Lower Heart Disease Risk – Get Active, Stay Active

The American Heart Association reports that being physically fit lowers heart disease risk even in people with other heart – health risks. However, in order to minimize your risk, you should be physically fit and avoid the other risk factors you can help to control. These include cigarette smoke, high blood cholesterol and being overweight.

The amount of exercise needed for aerobic fitness depends on your activity’s intensity. According to the American Heart Association, if you choose vigorous-intensity, you should exercise for at least 20 minutes a day, 3 days per week.

A well-balanced exercise program includes heart-pumping aerobic exercises, stretching exercises and strength-training (weight-training) exercises.

Benefits of Aerobic Exercise:

◦Burns fat
◦Strengthens your heart
◦Builds muscle
◦Improves mental state
◦Reduces risk for a variety medical conditions, including heart disease, diabetes, stroke and osteoporosis
◦Lowers blood pressure

Benefits of Stretching Exercise:

◦Increases circulation
◦Improves posture
◦Decreases muscle soreness
◦Decreases risk of injury
◦Increases flexibility

Benefits of Strength – Training Exercise:

◦Burns calories
◦Increases bone density
◦Builds muscle
◦Tones body
◦Decreases risk of injury
◦Reduces arthritic pain
◦Improves balance

GET STARTED: If you don’t currently exercise, start with 10 minutes a day. Gradually work up to 30 minutes or more of moderate intensity aerobic exercise 5 days of the week. You can break this into shorter, more frequent time frames if that works better for you, but no less than 10 minutes at a time. Strength – training should be done twice a week. Stretches can be incorporated into a daily exercise routine or done in 15 minute sessions, 2 or 3 times a week.

KEEP UP THE PACE. Pick activities that you enjoy so you don’t get bored and quit. Vary your routine. Find a buddy to join you. If someone is waiting, you are less likely to skip on a workout.

WARM UP AND COOL DOWN. Start your exercise routine with 5 minutes of slow movement to warm up your muscles. Stretching before you are warmed up can lead to injury. Take another 5 minutes at the end of your workout to cool down and slow your heart rate. Do not count the warm-up and cool-down minutes as part of your 30 minutes.

T-rrific Activity

Outfit your department with “Love Life...Don’t Miss A Beat” T-Shirts. Request that they be worn on a certain day each week during American Heart Month to raise awareness. Hopefully the shirts will be conversation starters. Supply your t-shirt wearers with “I ™ My Heart” Lapel Pins to give out to anyone who asks them about their apparel.