Since the first of January, it seems television has been running a non-stop marathon of infomercials and advertisements for weight loss programs, gym memberships and home exercise equipment. You can’t watch a TV program without seeing at least one advertisement for either a local gym or piece of fitness equipment, all of which are staffed by picture perfect models with toned, lean healthy bodies, smiling as they exercise without so much as breaking a sweat. It’s almost enough to make me grab a bag of potato chips and head back for the couch!
I have to remind myself that I don’t look like the models. Frankly, even when I was young and thin I never achieved that level of apparent fitness as displayed in the infomercials so I can’t use those models as a comparison or a discouragement. What I need, however, is to achieve a healthy level of fitness. In particular, I need an exercise program that will lead me in a path toward a healthier heart. With so many exercise options available, I had to wonder which one is right for me. Since exercise is not my thing (I really hate to sweat), what type of exercise program is going to give me the best return on my exercise investment, the best bang for my exercise buck, in terms of heart health, and how often should I do it?
My aunt recently shared a cartoon with me where a doctor says to a patient, “Which would you rather do? Exercise for one hour a day or be dead for 24 hours a day?” It was only a cartoon joke but the root of most of these types of cartoons is the truth. No matter where you look, all experts seem to agree that being active on a day-to-day basis is a good thing in terms of our heart health. The Mayo Clinic recommends that for your heart health, you need to engage in 30 to 60 minutes of moderate exercise a day. Depending on your current fitness level, even 30 minutes of exercise may be too much to start. If that’s the case, or if it's a challenge to find a 30 to 60 minute time block for exercise, you can break it up into 10 or 15 minutes segments. According to the Mayo Clinic, as long as the activity level remains moderate, your heart will still benefit.
Exercise helps your heart because it works to dilates blood vessels, which in turn improves circulation and blood flow. The benefits from even 30-60 minutes of exercise a day are more than worth it. Typical results include: lower blood pressure, higher good cholesterol (HDL) and lower blood sugar. Exercise also reduces the protein in the blood that is a major contributor to blood clots.
In terms of choosing the type of exercise most beneficial to heart health, all exercise is good but aerobic exercise was the overall winner. The Healing Heart Foundation defines aerobic exercise as “repeated regular movement of major muscle groups to bring the heart beat up to a pre-determined amount and keep it there continually for a specified period of time.” While there are many types of aerobic exercise to choose from, some examples include: walking, running, jogging, swimming, jumping rope, kickboxing, inline skating and Pilates. The goal for any aerobic exercise session is to bring your heart rate up to 70 percent of your Maximum Heart Rate (MHR). The MHR is calculated simply by subtracting your age from 220. This number would then be multiplied by 70 percent to obtain the target rate. For example, for a woman who is 50 years of age, you would calculate as follows:
1. Maximum Heart Rate: Subtract your age (in this case 50) from 220 to obtain the MHR. 220 – 50 = 170 (MHR). In this example, the MHR is 170.
2. Obtain target heart rate: Multiply your personal MHR (in this case 170) by 70% to obtain your target heart rate for aerobic exercise. 170 * 70 percent = 119. In this example, 70percent of the MHR is 119.
We don’t all enjoy the same fitness level so personalize your exercise program. The models on TV obviously are in better shape and can do a lot more than I can. No matter what your fitness level is, start where you are and then work your way up both in terms of times and intensity. The key is to simply get up and do it!
Until next time, here’s wishing you a healthy heart.
Note: Please consult your physician before starting any exercise program.
Resources:
How Much Exercise Do You Need to Prevent Heart Disease, Health.com, 21 Apr 2008, http://www.health.com/health/condition-article/0,,20188246_1,00.html
Women’s health: Preventing top 10 threats, Mayo Clinic, 07 Feb 2009, http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/womens-health/wo00014
Heart disease in women: Understand symptoms and risk factors, 17 Jan 2009, http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/heart-disease/HB00040
Exercise, Healing Heart Foundation, http://heart.kumu.org/exercise.html