POSST Stroke Recovery Exercise Group

their long-term recovery. Medical fitness programs can provide stroke survivors time to work through plateaus while developing stronger neural connections during the recovery process. As the stroke survivor continues to get stronger, training for psychomotor control will improve their ability to perform activities of daily living (Falsone, 2018). Some key components for a medical exercise program are pre-exercise evaluation, cardiovascular strength, balance, and gait. The traditional rehabilitation usually ends when the stroke survivor reaches the chronic stage of a stroke, which was at first believed maximum motor function was obtained during this period. New research shows that with a continued structured exercise program, stroke survivors can benefit via the effects of neuroplasticity. The brain has the ability to reorganize itself by forming new neural connections throughout life. Neuroplasticity allows the nerve cells in the brain to compensate for injury and disease and to adjust their activities for new situations or changes in their environment (Shiel, n.d.). Initiating a corrective exercise program following discharge from therapy can prevent the decline of chronic stroke survivors.