Introduction to the symposium: resistive weight training: a new approach to exercise for cardiac and coronary disease prone populations.

This symposium is concerned with the use of resistive exercise in cardiac and coronary prone populations. In the past, these populations have been refrained from resistive exercise. However, recent studies suggest that this form of exercise is safe and has favorable effects on physical fitness, cardiac risk factors such as hypertension and hyperlipidemia, and psychological status.