heart rate monitor stopped working?
Start by checking both the batteries, remember there is a battery in the wrist monitor and another in the chest transmitter.

Why does losing weight help lower the risk of a heart attack?


Losing weight helps lower lipids/cholesterol, blood pressure and the general work load on the heart.

If adjusting diet and exercise isn't enough what drugs can help?

Lifestyle changes do make a difference in heart disease. In addition to diet and exercise cholesterol lowering medications and anti-hypertensives help reduce the risk for heart disease. Learn more in the heart drug FAQ.

Does excersise help your heart in any other ways?

Exercise may help develop collaterals.

What are collaterals?

Arteries which grow to help circulate blood by circumventing the clogged arteries.

Strength & Stretch with the FitBALL Roller

This routine offers exercises using a either a foam roller or, as shown, a FitBall Roller. The FitBall Roller works the same as a foam roller, but has more give to it, which may make some exercises more comfortable or more difficult, depending on the move. The roller is a great tool for adding support or for adding challenge to traditional exercises, but it's hard to know exactly how to use it in your workouts. The following moves, which generally target the core, lower body and flexibility, are some examples of moves you can try using a foam or FitBALL Roller.

• Beginners, perform 1 set of each strength exercise for 8-16 reps. Stretches can be done as many times as you like.

• Int/Advanced Options:

  • Perform 2-3 sets of 10-16 reps of each exercise with a short rest in between

  • Perform each move for 10-16 reps (or for a timed interval), one after the other for 1-3 circuits

  • Alternate a each exercise, performing each for 10-16 reps, with no rest between sets

Pushup On Roller In pushup position (on knees or toes) place hands on roller a bit wider than shoulder-width apart. Lower into a pushup, keeping back straight and abs in. Push up and repeat. Placing just one hand on the roller and one on the floor makes this move easier.
Back Extension on Roller Lie face down on floor with arms stretched out in front, wrists resting on roller. Squeeze the shoulder blades together and down and keep the abs contracted as you press into the roller, lifting the chest off the floor. Lower and repeat.
Front Body Stretch With the roller under the hips, place hands on the floor and stretch up, looking up at the ceiling and feeling a stretch in the chest and abs. Hold for 10-30 seconds.
One-Legged Hip Extension on Roller With the roller under the hips and chin resting on forearms, bend one leg until the shin is perpendicular to the floor. Keep the abs in and squeeze the glutes to lift the bent leg straight up, sole of the foot towards the ceiling. Try not to arch the back.
Bent-Leg Hip Extension on Roller In the same position as the previous exercise, bend both legs, squeeze the feet together and lift the feet up towards the ceiling, using only the glutes and not the back.
Straight Leg Extension on Roller In the same position as the previous move, straighten the legs behind you and squeeze the glutes to lift the legs, again, without arching the back.
Bridge on Roller Lying face up, position feet on roller, knees bent and hands at your sides. Slowly, uncurl your spine off the mat, one vertebrae at a time until you're in a bridge position, body in a straight line from knees to head. Lower and repeat.
One-Legged Bridge In the same position as previous move, extend one leg out, keeping it even with the other leg. Roll the body off the mat as high as you can into bridge position. Roll down and repeat all reps on the same leg before switching sides.
Outer Thigh Stretch on Roller From the previous exercise, keep one leg on roller and cross the other foot over the knee. Use the foot to roll the roller towards you to deepen the stretch in the glutes. Hold for 10-30 seconds and repeat on the other side.
Side Leg Lift on Roller Lie on your side with the roller under the hip. Rest on your forearm and take the top arm in front of you, hand on floor for support. Life the top leg up, foot flexed, squeezing the outer thigh. For a challenge, keep that leg up and try to lift the bottom leg up to meet it (this is tough!). Lower and repeat before switching sides.
Roll-Ups on Roller Lie vertically on the roller, knees bent and feet in front of you. Cross your arms over the chest or extend them in front of you as you roll up off the roller. At the top, reach the arms out then lower and repeat.
Reverse Crunch on Roller In the same position as previous move, contract the abs and bring one knee up towards the chest. If that's challenging, continue for all reps and switch sides. For more challenge, after you bring one knee up, bring the other knee up as well. Then lower one foot at a time, alternating sides. Don't arch the back.
Modified Crunch on Roller Place the roller behind the mid-lower back and cross arms over the chest. Squeeze the abs and crunch up, allowing the roller to support the back. Lower and repeat.
Hamstring Stretch Sit on the roller and stretch the legs straight out in front of you, feet flexed. Keeping the back straight, tilt forward from the hips while reaching out with your hands, stretching the hamstrings. Hold for 10-30 seconds.
Inner Thigh Stretch In the same position as previous move, bend the knees and bring the heels together in front of you, gently stretching forward and feeling it in the inner thighs.
Chest Stretch While seated on roller, place hands behind you on the floor, arch the back slightly and open the chest up, stretching through the chest and shoulders.

