ABSTRACT
This book is concerned mainly with the role of physical activity in preventing disease and maintaining positive health. It would not be complete, however, without some consideration of therapeutic exercise. This chapter sets out the rationale for including physical activity in the management of patients with various conditions and provides some assessment of the evidence as to its effectiveness. We do not set out to discuss the practicalities of exercise prescription for different patient groups. An excellent summary is available in the American College of Sports Medicine’s ‘Guidelines for exercise testing and prescription’ Franklin et al. 2000).
