This page turns the general exercise guidance on the Exercise page into specific, ready-to-follow routines — five options that combine cardiovascular and strength work, need minimal or no equipment, and are built around current exercise guidance for people with cardiovascular disease. As always, check with your care team before starting or changing your routine, especially if you're newly diagnosed, recently hospitalized, or haven't been cleared for unsupervised exercise yet.
How These Routines Follow Current Guidelines
Current cardiovascular exercise guidance points toward a consistent set of principles, which these routines are built around:
- At least 150 minutes per week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity (or 75 minutes of vigorous activity), spread across most days rather than done all at once
- Muscle-strengthening activity at least 2 days per week, working the major muscle groups
- A gradual warm-up and cool-down for every session, rather than starting or stopping abruptly
- Monitoring intensity by feel — using the "talk test" (moderate intensity means you can talk but not sing) or a Rated Perceived Exertion (RPE) scale of 0–10, where moderate intensity is roughly a 4–6
- Minimizing prolonged sitting, breaking up sedentary time even on non-exercise days
Before You Start
- Warm up for 5 minutes with slow walking or marching in place before any of these routines
- Stop and rest at any chest discomfort, unusual shortness of breath, dizziness, or an irregular or racing heartbeat that feels different from normal — this is a signal to stop, not to push through
- Keep water nearby and don't exercise in extreme heat, especially if you take diuretics or beta-blockers
- If you were recently hospitalized, had a procedure, or are newly diagnosed, confirm with your care team — or complete cardiac rehab — before starting any of these on your own
Routine 1: The 20-Minute Beginner Circuit
Best for: getting started, early recovery, or if you're deconditioned. No equipment needed; a sturdy chair is helpful for balance.
- Warm-up: 3 minutes slow marching in place
- Chair-assisted sit-to-stands — 8–10 repetitions (stand up fully, sit back down with control)
- Marching in place — 2 minutes
- Wall push-ups (hands on a wall, step back, bend elbows toward the wall) — 8–10 repetitions
- Marching in place — 2 minutes
- Seated leg extensions (straighten one knee at a time while seated) — 10 per leg
- Slow walking — 5 minutes
- Cool-down: gentle stretching for calves, hamstrings, and shoulders — 3 minutes
Frequency: most days of the week. Target intensity: RPE 3–4 (light to moderate — you should be able to hold a full conversation).
Routine 2: The Walk-Strength Combo
Best for: building both endurance and strength once you're comfortable with Routine 1. No equipment needed.
- Warm-up: 5 minutes easy walking
- Brisk walking — 5 minutes
- Bodyweight squats (use a chair behind you for confidence if needed) — 10–12 repetitions
- Brisk walking — 5 minutes
- Standing calf raises — 12–15 repetitions
- Brisk walking — 5 minutes
- Standing wall push-ups — 10–12 repetitions
- Cool-down: 5 minutes slow walking, then stretching — 3 minutes
Frequency: 4–5 days per week. Target intensity: RPE 4–6 during the brisk walking segments (you can talk but not sing).
Routine 3: The Living-Room Circuit (Household Items)
Best for: rainy days or when you want variety. Uses two filled water bottles or canned goods as light hand weights, and a sturdy chair.
- Warm-up: 3 minutes marching in place, arm circles
- March in place while doing bicep curls with your water bottles — 2 minutes
- Chair-assisted sit-to-stands — 10 repetitions
- Step-touch side steps (side to side, tapping your foot out and back) — 2 minutes
- Overhead presses with your water bottles, standing or seated — 10–12 repetitions
- March in place — 2 minutes
- Standing hip abduction (lift one leg out to the side, holding the chair for balance) — 10 per leg
- Cool-down: slow marching — 2 minutes, then full-body stretching — 3 minutes
Frequency: 2–3 times per week, alongside walking on other days. Target intensity: RPE 4–5.
Routine 4: The Step-Up Interval
Best for: those cleared for more vigorous activity and comfortable with stairs. Uses a single sturdy step or the bottom stair of a staircase.
- Warm-up: 5 minutes easy walking
- Step-ups (up and down on the step, alternating leading leg) — 1 minute, then rest 30 seconds — repeat 4 times
- Bodyweight squats — 12–15 repetitions
- Step-ups — 1 minute, rest 30 seconds — repeat 3 times
- Standing calf raises on the step (heels hanging off the edge for a fuller range) — 15 repetitions
- Cool-down: 5 minutes easy walking, then stretching — 3 minutes
Frequency: 3 times per week, with rest or gentler activity in between. Target intensity: RPE 5–7 during step-up intervals (moderate to somewhat vigorous). Skip this routine if you have balance concerns, significant joint pain, or haven't been cleared for stair-based exercise.
Routine 5: The Seated / Low-Mobility Routine
Best for: significant mobility limitations, balance concerns, or very early recovery. A sturdy chair without wheels or arms is all that's needed.
