We at The Sherwood Clinic in Harrow offer a unique Cardiac Rehabilitation Programme: HEARTSMART.
Heart Rehabilitation, sometimes called cardiac rehab (CR), helps you to recover well from a coronary event and lead an active and healthy life. Whether you had a heart attack, a bypass surgery, a valve replacement or any kind of heart surgery, it is important to access your local CR programme. If you were diagnosed to have angina or heart failure, CR would help you to manage your symptoms effectively and improve your quality of life.
HEARSMART at The Sherwood Clinic is a comprehensive, supervised and personalized programme of structured exercise, education and mindfulness. We not only help you to return to your normal but support you at every stage of rehab so that you are fitter, stronger and confident to lead your life to its fullest.
No matter your age, gender, ethnicity or level of fitness, you can benefit from CR.
CR involves structured exercise training, emotional support and education about a heart-healthy lifestyle. Healthy lifestyle habits include eating a nutritious diet, managing weight and quitting smoking. It can reduce the risk of future heart trouble and death from heart disease.
HEART SMARTat The Sherwood Clinic is recognized by BHF/NACR*.
Typically, a CR Programme will progress through the four main phases:
Phase 1: Acute, In Hospital Patient Period
When you are in the hospital, the CR professionals will see you and offer an assessment, education, acute care physiotherapy as required and a discharge plan. The main goal for the first phase of CR is to enable you to leave the hospital and return home as quickly and safely as possible.
Phase 2: Subacute Outpatient Care
After you leave the hospital, you will be offered an appointment at an outpatient care facility. The aim is to help you become more independent to exercise and gain more information about your management. You will learn how to self-monitor your heart rate and exertion levels during exercise. This second phase will last between three and six weeks.
Phase 3: Intensive Outpatient Rehab
This involves structured exercise, education on nutrition, lifestyle and stress management. The main goal for Phase 3 of CR is to give you the tools to manage your heart condition independently and live a longer, happier and healthier life.
At The Sherwood Clinic, our highly trained physiotherapists will assess you before you begin the exercise programme. We will check your resting heart rate, blood pressure, respiration, endurance levels, and any issues with wound healing/scar management if you have had surgery. We will also take into account any associated health conditions you may have such as back pain, hip and knee arthritis, low mood, obesity as this can impact your ability to be active. We will carry out a fitness test (Modified Shuttle Walking Test) which would help you with your exercise prescription and progression.
Your exercise sessions will usually include a warm-up, cardiovascular exercises (such as the use of a stationary bike, cross trainer, treadmill, use of small to medium weights), and cool down. Depending on your physical condition, you may also be advised to include some resistance training. You will be encouraged to monitor your own response to exercise, including your heart rate, level of exertion, and blood pressure.
Following a successful completion of your CR programme, you will have clarity about your fitness status. You will feel confident about managing your symptoms. You will understand your medication well. You will know how to monitor your exertion levels and how to gradually build your fitness safely.
In addition, you will also have a good understanding of the elements of a heart-healthy lifestyle, eating well, and manage your stress levels. Hopefully, you will have successfully stopped smoking and made any necessary lifestyle changes to promote your overall well-being. Ideally, you will be experiencing fewer symptoms from your heart condition and be less likely to have a second event or need to return to the hospital.
Phase 4: Maintenance
Phase 4 essentially continues for the rest of your life. The goal of Phase 4 is to continue to maintain the changes to your lifestyle. It’s a progression from phase 3 into independently leading a healthy lifestyle. This includes regular cardiovascular exercise, avoid tobacco, eat healthy, and manage your stress.
We invite you to join our exercise classes at The Sherwood Clinic. Many prefer to attend these sessions which are led by experienced therapists. The weekly sessions boost your discipline and provide motivation and inspiration for improving fitness. Exercising with others is a great way to encourage each other and it’s a lot more fun!
Increasing your levels of activity can make a big difference to the quality of your life. You can experience better health, feel more energetic, more relaxed and less stressful. Your sleep pattern will improve. It will help with weight loss. With HEART SMART, you will not only feel improvement in your physical health but also your metal wellbeing. You will see improvement in your balance, strength, suppleness and mobility when you have stronger bones and muscles. It also gives you opportunity to meet other people, help you become more independent, boost your confidence and experience increased enjoyment of life. Our experienced therapists will help and guide you at every stage of your programme by personalising your plan, tailored for your needs. We will also guide you to continue being more active from all types of activities at home and not just formal exercise. Each exercise session is for an hour and includes warm up, aerobic and strength training, and cool down . Exercise is done at your own pace and is made enjoyable during the session with live music and constant interaction and feedback.
To improve your heart health and fitness, you should aim to exercise for at least 30 minutes for a minimum of five times during the week.
At The Sherwood Clinic, our programme HEART SMART is provided at both our branches- South Harrow and Edgware. To find out more about HEART SMART contact us on 02088690000 or email us on info@sherwoodtherapy.co.uk
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