Compliance and Motivation in Cardiac Exercise Programs

Effects of Tai Chi-based cardiac rehabilitation on aerobic endurance, psychosocial well-being, and cardiovascular risk reduction among patients with coronary heart disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis

“…This group allocation was based on the hypothesis that participation and adherence would improve when patients choose the intervention that suited their needs. 45 Compared with Chen’s study, 39 no significant change in blood lipids was noted, and this finding may be attributed to two reasons. First, the blood cholesterol level of most participants was already within the normal range at baseline.…”

Effects of aerobic or aerobic and resistance training on cardiorespiratory and skeletal muscle function in heart failure: a randomized controlled pilot trial

“…Therefore, the effectiveness of cardiac rehabilitation programmes to improve Vo 2peak and quality of life in a general population of heart failure patients in everyday clinical practice may be reduced due to high non-compliance rates. Considering the multiple physiological and clinical benefits of exercise training in heart failure patients, 19 high drop-out rates from the long-term exercise interventions, 20 and a quick loss of benefits of exercise training with an inactive lifestyle, 21 it is essential to design enjoyable and safe cardiac rehabilitation programmes with additional personal support to increase adherence and promote regular physical activity in heart failure patients. 20,22 There are several limitations to this investigation.…”

“…Considering the multiple physiological and clinical benefits of exercise training in heart failure patients, 19 high drop-out rates from the long-term exercise interventions, 20 and a quick loss of benefits of exercise training with an inactive lifestyle, 21 it is essential to design enjoyable and safe cardiac rehabilitation programmes with additional personal support to increase adherence and promote regular physical activity in heart failure patients. 20,22 There are several limitations to this investigation. First, the small sample size may have provided insufficient power to detect significant differences in some outcome measures between the aerobic training and combined aerobic and resistance training interventions.…”

How important are individual counselling, expectancy beliefs and autonomy for the maintenance of exercise after cardiac rehabilitation?

“…Research on adherence to lifestyle changes has shown an overall low compliance. Of people enrolling in exercise-based CR, approximately 50% drop out within the first 6-12 months [13]. In a prospective study of 2441 CR patients, cardiac risk factors deteriorated after 12 months' follow-up [14].…”

“…Self-efficacy was associated with increased exercise both in a cardiac outpatient setting [16] and in a primary care setting [17]. Patient motivation may be the single most important factor in successful CR, and several researchers have called for a focus on individual needs and goal settings to promote maintenance of lifestyle changes [13,18,19]. The useful integration of SDT and SCT has previously been proposed and interventions to increase self-efficacy and autonomous self-regulation are recommended [20].…”