Programme Timetable

Being physically active is a vital step for reducing your risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes and a range of other health conditions. If you are living with a long-term condition, like heart disease, exercise is also an effective way to improve and maintain your health. Improving your aerobic fitness plays a significant role in helping to reduce cholesterol, manage weight and lower blood pressure Achieving the recommended physical activity targets  will  have a positive impact on your sleep, quality of life, and will also help to  manage stress levels. Aerobic exercise is any exercise that gets the heart pumping e.g. brisk walking, biking or swimming.

The Croi ‘Back to Fitness’ Programme is a rolling 6-week programme which you can join at any time. Delivered by a Cardiac Physiotherapist/Physical Activity Specialist, this programme is specifically designed for all fitness levels and age groups, it is ideal for anyone who has completed cardiac rehab or for those who would like to manage their cardiovascular risk factors such as raised cholesterol, blood pressure or diabetes.

This programme provides you with:

• Supervised group sessions, combining camaraderie with a great workout!
• Support to exercise to your own level of fitness
• An effective cardiovascular workout, specific to your individual needs
• Advice & information from experienced cardiac exercise specialists
• Weekly heart rate monitoring and progress tracking
• Measurable improvement in your aerobic fitness levels, muscle strength, balance and cardiovascular risk factors

Note: To ensure that you achieve maximum benefit from Croí exercise classes, we require you to complete a fitness assessment in advance of joining a class. Fitness assessments are conducted online using Zoom, and will take approximately 30 minutes to complete. The cost is €30. If you have any concern about completing the assessment online, or any difficulty covering the cost of the assessment, please do not hesitate to contact us.

To book your fitness assessment, contact Croí on 091 544310 or email healthteam@croi.ie

Developing and maintaining strong muscles is essential for our health. The best kind of exercise for strengthening our muscles is called Resistance Training. Resistance Training exercises often involve lifting handheld weights or using your own body weight  for a specific number of repetitions. This type of training can provide significant functional benefits and improvements in overall health and well-being.

These improvements include:

• Increased bone density
• Improved muscle mass and joint function
• Reduced potential for injury and falls
• Increased metabolism
• Improved cardiac function

Performing resistance exercises at least 2- 3 times a week consistently can help manage and treat many conditions including peripheral vascular disease, stroke, diabetes and raised blood pressure.

While yoga often is associated with images of limber practitioners, it is more than just stretching and handstands. Yoga is a mind-body activity that involves moving through a series of body poses and breathing exercises that can improve strength, flexibility, balance and relaxation.

There are many yoga styles. The most common style will include physical poses, breath work and meditation. There is a yoga to suit everyone no matter how inflexible or sedentary you have been up to now. For older adults and people new to yoga gentle, restorative or chair-based classes are a great place to start. If you are already quite active you might like to try more vigorous classes knowing that in every class there will be opportunities to modify the poses and to take things at your own pace.

According to the National Institutes of Health, scientific evidence shows that yoga supports stress management, mental health, mindfulness, healthy eating, weight loss and quality sleep.

Heart Healthy benefits of Yoga:

1. Promotes Physical activity – Starting a yoga practice is often the first step towards a more active lifestyle. ‘People who do yoga are more likely to become more active and adopt a healthier lifestyle overall.’ Learn more.
2. Stress Management – Yoga poses help us release the tension that can build up in our bodies as a result of the daily stress of life. Gentle movement together with breathing exercises and mindful meditation give us the tools to self-regulate our responses to life’s stresses. ‘The deep breathing and mental focus of yoga can offset this stress.’ Learn more.
3. Greater Mind-Body Awareness – Yoga teaches us to notice what is happening in the body and mind as we move through the different poses. This heightened awareness helps us to become more aware of the effects our everyday habits can have on how we feel. We notice that what we put into our body in terms of foods, alcohol, tobacco will effect how the body feels. In this way yoga can help us want to make healthier lifestyle choices.
4. Community – Practicing yoga together either in person or as part of a virtual community provides a safe environment and connection with other people. The importance of forming relationships with others is known to be an important part of overall mental health and being part of a supportive group makes it easier to maintain the commitment to regular practice.

Much of the benefit of doing yoga comes from doing yoga – we don’t always have time to do a full hour-long practice – on those days twenty minutes is enough, even five. What is important is to create the habit of practice so that your system becomes used to dropping into awareness and relaxation.

TOSCA’S YOGA CLASS

In Tosca’s classes, you’ll enjoy a playful beginner’s level flow where you’ll build flexibility, mobility, stability, balance and coordination. With a main aim of finding harmony between work and relaxation, you’ll find yourself getting stronger while becoming more in-tune to your inner world. Each class starts with some centering and breath work and moves into some short core-strengthening, pilates-inspired exercises. The final piece of class will bring us up to our feet where we’re introduced to some yoga poses that inspire thoughtful, intentional movement that will gently enhance your balance and coordination. Each class subtly builds upon the last so that the more you attend, the more you’ll transform your body, mind and spirit!

ELAINE’S YOGA CLASS

Elaine’s is a gentle class, suitable for anyone who can get up and down from the floor unaided. Combining elements of mindfulness, somatic movement, yoga poses, breath work and meditation, we will guide you towards a practice that is right for your body today. We are interested in noticing how the body feels in movement and in stillness and developing a deeper connection to ourselves.  You are encouraged to be the boss of your own practice and you have the freedom to explore movement in a way that suits you today.

VICKY’S CHAIR YOGA CLASS

Chair Yoga is a regular yoga class with all of the well studied benefits but done with the extra support of a chair. It is perfect for those who consider themselves to have restricted mobility or energy. It’s particularly beneficial in cardiac rehabilitation and is also valuable as a preventive measure.

The class involves gentle movements for the whole body while seated and the chair is also used to support standing and gentle balancing positions. Participants are supported to work within their own capacity and the class is modified to make it accessible for all abilities. Chair yoga also incorporates gentle breathing, guided relaxations and other stress management tools to support overall physical and mental wellbeing.

The class is relaxed and sociable and taught in an enjoyable way by our highly experienced and compassionate teacher, Vicky Harkin. Many of our past students have said they feel stronger , more mobile and empowered with the helpful techniques and support they experience in the classes. The chair yoga classes are accessible to all abilities and everyone who wishes to join us in Croi is warmly received.