Form Pointers:

• The roller is not a stable surface, so take care when using it and make sure you have control during each exercise.

• In some exercises, the roller provides added support (as in the hamstring and inner thigh stretch) which may make some moves more comfortable. In other moves (as in the pushups and leg lifts), the roller adds difficulty and intensity. Be aware of how the roller changes the exercises and take your time learning the moves.

Heart Diet and Exercise

Your doctor says you need to make some changes in your life: Start a heart-healthy diet, exercise a little, stop smoking, and more. You also walked away with some medication to take. Perhaps you're wondering: Why can't medicine alone do the trick? Does lifestyle really make a difference?

The Truth About Lifestyle and Heart Disease

The truth is, drugs won't cure heart disease, though it can certainly help control it. That means your lifestyle does matter -- a lot.

For starters, it's likely that some aspects of your lifestyle may have put you at risk for heart disease. These are called risk factors. Here's a list of common risk factors for heart disease:

• Smoking tobacco
• Having high blood pressure
• Being overweight
• Having unhealthy blood fat and cholesterol levels
• Having diabetes
• Being physically inactive
• Being over 55 years old for men and over 65 years old for women
• Having family members who had heart disease or a heart attack early in life: under 55 for your father or brother; under 65 for your mother or sister

Some heart disease risk factors you can't control, such as your age or health problems of your parents. However, some risk factors are related to your lifestyle, such as smoking, being overweight, and having an unhealthy diet. These lifestyle factors may have helped contribute to your heart disease. And these same risk factors will continue to make your heart disease get worse.

Luckily, the opposite is true as well. Adopting a heart-healthy diet and a healthier lifestyle can improve your health, even if you already have high blood pressure or other forms of heart disease. Here's what a heart-healthy lifestyle can do for you:

• Lower your blood pressure
• Lower your bad cholesterol and triglyceride (blood fat) levels
• Ease the stress on your heart
• Lower your risk of heart attack
• Lower your risk of stroke
• Prolong your life

Choosing a heart-healthy diet and lifestyle can even help your medications work more effectively. In some cases you might even be able to reduce or eliminate some medications.

But what exactly is a heart-healthy lifestyle? And how do you get started in making changes toward one? Let's take a closer look at seven lifestyle areas where changes can make a huge difference to your heart health:

• Smoking
• Body weight
• Diet
• Use of sodium
• Exercise
• Alcohol
• Stress control

Smoking and Your Heart

Let's get right to the bad news you probably already know: Smoking hurts your heart and blood vessels -- not to mention your lungs. Here's how:

• Nicotine from cigarettes tightens your blood vessels, which causes your blood pressure to rise and makes your heart work harder.
• Smoking lowers the amount of oxygen and increases the amount of poisonous carbon monoxide in your blood. Your heart ends up needing more oxygen but has less ability to get it. This increases the chances of having a heart attack.