A heart bypass is a medical surgical procedure to address vein blockages to continue normal supply of blood to all parts of the body. If these blockages are not addressed, vital organs may cease to function and can lead to fatality. However, a successful heart bypass does not end on the operating table. Patients should keep in mind that post-operative care and exercises are as important as the surgical procedure itself.
Cardiac Rehabilitation Program
After undergoing a heart surgery, the person will observe that his daily activities have slowed down. Cardiac rehabilitation program must be carried out in order to help your body recover by regaining the person's strength, preventing the heart condition from worsening, and reducing risks of developing other heart ailments in the future. A physician must be consulted on the appropriate rehabilitation program and exercise; many hospitals around the country offer this kind of program, which patients can enroll into. A series of heart exercises is an integral part of cardiac rehabilitation programs.
Pre-exercise Requirements
Full checkup and screenings such as "stress tests" should be conducted before undergoing heart exercises to see how well the heart is working. This will help in designing the most fit cardiac rehabilitation exercise for the patient.
Comfortable clothing should be worn during cardiac exercises. Proper clothing enables a patient to breathe normally, and prevents any restrictions in movement, which can cause injuries.
Also, the patient has to make sure there is an apparatus or a person to monitor his vital signs. If cardiac rehabilitation exercises are conducted inside a hospital, it is usually the nurses that keep track of the patient's heart rate before, during, and after cardiac rehabilitation exercises. However, if the patient does the exercises at home, he should strictly follow his physician's guidelines and reminders about vital signs during exercises.
Warm-up
Cardiac rehabilitation exercises start with stretching. This phase of the exercise includes limb exercises such as knee bends, leg lifts, arm and shoulder circles, overhead reaches, and head and neck movements. Physicians create a warm-up program, which includes the specific stretching exercises and duration, depending on the patient's body condition. But usually, warm-up lasts for 10 minutes.
Walking
Walking is a core of cardiac exercises. Through walking, a person's leg strength and endurance is brought back. A patient can initially start walking, on a treadmill or outdoors, at a low speed. After a significant duration of time has passed, he can gradually increase his speed. Furthermore, length of cardiac rehabilitation exercise should be in steady increments as well. The patient should never immediately subject himself to stressful exercises, as the body is still on the process of recovering from the heart surgery.
Lifestyle Education
Cardiac rehabilitation exercises should be supported by lifestyle education. Through proper education, unhealthy eating habits and activities can be addressed to support performance in rehabilitation exercises and to manage a fast recovery from the heart bypass operation. Likewise, proper lifestyle education helps protect a person from future heart diseases.
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