If you’re recovering from a procedure or hospitalization for a heart or lung condition, our cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation team will be right by your side throughout your recovery journey.

Rehabilitation plays an important role in both recovery and long-term health. At MU Health Care, our cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation teams provide expert guidance and medically supervised support to help you rebuild strength, improve breathing and safely return to the activities that matter most to you.

Am I a Candidate for Cardiac or Pulmonary Rehab?

Cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation programs are designed for people recovering from heart or lung conditions who want to safely rebuild strength, improve breathing and reduce the risk of future health problems. If you have recently experienced a heart or lung event — or live with a chronic condition affecting your heart or lungs — your cardiologist, heart surgeon, pulmonologist or other specialist provider may recommend rehabilitation as part of your recovery.

You may be a candidate for cardiac rehabilitation if you have experienced:

You may benefit from pulmonary rehabilitation if you live with:

  • Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
  • Lung scarring (pulmonary fibrosis) or interstitial lung disease
  • Chronic bronchitis or emphysema
  • Pulmonary hypertension
  • Lung transplant or other lung surgery recovery
  • Cystic fibrosis
  • Lung cancer
  • Other chronic lung conditions that affect breathing or endurance

If you are unsure whether rehabilitation is right for you, our team can help review your medical history and work with your physician to determine if you qualify.

Insurance Coverage for Cardiac and Pulmonary Rehabilitation

Most insurance plans will cover at least part of your rehab if you have one of the heart or lung conditions listed above. Before your first session, we’ll contact your insurance company to determine your coverage and review any out-of-pocket costs.

Our Approach to Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation

At MU Health Care, our rehab focuses on your whole health, not just your diagnosis. You’ll work with a coordinated team of specialists who support your recovery and help you make lasting lifestyle changes.

Your care team may include:

  • Rehabilitation physicians: Oversee your rehab plan.
  • Dietitians: Help you build healthier and sustainable eating habits.
  • Physical therapists and exercise physiologists: Guide safe, effective movement that helps you get stronger.
  • Respiratory therapists: Teach breathing exercises to strengthen your lungs.
  • Nurses: Provide education and support throughout your recovery.

As you progress through cardiac and pulmonary rehab, our team will update your primary care provider and other specialists. Our team can also involve other experts within MU Health Care to address any issues affecting your recovery.

Supervised Exercise

Whether you want to improve your endurance, strength or balance, we’ll design a personalized exercise plan for you. Depending on your fitness level, your plan might include stretching, resistance training or even high-intensity interval training. To help you gain confidence while you exercise, we’ll closely monitor your heart rate, blood pressure and other vital signs.

We offer supervised exercise at both our Columbia and Jefferson City locations throughout the week: Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays:

  • 7:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.
  • 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Tuesdays and Thursdays:

  • 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Our gym includes a wide range of fitness options to support your health goals and preferences, including:

  • Indoor walking track
  • Treadmills
  • Stationary bicycles
  • Ellipticals
  • Rowers
  • Recumbent (seated) steppers
  • Arm ergometers (like stationary bikes for your upper body)
  • Weight machines and free weights

Lifestyle Education Sessions

We offer individual and group lifestyle education sessions that focus on:

  • Risk factor education, intervention and modification
  • Symptom recognition
  • Medication usage

Intensive Cardiac Rehab

Our program offers Pritikin Intensive Cardiac Rehabilitation (ICR), a comprehensive approach designed to help patients recover from heart events while building lasting heart-healthy habits. The program includes 36 visits that combine medically supervised exercise with structured education and lifestyle guidance, including interactive workshops, nutrition education classes and personalized consultations with a registered dietitian.

Compared with traditional cardiac rehabilitation, intensive cardiac rehabilitation provides a deeper focus on long-term lifestyle change, including heart-healthy nutrition, stress management and sustainable habits that support lifelong cardiovascular health.