- Experts warn that exercise is not appropriate for all patients with heart failure. If you have heart failure, always consult your doctor before starting an exercise program.
- People who are approved for, but not used to, exercise should start with 5 to 15 minutes of easy exercise with frequent breaks. Although the goal is to build up to 30 to 45 minutes of walking, swimming, or low-impact aerobic exercises three to five times every week, even shorter times spent exercising are useful.
Studies report benefits from specific exercises:
- Progressive strength training may be particularly useful for patients with heart failure since it strengthens muscles, which commonly deteriorate in this disorder. Strength training typically uses light weights, weight machines, or even the body's weight (leg raises or sit-ups, for example). Even simply performing daily handgrip exercises can improve blood flow through the arteries.
- Patients who exercise regularly using supervised treadmill and stationary-bicycle exercises increase their exercise capacity by 14 - 36%. In one study, patients as old as 91 years old increased their oxygen consumption significantly after 6 months of supervised treadmill and stationary bicycle exercises. Exercising the legs may help correct problems in heart muscles. In one study, patients who did leg extension exercises for 8 weeks had higher levels of an enzyme involved in forming new blood vessels. Exercise has also been associated with reduced inflammation in blood vessels.
Bed Rest
Bed rest may be required in cases of severe heart failure. To reduce congestion in the lungs, the patient's upper body should be elevated. For most patients, resting in an armchair is better than lying in bed. Relaxing and contracting leg muscles is important to prevent clots. As the patient improves, a doctor will progressively recommend more activity.
Warm Baths and Saunas
Experts have traditionally recommended that people with heart failure avoid warm baths, which can increase the heart rate. Some studies now report that carefully controlled bathing for short periods may not be harmful and may actually be beneficial, reducing irregular heart beats and increasing cardiac output and ejection fraction. Warm water may behave like a vasodilating drug, opening up the vessels gently and improving circulation. In clinical trials, patients sat in warm water or a dry sauna for 10 minutes, with their bodies tilted at a 45 degree angle.
Warning Note: Prolonged periods in hot or even warm conditions can be dangerous. Any patient with heart failure should consult the doctor first, not bathe unaccompanied, and be sure that the temperature does not go above 106 degrees Fahrenheit for water bathing or 140 degrees Fahrenheit for dry saunas.
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