The additional components of diet counseling, risk factor management, and group sessions are all important in learning a healthful life style. The patient must choose life style adjustments in order to fully recover. Exercise is the key component of Cardiac Rehabilitation. Physical inactivity is a risk factor for heart disease, related to cardiac mortality. Exercise training also has an independent, modest blood pressure lowering effect in certain hypertensive patients.
Exercise promotes weight loss.
In combination with diet, exercise can lower lipids enough to reduce or eliminate pharma-co therapy. It can also ease depression. Supervised cardiac rehab programs carry a low risk if patients are properly selected and surveillance is adequate. There should be a 5 minute warm up and cool down period. Whether exercise training should be pursued at home or in a structured, supervised setting, depends on the patients physical condition, level of education, motivation and safety of the home environment.