Three-point method of prescribing exercise with ratings of perceived exertion is valid for cardiac patients.

It is often difficult to use heart rate to prescribe exercise for cardiac patients due to the effects of medications and procedures such as cardiac transplantation. Ratings of Perceived Exertion (RPE) is the preferred method of regulating exercise intensity in these situations. An RPE-based exercise prescription has previously depended on perceptual data from a maximal Graded Exercise Test (GXT). Recently, using 13 healthy subjects, we validated a Three-point RPE for prescribing exercise using RPE which can be used when ratings from a GXT are not available Currently, we examined the accuracy of this method for developing target RPEs for patients in Phase II cardiac rehabilitation. Such target RPEs did not differ from those obtained using standard procedures. We conclude that the Three-point Method is valid for preparing RPE-based exercise prescriptions for Phase II cardiac rehabilitation patients.