Regular exercise has a myriad of benefits. According to the American Heart Association, being active benefits your heart by improving cardiorespiratory fitness and lowering the risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. If you’re looking to give your cardiovascular fitness a boost, we’ll be sharing the top three exercise tips for a healthy heart.
Give Your Cardiovascular Fitness a Boost With These Tips
If you’re hoping to be more proactive with your health and incorporate more exercise into your routine, there are a few things you can do to protect your heart. Aside from maintaining a healthy diet, keeping stress at bay and maintaining a strong support system, regular movement is a great way to enhance your overall health — which includes heart health, mental health and more.
Here are three exercise tips to try to improve your heart health:
Exercise Tip #1: Aim for 150 Minutes of Exercise Each Week
If you’re wondering how much you should be working out each week to see benefits, try aiming for 150 minutes each week. This baseline is recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and many other health agencies.
It’s a good rule of thumb to follow, especially if you’re hoping to find an exercise routine that fits into your schedule. By shooting for 150 minutes a week, you can exercise for an hour on days you have more time or go for a brisk 20-minute walk or run if you’re feeling more pressed. Or you could even it out and incorporate a 30-minute workout into your day on weekdays and then rest on the weekends. If you’re lacking motivation, invite a friend on a walk or run to help you stay active, or download an app that will pay you to work out.
Exercise Tip #2: Don’t Forget Strength Training
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Most people know that cardiovascular exercise can help to improve your heart health, but did you know that strength training also plays a key role in keeping your heart, bones and metabolism in tip-top shape?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends incorporating at least two days of strength training into your weekly exercise routine. Make sure to supplement your weight training sessions with lots of stretching to avoid injury.
Exercise Tip #3: Keep Your Body Guessing
To ensure your exercise routine is as well-rounded as possible, try varying the intensity of your workouts. For example, you could alternate between high-intensity interval training (HIIT) sessions, low-intensity steady state (LISS) sessions — meaning a long walk — and moderate intensity cardiovascular exercise.
That way, you’ll be covering all your bases and your body will be forced to continuously work hard to keep up. At the end of the day, what matters most is that you choose a form of exercise you love because if you enjoy it, you’ll be more likely to keep it up.
