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and further risks of cardiovascular disease is a critical fitness industry intervention. As an example, a middle aged woman, doing less than 60 minutes of exercise per week, doubles her risk of dying from a cardiovascular event compared to a physically active woman of the same age. If that minimally active woman was a loved one, wouldn’t you want someone to help and support her to get physically active?
day you will realise that by “prescribing exercise” for your client, you have helped save their life.
80% PREVENTABLE
A basic form of brief intervention, is to ask your clients to start a daily, walking programme (11), and sit much, much, less. Suggest they aim for at least 150 minutes each week of moderate ‘effort’ exercise. Follow up with each client, at each visit, on that exercise advice. Monitor the “exercise prescription”.
By choosing to offer a medicine that’s evidence based (12), easy to take, has few harmful side effects, and great health outcome data, you can feel that you have excelled in your health and fitness practice. Clients may be reluctant to take your advice and the ‘medicine’. But the skills of a REPs registered fitness professional can support each client to enjoy regular physical activity!
All ‘exercise referral’ and Level 4 fitness professionals can make the difference to help reduce physical inactivity by 10% and to confidently offer a range of disease specific exercises for all suitable clients. This, in conjunction with the medical treatments, will provide an effective approach to improving patient and public health, and be a combined strategy to reducing inactivity in clients with chronic diseases.
By encouraging clients to be more active on a daily basis and helping them choose to improve their leisure physical activities and maybe even try a sporting activity, this new approach has the ability to develop healthier lifestyles within your communities. Perhaps, one
ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS ONLINE TO EARN CPD POINTS
To give your answers please visit www. exerciseregister.org under ‘CPD & Training’ and select ‘Free Online CPD’.
Q1 Q2 Q3
What percentage of the global population is not sufficiently active? a) 80% b) 60% c) 40%
What is the global target to reduce premature deaths caused by cardio vascular diseases by 2025? a) 15% b) 10% c) 25%
In 2012, how many minutes of exercise per week did the World Heart Foundation ask patients to do? a) 60 b) 100 c) 150
17 MILLION CVD DEATHS PER YEAR
Heart health is important. It is essential that all clients are supported to enjoy daily exercise and physical activities that reduce their risks of heart disease. Help clients ask for support to access exercises of their choice, from you or their health and social care provider.
Globally, the Champion Advocates Programme is a World Heart Federation (WHF) initiative whose goal is to reduce premature deaths caused by cardiovascular disease (CVD) by 25% by 2025.
It’s an ambitious goal but one that I would love the health,
sports and exercise communities to embrace and champion because, since when did doctors, allied health professionals and fitness professionals, around the world, not rise to a significant clinical challenge and deliver world class medicine!
Info graphics courtesy of the World Heart Federation Champion Advocates Programme.
References 1) Pratt, M et al (2012) The cost of physical inactivity: moving into the 21st century. British Journal of Sports Medicine. [Online] 091810. Available from: http://bjsm.bmj.com/content/early/2012/11/06/bjsports-2012-091810 2) WHO. (2014) Physical Inactivity: A Global Health Problem [Online] Available from http://www.who.int/dietphysicalactivity/factsheet_inactivity/en/ 3) Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. (2013) Relationship of Sedentary Behavior and Physical Activity to Cardiovascular Disease Risk. Available from: http://www.cdc.gov/dhdsp/pubs/docs/SIB_Aug2013.pdf 4) World Heart Federation. Infographic on Physical Activity. Available from http://www.world-heart-federation.org/what-we-do/advocacy/healthy-diet- and-physical-activity/infographic-on-physical-activity/ 5) Gates, A (2012) A Call to Action to ALL health professionals: Giving exercise advice and support to EVERY patient: Part 2. 16 May. BJSM Blog. [Online] Available from: http://blogs.bmj.com/bjsm/2012/05/16/a-call-to-action-to-all- health-professionals-giving-exercise-advice-and-support-to-every-patient- part-2/
6) Sallis, R. (2014) Developing healthcare systems to support exercise: exercise as the fifth vital sign. British Journal of Sports Medicine. [Online] Available from http://bjsm.bmj.com/content/45/6/473.full.pdf+html 7) WHO. (2014) Physical Activity. [Online] Available from http://www.who.int/ topics/physical_activity/en/ 8) Manson, JE et al (2002) Walking compared with vigorous exercise for the prevention of cardiovascular events in women. N Engl J Med. 5;347(10), p.716-25. Available from: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ pubmed/12213942?dopt=Abstract 9) BMJ. 2013;347:f5577 Available from: http://www.bmj.com/content/347/ bmj.f5577 10) CPD for General Practitioners. Cardio Respiratory Health . [Online] Available from: http://gpcpd.walesdeanery.org/index.php/health-benefits-of- physical-activity/cardio-respiratory 11) Everybody Walk. 2011. Bob Sallis, MD: Walking and Heart Disease. [Online] Available from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OotS8POVaDE 12) DocMikeEvans. 2011. 23 and 1/2 hours: What is the single best thing we can do for our health?. [Online] Available from: http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=aUaInS6HIGo
THE AUTHOR Ann Gates BPharm(Hons) MRPharmS, is the Founder and Director of Exercise Works! . She is also a Member of the WHF Champion Advocates Programme - Emerging Leaders Programme. This article is an excerpt from a blog series for the British Journal of Sports Medicine. To read more by Ann visit www.exercise-works.org
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