Exercise is an essential part of any healthy
lifestyle. Benefits such as weight loss, lower blood pressure,
lower cholesterol, management of blood sugar, and a stronger heart
can help lower the risk of developing heart disease. Exercise can
also improve your condition if you already suffer from heart
disease.
Safety
Before beginning an exercise program, it is necessary to talk
with your physician about any limitations that you may have
regarding exercise. Discuss goals, any potential risks, and/or
safety considerations that you may need to follow.
Where to begin
If you have been sedentary, it is important to start slowly,
gradually increasing the duration and the intensity of the exercise
in a reasonable manner. Do not force yourself to overdo exercise,
particularly in the beginning.
Set specific long-term goals, such as weight loss, or lowering
cholesterol. Short-term goals should be set as well, so that you
gradually build up to the ultimate long-term goal. Be sure that
your goals are realistic. Ask your physician or exercise
professional for guidance if needed.
Reap the benefits
- Exercise can help to increase the HDL or "good" levels of
cholesterol and bring down the LDL or "bad" levels of cholesterol.
Excercise can also help to reduce triglycerides. In combination
with nutrition therapy, cardiovascular exercise in particular may
prevent having to use cholesterol-lowering medications.
- Cardiovascular exercise may help to reduce the risk of
developing hypertension by 19 percent to 30 percent. Exercise may
also assist in the lowering of blood pressure for those individuals
who have been diagnosed with hypertension.
- Exercise can increase insulin resistance, placing exercise in
the forefront of the prevention, control, and treatment of type II
diabetes.
- Exercise can help to control weight.Cardiovascular exercise
helps to burn calories as you go.The more you do the more you burn.
Resistance exercise can also help to manage weight. Resistance
exercise, such as weight training, increases the body's
resting metabolic rate (RMR), which is the number of calories you
burn every day at rest. Even on days that you do no exercise; you
can burn more calories at rest.
- Lower body fat can decrease the risk of developing high
cholesterol, hypertension, and diabetes. All of these conditions
increase the likelihood of developing serious health complications
for the heart.
How much is enough?
Cardiovascular exercise should be performed for 30 minutes each
day, on a minimum of 5 days per week. For those who suffer from
diabetes, increasing the time to 45 minutes to 60 minutes on most
days of the week is ideal. Appropriate intensity should be
determined by your physician or exercise professional; however,
moderate-intensity cardiovascular exercise is ideal for exercising
safely, as well as for gaining the benefits mentioned above. Sweat
is not an appropriate measurement of intensity. You should be able
to carry on a conversation with the person next to you with
relative ease, but arguing would cause you to be out of breath
fairly quickly.
Resistance exercise should be included in a weekly routine to
maintain a higher resting metabolism. Resistance exercise is
classified as any specialized method of training that encompasses a
wide range of resistive loads in order to increase an
individual's capability for strength. Exercises that are
considered resistance exercises include Pilates, calisthenics, and
those that use free weights, machine weights, exercise balls, or
bands. Resistance exercises should be performed two to three times
per week for every major muscle group.