Exercise Therapy Guidelines

Patient Education and Monitoring

Patients who are overexerting in physical therapy should be educated about appropriate exercise intensity using the Borg Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE) scale, aiming for a score of 4-6 on the 10-point scale, and taught to recognize warning signs such as unusual fatigue, increased weakness, or pain lasting more than one hour after exercise 1
The American Academy of Family Physicians recommends teaching patients to aim for a perceived exertion of 4-6 on the 10-point Borg scale, and to recognize warning signs such as unusual fatigue, increased weakness, or pain lasting more than one hour after exercise 1
Patients with respiratory conditions should begin with intermittent exercise and progress to continuous exercise, considering interval training for severe conditions, as recommended by the European Respiratory Society 2

The European Society of Cardiology recommends starting with lower intensity and shorter duration, then gradually increasing as tolerated, with a progression order of duration, frequency, and intensity 3
For patients with very low exercise capacity, the European Society of Cardiology recommends starting with multiple short daily sessions of 5-10 minutes each, while for moderate capacity, one to two sessions per day of 15 minutes each is recommended 3
For patients with higher capacity, the European Society of Cardiology recommends 3-5 sessions per week for 20-30 minutes each 3

For patients with arthritis, the American Academy of Family Physicians recommends beginning with as little as 2-3 repetitions, working up to 10-12 repetitions, 2-3 days per week, and avoiding exercising joints during flare-ups 1
For patients with respiratory conditions, the European Respiratory Society recommends considering interval training (30s exercise/30s rest) for severe conditions 2