Nordic Walking May Safely Increase the Intensity of Exercise Training in Healthy Subjects and in Patients with Chronic Heart Failure.

Background: Physical activity in patients with chronic heart failure (HF) improves the exercise capacity and quality of life, and may also reduce mortality and hospitalizations. The greatest benefits are achieved through high-intensity aerobic exercises resulting in a stronger cardiorespiratory response. Nordic walking (NW), a walking technique using two poles and mimicking the movements performed while cross-country skiing, is associated with the involvement of more muscle groups than in the case of classic walking, and should therefore make it possible to increase exercise intensity, resulting in more effective training for patients with HF.

Distance covered during a six-minute walk test predicts long-term cardiovascular mortality and hospitalisation rates in men with systolic heart failure: an observational study.

Question: Does the distance covered during a 6-minute walk test predict risk of death or hospitalisation for cardiovascular reasons in men with stable heart failure over three years of follow-up?

Design: Prospective observational study.

Participants: 243 men with stable systolic heart failure, with a mean age of 60 yr (SD 11) and left ventricular ejection fraction of 29% (SD 8). According to the New York Heart Association (NYHA) classification, 15% of the participants were in Class I, 44% in Class II, 37% in Class III, and 4% in class IV.

Determinants of physical fitness in males with systolic heart failure.

Background: Heart failure (HF) is a systemic disease which affects mainly older adults. The main symptom of HF is exercise intolerance which in the course of disease can cause limitations in independent functioning. So far no study on the impact of HF on physical fitness in men, regardless of disease severity, has been reported.