THE heart is the most important muscle in the body but when things go wrong with it, Steve Cooper may just be the man who can help put them right.

He is an insured and qualified British Association for Cardiac Rehabilitation instructor who is also trained in cardio-pulmonary resuscitation, or CPR.

The 57-year-old of Waterworks Road, Barbourne, Worcester, has set up the group Fit-Heart, which helps people with a wide range of cardiac problems return to general fitness.

Steve has helped people from all walks of life, from people who have suffered heart attacks to angina sufferers and those with a family history of heart disease who want to lower their risk of developing the illness.

There are several key benefits to exercise. It improves the function of the heart and makes it stronger; it lowers blood pressure; and it increases good, high-density cholesterol and lowers bad, low-density cholesterol.

Exercise also strengthens the muscles, boosts the immune system, reduces stress levels, aids sleep and increases energy levels.

There are four basic phases to cardiac rehabilitation: ● Recovery in a hospital ● Recovery at home where you are looked after by a GP ● The return to hospital as an outpatient for lower-level exercises ● Further classes where people with heart problems can improve their general health and fitness.

It is this point where Steve steps in with the skills and the knowledge to make a lasting difference to people’s lives.

With a combination of cardiovascular and strength training in hour-long “friendly and fun”

sessions across Worcestershire, Steve helps people return to fitness Those who attend can expect to be put through a range of circuittraining type exercises, including step-ups, bicep curls, triceps dips, fast-walking and squats.

There are no lying-down exercises because most people with cardiac problems are on beta blockers and get hypotension, or low-pressure, which can lead to dizziness if they stand or sit up too quickly.

The exercises are designed to raise the heart rate and breathing, but those who attend the classes are constantly monitored and can be given blood pressure checks at any time.

The training involves a 15-minute warm-up followed by a circuit of 10 stations, each involving exercises for a minute each.

The circuit, which is completed twice, finishes with a 10-minute cool-down The group is not only for people who have had cardiac problems but people with a history of heartrelated health scares in their family and who fear they may have a genetic predisposition to them.

The classes therefore work as both a form of rehabilitation and prevention for those who have yet to develop any heart problems.

Steve said: “It is essentially a circuit training session designed specifically for heart patients. I don’t exercise people to their limits and I’m not pushing people to the point where they’re exhausted. I want them to work within themselves.

“The idea is to get their heart rate up so they get fitter and stronger.

People with heart issues can lose their confidence and get very anxious. Part of the rehabilitation is to build up their confidence while building up the strength of their heart and their fitness.”

Steve carries a defibrillator with him at all times and is trained in first aid. He said: “We’re not clinicians but we’re trained to resuscitate people if they have an issue. If someone’s blood pressure is too high, then I won’t let them exercise. If they were having chest pains, I wouldn’t let them exercise.

I would refer them to their GP.”

Bob Saunders, aged 68, of Heather Close, St Peter’s, Worcester, is just one of the people to benefit from cardiac rehabilitation with Steve.

Mr Saunders had a triple heart bypass 12 months ago but three months afterwards was able to begin the exercises, which formed a platform for his recovery.

He said: “It has built up my confidence and I am even doing cycling now. I feel so much better.

You start off thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, am I going to be able to stick this out?’ But it becomes a way of life. It’s also a social thing.

“Before the bypass, I wasn’t eating as healthily as I could do.

I’m not a burger and chips man. My biggest problem was not that what I was eating was unhealthy but that I was eating too much of it. I now try and eat more vegetables and fruit. Now, if I want to go to Tesco in St Peter’s I’ll cycle rather than take the car. I will also cycle from St Peter’s into town.”

Mr Saunders is not a smoker but his father Albert had heart problems and genetics can be a factor in certain health conditions, including some heart problems.

Mr Saunders first noticed a problem with his throat when he was cutting grass at Whittington but had no idea it could be connected to his heart.

But when he went to his GP he was told it was angina and an angiogram revealed that three coronary arteries were blocked.

He had a triple heart bypass 12 months ago at the Priory Hospital in Birmingham.

Steve said more people should do as Mr Saunders did and listen to the early warning their own body gives them.

He said: “His heart was warning him it wasn’t getting enough oxygen. By listening, he avoided damage to his heart. If he had kept going, he may have had a heart attack and some heart muscle may have died. He listened to his body and responded to it warning him.”

Steve runs classes at the MARRC building at Worcester University, as well as at Malvern, Evesham and Tewkesbury. For more details call him on 07973 377861.