- Warm-up: seated marching (lifting knees alternately) — 2 minutes
- Seated marching, picking up the pace — 2 minutes
- Seated leg extensions — 10 per leg
- Seated marching — 2 minutes
- Seated bicep curls (with or without light weights) — 10–12 repetitions
- Seated torso twists (rotate gently side to side, holding the chair) — 8 per side
- Seated marching — 2 minutes
- Cool-down: gentle seated stretching for arms, shoulders, and legs — 3 minutes
Frequency: most days, even briefly. Target intensity: RPE 2–4 — this routine is about consistent, gentle movement, not intensity.
Cardio-Only Progressions: Walking, Treadmill & Stationary Bike
The five routines above combine cardio and strength work, but plenty of people prefer — or are specifically guided toward — a straightforward cardio progression instead, especially early after a diagnosis, procedure, or hospitalization. These three build the same way: start comfortably, hold steady for about a week, then add a small amount using progressive overload (see Exercise for the general concept) — a few more minutes before you increase pace, and pace before incline or resistance.
Outdoor or Indoor Walking
| Week | Duration | Pace / Intensity |
|---|---|---|
| 1–2 | 10–15 minutes | Comfortable, RPE 2–3 — you should be able to sing |
| 3–4 | 15–20 minutes | Steady, RPE 3–4 — comfortable conversation |
| 5–6 | 20–25 minutes | Brisk, RPE 4–5 — talk but not sing |
| 7–8 | 25–30 minutes | Brisk, RPE 4–6, consider adding gentle hills or a faster block within the walk |
| Ongoing | 30+ minutes, most days | Maintain RPE 4–6; increase duration before intensity if you want to keep progressing |
Treadmill
| Week | Duration | Speed / Incline |
|---|---|---|
| 1–2 | 10–15 minutes | Slow, flat (0% incline), RPE 2–3 |
| 3–4 | 15–20 minutes | Comfortable walking pace, flat, RPE 3–4 |
| 5–6 | 20–25 minutes | Slightly faster pace, or add 1–2% incline, RPE 4–5 |
| 7–8 | 25–30 minutes | Add either pace or incline (not both at once), RPE 4–6 |
| Ongoing | 30+ minutes, most days | Vary pace/incline for interest; a treadmill's console heart rate reading is a rough guide only — go by feel first |
Stationary or Outdoor Bike
| Week | Duration | Resistance / Effort |
|---|---|---|
| 1–2 | 10–15 minutes | Low resistance, easy spin, RPE 2–3 |
| 3–4 | 15–20 minutes | Low-moderate resistance, steady cadence, RPE 3–4 |
| 5–6 | 20–25 minutes | Moderate resistance, RPE 4–5 |
| 7–8 | 25–30 minutes | Moderate resistance with a few short (1–2 minute) slightly harder efforts, RPE 4–6 |
| Ongoing | 30+ minutes, most days | Increase duration or add gentle intervals before adding significant resistance |
How to use these tables: stay on a given week's level for longer than shown if it doesn't yet feel comfortable — the weeks are a reasonable pace for many people, not a deadline. If you're recovering from a hospitalization, a procedure, or heart surgery, or completing cardiac rehab, follow your care team's specific timeline instead of this general one, since it will be tailored to your actual recovery. (See Understanding Your Cardiovascular Metrics if you're tracking heart rate or effort with a wearable device, and Cardiac Rehabilitation: Protocol, Succeeding & Life After for what a supervised program adds beyond a self-guided progression like this.)
Building These Into a Weekly Plan
A reasonable starting week might look like: Routine 1 or 5 on Monday, a short walk Tuesday, Routine 2 or 3 on Wednesday, a rest or gentle walk Thursday, Routine 2 or 4 on Friday, and light activity or rest over the weekend — adjusted entirely around how you feel and what your care team has cleared. The specific routine matters far less than showing up consistently; missing a day is not a reason to abandon the plan, just a reason to pick back up the next day.
When to Call Your Doctor vs. Go to the ER
Call your doctor if: you consistently feel more fatigued than expected after exercise, or you're unsure which routine is appropriate for you. Go to the ER if: you experience chest pain or pressure, sudden severe shortness of breath, fainting, or a racing or irregular heartbeat that doesn't resolve with rest during or after exercise.
Common Questions
Which routine should I start with?
If you're newly diagnosed, recently hospitalized, or haven't exercised in a long time, start with Routine 1 or 5 and progress only with your care team's guidance.
Do I need actual dumbbells?
No — filled water bottles, canned goods, or just your own body weight work well for building strength at home.
How do I know if I'm working hard enough?
Use the talk test: if you can hold a full conversation easily, you can likely push a little harder; if you can only say a few words at a time, ease back.
Can I do more than one routine in a day?
It's generally better to spread activity across the week than to concentrate it — consistency over time matters more than any single session.