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Exercise for Your Health
A sedentary lifestyle is one of the top risk factors for heart disease. Fortunately, it's a risk factor that you can do something about. Regular exercise, especially aerobic exercise, has many benefits. It can:
* Strengthen your heart and cardiovascular system
* Reduce your heart disease risk factors, such as high blood pressure and being overweight
* Improve your circulation and help your body use oxygen better
* Improve your heart failure symptoms
* Build energy levels so you can do more activities without becoming tired or short of breath
* Increase endurance
* Lower blood pressure
* Improve muscle tone and strength
* Improve balance and joint flexibility
* Strengthen bones
* Help reduce body fat and help you reach a healthy weight
* Help reduce stress, tension, anxiety and depression
* Boost self-image and self-esteem
* Improve sleep
* Make you feel more relaxed and rested
* Make you look fit and feel healthy
How do I get started?
Always check with your health care provider first before starting an exercise program. Your health care provider can help you find a program that matches your level of fitness and physical condition. Here are some questions to ask:
* How much exercise can I do each day?
* How often can I exercise each week?
* What type of exercise should I do?
* What type of activities should I avoid?
* Should I take my medication(s) at a certain time around my exercise schedule?
* Do I have to take my pulse while exercising?
What is cardiac rehabilitation?
Your doctor may encourage you to participate in the hospital's cardiac rehabilitation (rehab) program. A cardiac rehab program is designed to help you exercise safely and maintain a heart-healthy lifestyle. The program generally includes a tailored exercise program, education and help with changing your risk factors (such as quitting smoking and changing your diet).
Cycling on a stationary bike, using a treadmill, low-impact aerobics and swimming are examples of exercises that may be included in your cardiac rehab program. During exercise sessions at the cardiac rehab center, your heart rate and blood pressure will be monitored.
The cardiac rehab program will allow you to meet others like yourself who can help you stay on track to maintain a healthier heart. Your doctor will work closely with the cardiac rehab trainers to chart your progress.
What type of exercise is best?
Exercise can be divided into three basic types:
1. Stretching: slow lengthening of the muscles. Stretching the arms and legs before and after exercising helps prepare the muscles for activity and helps prevent injury and muscle strain. Regular stretching also increases your range of motion and flexibility.
2. Cardiovascular or aerobic: steady physical activity using large muscle groups. This type of exercise strengthens the heart and lungs and improves the body's ability to use oxygen.
Aerobic exercise has the most benefits for your heart. Over time, aerobic exercise can help decrease your heart rate and blood pressure and improve your breathing (since your heart won't have to work as hard during exercise).
Aerobic exercises include: walking, jogging, jumping rope, bicycling (stationary or outdoor), cross-country skiing, skating, rowing and low-impact aerobics or water aerobics.
3. Strengthening: repeated muscle contractions (tightening) until the muscle becomes tired. For people with heart failure, many strengthening exercises are not recommended. (See "Exercise Precautions for Heart Patients.")
How often should I exercise?
In general, to achieve maximum benefits, you should gradually work up to an aerobic session lasting 20 to 30 minutes, at least three to four times a week. Exercising every other day will help you keep a regular aerobic exercise schedule.
What should I include in my program?
Every exercise session should include a warm-up, conditioning phase and a cool-down.
The warm-up helps your body adjust slowly from rest to exercise. A warm-up reduces the stress on your heart and muscles, slowly increases your breathing, circulation (heart rate) and body temperature. It also helps improve flexibility and reduce muscle soreness.
The best warm-up includes stretching, range of motion activities and the beginning of the activity at a low intensity level.
The conditioning phase follows the warm-up. During this phase, the benefits of exercise are gained and calories are burned. During the conditioning phase, you should monitor the intensity of the activity.
The intensity is how hard you are exercising, which can be measured by checking your heart rate. Your health care provider can give you more information on monitoring your heart rate.
Over time, you can work on increasing the length of time you exercise during one session.
The cool-down phase is the last phase of your exercise session. It allows your body to gradually recover from the conditioning phase. Your heart rate and blood pressure will return to near resting values. Cool-down does not mean to sit down! In fact, do not sit, stand still or lie down right after exercise. This may cause you to feel dizzy or lightheaded or have heart palpitations (fluttering in your chest).
The best cool-down is to slowly decrease the intensity of your activity. You may also do some of the same stretching activities you did in the warm-up phase.
What is the Rated Perceived Exertion scale?
The Rated Perceived Exertion (RPE) scale is used to measure the intensity of your exercise. The RPE scale runs from 0-10. The numbers below relate to phrases used to rate how easy or difficult you find an activity. For example, 0 (nothing at all) would be how you feel when sitting in a chair; 10 (very, very heavy) is how you feel at the end of an exercise stress test or after a very difficult activity.
Rated Perceived Exertion (RPE) scale
0 Nothing at all
0.5 Just noticeable
1 Very light
2 Light
3 Moderate
4 Somewhat heavy
5-6 Heavy
7-9 Very heavy
10 Very, very heavy
In most cases, you should exercise at a level that feels 3 (moderate) to 4 (somewhat heavy). When using this rating scale, remember to include feelings of shortness of breath, as well as how tired you feel in your legs and overall.
General exercise guidelines
Gradually increase your activity level, especially if you have not been exercising regularly.
Remember to have fun! Choose an activity that you enjoy -- exercising should be fun and not a chore. You'll be more likely to stick with an exercise program if you enjoy the activity. Here are some questions you can think about before choosing a routine:
* What physical activities do I enjoy?
* Do I prefer group or individual activities?
* What programs best fit my schedule?
* Do I have physical conditions that limit my choice of exercise?
* What goals do I have in mind? (losing weight, strengthening muscles or improving flexibility, for example)
Wait at least one and a half hours after eating a meal before exercising.
When drinking liquids during exercise, remember to follow your fluid restriction guidelines.
Dress for the weather conditions and wear protective footwear.
Take time to include a five-minute warm-up, including stretching exercises, before any aerobic activity and include a five- to 10-minute cool down after the activity. Stretching can be done while standing or sitting.
Schedule exercise into your daily routine. Plan to exercise at the same time every day (such as in the mornings when you have more energy). Add a variety of exercises so that you do not get bored.
Exercise at a steady pace. Keep a pace that allows you to still talk during the activity.
Exercise does not have to put a strain on your wallet. Avoid buying expensive equipment or health club memberships unless you are certain you will use them regularly.
Stick with it. If you exercise regularly, it will soon become part of your lifestyle. Make exercise a lifetime commitment. Finding an exercise "buddy" will also help you stay motivated.
Keep an exercise record.
Copyright ©2000 content, the Cleveland Clinic. The information provided by The Cleveland Clinic is not intended to replace the medical advice of your doctor or health-care provider. Please consult your health-care provider for advice about a specific medical condition. For additional health information, please contact the Health Information Center at the Cleveland Clinic (216) 444-3771 or toll-free (800) 223-2273 extension 43771.
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