Learn how physical exercise can help patients including those with cardiovascular disease, mental health problems and cancer. In the last few decades physical exercise has become well established as a tool to prevent and treat disease. Perceptions within the healthcare sector of exercise and its prescription as a treatment have changed dramatically in recent years.
Class Deals by MOOC List - Click here and see FutureLearn's Active Discounts, Deals, and Promo Codes.
Understand the evolution of exercise prescription and its use today
In this free online course evidence of the role of exercise in the treatment of a variety of clinical populations including people with cardiovascular disease, mental health problems, paediatric conditions and cancer will be studied.
Over two weeks discover the benefits of exercise in both preventing and treating diseases and enhance your confidence in exercise prescription as a treatment.
- Week 1: Explore research on the benefits of physical activity; the evidence that has informed exercise prescription guidelines and safety considerations.
- Week 2: Learn how physiological adaptations to exercise translate to improved health outcomes and the evidence that supports exercise prescription in several common clinical populations.
Learn with physiology and physiotherapy experts
Throughout the course there will be an opportunity to engage with researchers, healthcare professionals and exercise prescription experts from the Discipline of Physiotherapy at Trinity College Dublin.
Some of the topics we will cover include:
- Introduction to exercise prescription and physical activity
- How does the body respond to physical exercise?
- The evidence behind exercise prescription
- Physical activity guidelines
- Perceptions of exercise prescription
- Measuring physical activity
- Exercise for brain health and for the musculoskeletal system
- Exercise for those with cardiovascular disease and with metabolic disease
- Exercise for pulmonary disease and across the cancer continuum
- Exercise across the lifespan
What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you'll be able to...
- Identify basic physical activity measurement tools e.g. Heart rate monitors, accelerometers, pedometers and questionnaires.
- Reflect on experiences of exercise prescription, physical activity guidelines, and exercise prescription safety.
- Summarise the history of exercise prescription guidelines.
- Describe cardiovascular and respiratory responses to acute and chronic exercise.
- Identify the benefits of exercise for brain health, the musculoskeletal system, cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and COPD.
- Critically appraise current physical activity guidelines.
- Appreciate the complex interaction between exercise, physical activity and the immune system, specifically the anti-inflammatory effects of exercise.
- Describe how to objectively measure fitness and strength e.g. the six minute walk test, and hand grip dynamometer use.
- Describe how exercise prescription guidelines can be adapted for clinical pediatric populations.
- Describe how exercise prescription guidelines can be adapted for older populations.
- Demonstrate an awareness of the evidence to support exercise as a treatment tool for various clinical populations including those with osteoarthritis, type 2 diabetes, and other chronic diseases.
