Exercise Plan

You can do the exercises throughout the recovery process. You may start them while you are still a patient on critical care.

Your exercise goals will be documented in this booklet.

Each individual exercise will be numbered, and the physiotherapist will recommend which exercises you should be completing, the number of repetitions of each exercise and the number of times in a day you should complete each individual exercise.

It is important that you record the exercises you have been doing, then you are able to track your progress and recovery.

Once you are discharged home you can begin to make the exercises harder so that your strength continues to improve.

Following the programme can be very tiring but in the long term it will aid your recovery and assist you to recover more quickly.

Important points about exercise

Follow the instructions in the exercise plan.

• Do not try to do too much too soon, because this will just make you feel overtired and disheartened. It is all about pacing yourself.
• If you have had a bad day, do not get upset about it. Everyone feels like that at some time. Ask yourself if you have been doing rather more than normal over the past few days. This may explain why you feel a bit tired.
• Always warm up and cool down before and after your exercise.
• Allow two hours after eating before you exercise, to allow food to be fully digested.
• If you feel unwell reduce your normal level of exercise until you feel well again.

Getting back to day-to-day life

When you have been ill, it can take a while to get back to feeling your normal self. It can be quite a shock how difficult it is to try to do your normal activities. You may get tired very easily. Even simple things, like washing and dressing, can be exhausting to start with. Remember you have had a serious illness. You will be very weak, and your body has a lot of work to do to get back to being fit. It is important to be realistic in what you expect yourself to be able to do.

Make sure you:

• Pace yourself. Try to do a small activity and then plan to rest. This stops you exhausting yourself by doing too much at once.
• Set yourself realistic and simple goals. This will show you how much you are improving. A goal that is unachievable will leave you feeling discouraged.
• Look back at what you could do initially and compare it too now. You will be surprised how much more you can do!
• Use the exercises in this leaflet to help improve your strength and fitness.
• Return to normal hobbies gradually. Remember that your body will be less fit than before you were ill. Start with a small amount and slowly increase time and difficulty.

Here are some of the exercises that people who have been on intensive care have taken up. You may feel now that you will never be able to get fit enough to try any of these.

• Walking (indoors and outdoors)
• Bowling
• Ball room dancing
• Swimming
• Cycling
• Gardening
• Yoga
• Golf

Recovering from a critical illness can be a long, gradual process. Following the exercises and advice in this leaflet will help.

Keep up the hard work!