Heart health is a state of being that you can improve by making smart changes in your life. It’s important to understand the relationship between exercise and heart health because if you don’t exercise regularly, your risk of cardiovascular disease increases.
The American Heart Association recommends 30 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity five days a week. This can be anything from brisk walking to swimming laps or jogging on a treadmill.
However, if you have a history of high blood pressure or heart disease, or are over age 45, it is recommended that you avoid any form of cardiovascular stress for at least 12 hours after your workout.
The best exercise for heart health is the one that you enjoy doing and are able to do consistently. If you want to get the most benefit from your workouts, it’s important to find an exercise that you can do regularly.
If you need help figuring out what exercises are the best for your heart health, we’ve got a few tips for you:
Add strength training to your workout routine. Strength training includes weight lifting, using resistance bands, and using free weights like dumbbells or barbells. Strength training improves your cardiovascular function by strengthening the muscles of your heart and lungs. This will improve how your heart pumps blood through your body and increase endurance during exercise.
Choose exercises that target multiple muscles at once. For example, push-ups help build strength in many areas including your chest and shoulders, so they’re great for improving overall cardiovascular fitness. In addition, doing sit-ups target multiple muscle groups including abs and back muscles along with leg muscle groups
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Walking
Walking is the best exercise for heart health. It improves your overall fitness and can help you lose weight if you’re trying to lose weight. Walking burns 200 calories per hour, and it’s low impact, so it’s a great choice for people with injuries or arthritis.
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Swimming
Swimming is another good choice for people who have trouble exercising because of injuries or arthritis. It’s also low impact, so it’s safe for kids, seniors and pregnant women.
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Cycling
Cycling is another good choice if you’re looking at improving your fitness level or losing weight. It burns 250 calories per hour, which helps you reach a healthy weight. And unlike running or swimming, cycling doesn’t require any special equipment or space — all you need is a bike!
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Rowing Machine
Rowing machines are a great way to work out without having to go to the gym! They use resistance bands to create resistance on the rowing machine itself, so all you do is row as hard as possible for 20 minutes straight! This kind of workout will burn 500 calories in just one hour!
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Do Aerobics
Do the aerobic activity on most days of the week. Aerobic activity includes activities such as walking or running, swimming, or cycling for at least 30 minutes at a time, five times per week.
Exercise can help:
Reduce blood pressure and cholesterol levels
Improve circulation and reduce inflammation in the arteries
Increase HDL cholesterol (the “good” cholesterol) and decrease LDL cholesterol (the “bad” cholesterol)
Reduce the risk of diabetes, heart disease, and stroke
