Ways to Keep Your Heart Healthy

Keeping your heart healthy is one of the top responsibilities you have for your body. Your heart is the main organ that keeps you going, and, like most other muscles, it needs proper nutrition and exercise to stay in shape. You can do a number of things every day to keep your heart in tiptop shape.

Exercise

• The number one thing you can do for your heart is to exercise daily. The heart is a muscle that expands and contracts to pump blood through the circulatory system. All muscles benefit from regular exercise. Not only does regular exercise help keep your heart in shape, but it also reduces stress, lowers cholesterol, and helps you lose weight, all of which are heart- healthy efforts.

Types of Exercise

• Aerobic exercise, or exercise that requires a large intake of oxygen, is the best kind of exercise for the heart. This type of exercise requires the heart to pump more vigorously to keep up with the body's demand for oxygen-rich blood. The heart becomes stronger and more efficient with each exercise session.

  The following aerobic exercises can have a significant positive effect on heart health:

  Walking
  Running
  Biking
  Swimming
  Dancing

  Before you begin an exercise program, see your doctor to make sure that there are no underlying conditions that would prevent you from exercising. Next, design an exercise program that will allow you to condition your body by starting out with lower, easily attainable goals, such as walking at a moderate pace for 30 minutes three times a week. As your stamina increases, add more time and frequency to your workouts until you are exercising for an hour five days a week or more. This approach will allow you to build up your muscles, heart included, at a comfortable pace.

Diet

• Eating a healthy diet is the next most important way you can keep your heart strong and healthy. Eating "heart smart" includes lowering fat intake, lowering sodium intake and eating more fiber. These dietary changes will reduce the amount of cholesterol and fat in your bloodstream, stabilize blood sugar levels and balance blood chemistry.

  Quitting smoking has the greatest immediate effect on your heart health. Smoking increases blood pressure, creating the potential for heart attack and stroke as well as reducing the amount of oxygen that is available for your heart. Smoking facilitates the buildup of plaque in your vessels, contributing to many life-threatening circulatory system problems. Quitting smoking now will begin to improve your heart heath by reducing your blood pressure.

  Heart health is something everyone should take seriously. Change won't come easy or all at once. Many people will fall off the wagon, but the trick is to get right back on track. It takes approximately three months to develop new habits, so make it a goal to stick with your plan for three months.