[Cardiac rehabilitation and its sporty face]

The prognosis of cardiac and other diseases is highly determined by the level of cardiopulmonary fitness (aerobic capacity). The main purposes of rehabilitative activities include the restoration and increase of VO_2max. The "classic" method is the continuous aerobic exercise (moderate-intensity continuous exercise). The higher increase of aerobic capacity in a shorter time can be developed by interval loads: shorter or longer active periods are interspersed by low-intensity rest periods. A recent form is the high-intensity interval training: 0.5-4 minutes on 70-90% of the aerobic capacity followed by a rest or low-intensity biking/walking/jogging/any activity. The sprint interval training uses a few ten seconds of maximal intensity bursts changed with longer low-intensity activities. The advantages of the interval methods are shorter training time, less monotony, higher efficiency with not more risks. Interval training methods are applied also in other pathologies without disadvantages. Orv Hetil. 2018; 159(33): 1346-1352.