Along with a good diet, exercise is one of the best ways to keep your heart healthy and strong for as long as possible. Fortunately, you don’t have to lift heavy weights or run for miles to get big benefits. Simple, lighter exercises can also go a long way toward cardiovascular fitness. That’s not a guarantee that you won’t have heart problems, of course, but it can definitely help keep things running smoothly, especially as you age. It’s much better than staying sedentary.
Exercise is an individual thing, though, and if your doctor has advised you against certain types of exercise it’s very important to follow that recommendation. You wouldn’t want to accidentally do harm when you’re trying to make things better. If you’ve been cleared by your doctor to start or increase your exercise, though, here are few of the main ways to get moving and improve your heart health at the same time.
Walking Is One of the Best Exercises
Table of Contents
A lot of people think they have to jog or run to see heart benefits, but that’s actually not true. Those activities can be good for you, but you can also walk. People who walk frequently and stay active often have better heart health than people who are sedentary, and that’s true even when they have other risk factors such as being overweight. Whether you can only walk for a few minutes or you love to hike in nature for hours, you’ll be doing your heart good to keep moving.
Dancing Can Help Your Heart Get Stronger
Medical professionals such as Ian Weisberg also understand that non-conventional exercise can be good for heart health. For example, you can dance to make your heart stronger. It’s good exercise, no matter what kind of dancing you choose. Taking a class that’s structured works, as does turning on music and dancing around your house. There’s no right or wrong way to do it, and the goal is to get your heart rate up and have some fun at the same time.
Yoga and Weight Lifting Are Both on the List
Lifting weights, doing yoga, swimming, and all kinds of other active pursuits are good choices, too. Anything that helps you move around and raises your heart rate can be good exercise. In fact, staying active throughout the day is believed to be better than sitting most of the day and then exercising for a little while. If you get up and move frequently, even if you’re not engaging in heavy exercise, your heart will reap the benefits.
Be Sure to Listen to Your Body and Your Doctor
By working with someone like Dr. Ian Weisberg you can get the information you need to help your heart get stronger. It’s very important to pay attention to how you feel when exercising and talk with your doctor if you have concerns. Most people can safely engage in mild to moderate exercise, but if you have a medical condition, you want to make sure your doctor approves first.
