Getting Started – Initial Intake Appointment
You will meet one-on-one with a nurse, physical therapist, and dietitian, who will assess your individual needs and health status.
The information from the initial intake will be used to create an individualized cardiac rehab treatment plan for you. After that you will be scheduled to join one of our weekly or biweekly group classes.
Cardiac Rehabilitation Classes
We offer two options.
- You can choose to attend sessions once a week for 12 weeks, or twice a week for eight weeks.
- Each session is two hours long and consists of 1 hour of exercise and 1 hour of education.
During the first hour of the session, participants will perform aerobic, resistance, and flexibility exercises. Staff will help guide you in using aerobic exercise equipment such as a treadmill, NuStep (seated stepper), elliptical, or stationary bike. Staff will monitor your heart rhythm and vital signs during exercise.
During the second hour, you will participate in an education discussion. Please see details below under “Education Topics.”
Cardiac Rehab Group Sessions Schedule
You will select a consistent day and time to attend sessions. Patients attend classes on the same day(s)/time each week to facilitate building relationships with staff and other participants.
We offer the following options for attending sessions once a week for 12 weeks:
Tuesdays
- 8-10 a.m. OR 10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. OR 4-6 p.m.
Wednesdays
- 4-6 p.m.
Thursdays
- 7-9 a.m. OR 10-12 noon OR 1-3 p.m.
We offer the following options for attending sessions twice a week for 8 weeks:
Mondays and Wednesdays
- 8-10 a.m. OR 10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. OR 1:30-3:30 p.m.
Education Topics
Our education classes will teach you about: exercise, heart disease risk factors, nutrition, resiliency, medications, and stress management.
Exercise
You will learn how to perform different types of exercise such as aerobic, strengthening, and stretching. We will explain the benefits of life-long exercise, and help you create an individualized home exercise program to continue after you complete the program.
Nutrition
Nutrition is one of the most powerful things you can do to aid in your recovery from your heart event, reduce your risk of future heart problems and prevent or reverse chronic diseases. Over the course of four lectures, you will gain the knowledge to use food as medicine and make lifestyle changes in your daily meals to: reduce inflammation, lower blood pressure, improve blood lipids and blood sugar, increase your immune response, and help lose weight if needed. The emphasis is adapting an eating pattern, not a diet. Topics you will learn about include: the Mediterranean Lifestyle, diving deep into label reading, discovering new cooking tips, clues to dining out, and navigating the grocery store to be a savvy shopper as well as the latest health topics in nutrition.
Resiliency
During the resiliency sessions you will learn how the mind body connection can facilitate healing after your heart event, the power of reducing stress in a positive way, and techniques to regain a sense of control in your life. The sessions will include examples of how to incorporate mindfulness into your daily life, how to gain strength and support from a social network, and the advantages of embarking on a new lifestyle to promote heart health.
Risk Factor Modification and Heart Health
Lead by our clinical nurses, the risk factor modification lectures identify factors that contribute to the formation of atherosclerosis in coronary artery disease and interventions that may reduce disease progression. To better understand heart disease and its management, an overview of common heart diseases, pertinent anatomy, and medications will be presented.
If you have questions about our program, please call 617-243-5218.
Please visit our YouTube channel (a few examples of activities are below).