Estate Living Magazine Smart Moves - Issue 38 February 2019 | Page 35

C O M M U N I T Y
L I V I N G
of cardiac arrest – three of which were fatal. That’s not a lot – it’s
one heart attack in 120,000 patient-hours of exercise, and one death
for every 160,000 patient-hours. Those are good odds, but they
indicate that exercise after any form of cardiac event is not without
its risks. So don’t go it alone, don’t be tough, don’t be macho, get
professional advice, don’t overdo it, and listen to your doctor. It’s a
marathon, not a sprint.
Take heart
other health issues – but what if the ‘horse has already bolted’? Is
there any value in closing that stable door?
It’s easy to fall into a pit of despair and think your life is over, but it
isn’t. Cardiac rehabilitation really works. A different study – also at
the Johannesburg Cardiac Rehabilitation Centre – documents 387
patients between June 1986 and July 1988. Most had had a heart
attack and/or a bypass. The stats are interesting. On admission, 73%
of participants smoked, 26% had high blood pressure, and 34% had
The answer is an unequivocal – but qualified – yes!
Easy, Tiger!
During the course of the 480,000 person-hours of exercise
accumulated by the 1,574 participants, there were four episodes
I
A study of 1,574 patients at the Johannesburg Cardiac Rehabilitation
Centre from its inception in September 1982 to July 1988 showed
that cardiac rehabilitation was definitely effective in prolonging life
and improving quality of life – but that it was not without its risks.
There’s nothing like a near-death experience to get you to reassess
your values – and your lifestyle – and a cardiac incident is a ‘message
from the heart’ to let you know it’s time to take control of your life –
and lifestyle. But it is tempting to overcompensate, so probably the
one message you should ‘take to heart’ is to ‘listen to your heart’ –
and to your doctor.