Stop exercising and seek advice if you experience chest pain or tightness, dizziness or light-headedness, unusual shortness of breath out of proportion to the effort, palpitations or a noticeably irregular heartbeat, or a shock from your ICD.
These symptoms do not necessarily mean something is wrong, but they should be assessed before you continue exercising. Contact your GP, cardiac rehab team or device clinic and describe what happened, including what you were doing at the time. If you receive an ICD shock, contact your device clinic or cardiology team the same day. If symptoms are severe or do not settle with rest, call 999.
Once you have been checked, most people are able to return to activity with adjusted guidance rather than stopping altogether.