Regular physical exercise is associated with lower coronary heart disease mortality, favorably affects coronary risk factors, and increases cardiovascular functional capacity. Fewer than one-third of Americans engage in regular physical exercise and only 20 percent of men and 10 percent of women over age 45 do so. This is largely because effective strategies for increasing the exercise habit in a broadly-based segment of Americans have not been developed. This study applied physiological and behavioral knowledge derived in numerous laboratories over the past 10-15 years to a clinical setting.