What type of exercise helps my heart?
Aerobic exercise is important for your heart health. It helps reduce your risk of heart disease and helps your heart work better if you have heart disease. There are many types of aerobic exercises, such as walking, running, swimming and cycling.
How much exercise do I need?
It is important to get into a regular exercise routine that includes at least 150 minutes (total) of aerobic exercise each week. For example, 30 minutes of aerobic exercise 5 days per week.
How does aerobic exercise help my heart?
Regular aerobic exercise:
- Helps lower your blood pressure and reduce your risk of having high blood pressure (hypertension).
- Helps reduce your risk of having diabetes and improve your blood sugar control if you have diabetes.
- Helps lower your cholesterol levels, especially when you combine exercise with a heart-healthy diet and cholesterol medicine (if you need it).
- Helps you lose weight and stay at a healthy weight, especially when you also eat a heart-healthy diet.
- Helps you stop smoking.
How does aerobic exercise help me feel better?
As you make regular aerobic exercise a part of your routine:
- Your overall sense of well-being will improve.
- Your joints, muscles and bones get stronger.
- You have more energy.
- You will have better balance, posture and become more flexible. All of these reduce your risk of falling, getting hurt and breaking bones.
- You will sleep better.
- Your brain health will improve.
- You will feel less anxious and depressed.
- You will feel better about the way you look and how you feel about yourself, in general.
How do I get started with an exercise program?
- Talk to your healthcare provider or cardiologist before you start any exercise program, especially if you have health problems or a family history of heart disease, or are a man over age 40 or a woman over age 50.
- Start by exercising short amounts of time most days of the week.
- Exercise at an intensity level that you can still feel comfortable having a normal conversation if needed.
- As you get stronger and build endurance, exercise for longer periods of time. For example, every 2 to 3 weeks, add 1 to 5 minutes to your exercise sessions. Keep adding time until you can exercise nonstop for 35 to 45 minutes.
- If you are limited on time, you can break up exercise time into 10-minute periods 3 to 4 times each day.
- Try different types of aerobic exercise to find out which ones you like best. You are more likely to stick with your program if you enjoy the exercise.
There are 3 parts to each exercise session: A warm-up, conditioning and a cool-down. Each of these is important and needed to prevent injury and get the full benefits of exercise.
Warm-up
- Spend 5 minutes or longer, if you need to, on your warm-up.
- A good way to warm up is to start doing your regular exercise at a very low intensity. If you want to, you can also stretch and do range-of-motion movements, but these are not necessary.
- As you warm up, your breathing and heart rate will get slightly faster, your blood pressure and body temperature will rise, and your muscles and joints "wake up" and get ready to work harder.
Conditioning
- Exercise at a moderate intensity level that causes your heart rate and breathing to get faster. You can use the “talk test” to gauge your intensity level. It should be a little difficult for you to talk while you are exercising. Adjust your intensity level so it is not too easy or too hard to have a conversation.
- You can do different types of exercise to avoid getting bored and reach your fitness goals. Just make sure you use your large muscle groups (legs, buttocks, arms and/or chest).
Cool-down
A gradual 5-minute cool down helps your body recover from the conditioning phase. Do not suddenly stop moving right after you exercise. If you do, you can get dizzy, light-headed or have heart palpitations.
- Slowly decrease the intensity of your activity until it feels very easy.
- When your heart rate and breathing slow down and you feel about like you do if you’re sitting, it is helpful to stop doing your activity and stretch your muscles. This helps prevent soreness and improve flexibility.
If you have any questions or concerns about your exercise program, talk to your healthcare provider.
