Ian - Burnley
27 July 2018
Ian had a stent inserted following a heart attack in 2010, and another stent inserted in October 2017 after suffering with stable angina.
In 2017 he was diagnosed as pre-diabetic, and was also advised he had high blood pressure and cholesterol.
Prior to starting Up and Active’s Community Cardiac Rehabilitation I didn’t have an exercise regime other than walking the dog. After a stent was inserted in 2017, I was given information regarding the Up & Active programme in my local area from my cardiac nurse who referred me. I was given an appointment to complete an initial assessment and physical test. At this time my blood pressure was too high to exercise and so I was referred back to the GP. When my blood pressure had stabilised I returned to Community Cardiac Rehabilitation with Up and Active and chose circuit training as my preferred choice of exercise at Padiham Leisure Centre, starting on the 20th March 2018. I attended 12 weekly cardiac classes, which lasted 1 hour each week.
Whilst on the programme I have also been on a pre-diabetes course and I have been on a calorie-controlled diet, using the My Fitness Pal app. During the 12 week programme I have lost just over a stone in weight, going from 14st 2lb (89.8Kg) to 13st (82.5Kg), which is pleasingly a weight loss of 8%. As a result, I am more relaxed, I feel I have a lot more energy than previously and do not feel as tired at the end of the day. My Confidence has improved since starting the programme and I am now able to push myself further during exercise than I previously thought I could. It has given me a much more optimistic outlook on life. Over the 12 weeks, my blood pressure also returned to a healthier range after previously being too high for exercise.
I can do more household chores without feeling tired, especially gardening, so my wife is very happy!
At the end of the programme I completed a step test for the second time, which revealed that my fitness rating had improved from 'Good' to 'Excellent' over the 12 weeks.
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"I would definitely recommend the Up and Active course for cardiac patients, as it certainly helps you to get fitter. The supervision of trained tutors provided excellent support throughout and shows that cardiac problems don’t mean that you can’t exercise to a good level. I am carrying on with a further course for 12 weeks with the Up and Active Team to stay as fit as possible".