Category: Cardio

It’s no secret that as we get older, we start to experience more health concerns and face an increased risk of heart disease. However, while many people think cardiovascular disease is something they have to accept in their old age, this is simply not true. There are many things you can do as a senior to ensure you age gracefully and don’t deal with stubborn and complicated heart conditions. From a healthy diet to heart exercises for seniors, there are many steps you can take to ensure you have a happy and healthy heart even in your older age.

 

Cardiovascular Risk Factors for Older Adults

You’re probably wondering, “How does age affect the cardiovascular system?” It’s a known fact that as you reach the age of 65 and above, you’re prone to have a stroke, suffer from a heart attack, experience heart failure, or develop coronary heart disease. This may lead to further complications, such as disability, which is known to decrease the quality of life of many older people.

As you get older, your heart and blood vessels start to change. A simple and clear example of this is the fact that your heart doesn’t beat as fast anymore. However, while many of these factors are unpreventable, there are many things you can do to reduce the risk of heart disease.

Some of the most common heart disease risk factors for seniors include:

High Blood Pressure

High blood pressure can cause atherosclerosis, which results in a buildup of plaque in the arteries. Over time, this plaque starts to narrow the arteries and harden, resulting in limited oxygen-rich blood flow to the organs and the rest of the body.

Obesity

Teenage and childhood obesity follow many people into adulthood. Obesity is a major cause of death in the US and results in other serious conditions, such as type 2 diabetes, which increases your chance of cardiovascular disease. To determine if you’re obese, it’s vital to assess your body mass index (BMI).

Slowed or Irregular Heartbeat

Generally, heart valves tend to thicken and get stiff with age, limiting blood flow to the heart and potentially leaking. This often causes a buildup of fluid in the body or lungs.

Increased Overall Heart Size

The heart’s chambers often increase in size with age, causing the heart’s wall to thicken. As a result, the chamber is able to hold less blood, and the heart fills more slowly. This increases the risk of atrial fibrillation.

 

How to Ensure Heart-healthy Aging

As you get older, there are many things you can do to ensure your heart stays in tip-top condition, such as:

Heart Exercises

Physical activity is an excellent way to improve cardiovascular health. However, it’s important to consult with your doctor regarding the most suitable exercises for you. Ideally, you should try to exercise for 150 minutes every week.

It’s always a good idea to start with simple and enjoyable exercises such as walking, cycling, dancing, gardening, and bowling. You should avoid spending excessive hours sitting. If you’ve previously suffered from cardiovascular disease or are at risk of one, make sure to incorporate moderate-intensity exercise into your routine.

A Healthy Diet

As you age, your body becomes more sensitive to certain foods, particularly salt. Salt can lead to excessive swelling of the feet and legs. Therefore, it’s crucial to cut down on salt, added sugars, and saturated fats.

Rather, incorporate fresh fruits and vegetables into your diet. Foods high in fiber, such as whole grains, are also a fantastic option. While many people tend to overlook this point, by eating a heart-healthy diet, you’ll notice many improvements in your overall health.

Don’t Smoke

Even if you’ve smoked for most of your life, it’s never too late to stop. Did you know smoking is the number one cause of preventable death? This alone should be enough motivation to quit. By quitting smoking, you’ll be able to reduce your risk of cancer, strokes, and heart disease. It’s also crucial to note that smoking causes damage to your artery walls. Therefore, a smoker is more likely to develop coronary artery disease than someone who does not smoke.

Keep Track of Your Blood Pressure, Cholesterol Levels, and Sugar Levels

If you take any medicines for any of these conditions, make sure to stick to the guidelines. It’s also imperative to follow your doctor’s advice and go for regular checkups. High blood pressure, cholesterol, and sugar levels are often symptoms of heart disease; therefore, it’s vital to manage and track these things effectively.

Keep a Healthy Weight

A healthy weight does have an impact on your heart health. Therefore, you should try to balance your calories consumed with your calories burned during physical activity. The simplest ways to maintain a healthy weight include engaging in exercise and limiting portion sizes.

 

The Bottom Line

While the elderly are more at risk of developing heart disease, this is not something you need to accept. There are many things you can do to monitor your risk factors and take care of yourself to ensure you age gracefully and your heart is happy, healthy, and not a concern!

 

FAQs

What Are Some Youth Risk Factors that Affect Cardiovascular Fitness in Adulthood?

Some risk factors that the youth may develop and carry forward into adulthood that impact cardiovascular fitness include:

• Physical inactivity
• Obesity
• High cholesterol
• High blood pressure
• Smoking

How Does Age Affect the Cardiovascular System?

Aging causes various changes in your heart and blood vessels, which impacts your heart rate. One of the major risk factors of heart disease is the buildup of fatty deposits in the artery walls over the years. Therefore, as you get older, you can expect the buildup to increase, which may eventually lead to complications.

How Does Regular Exercise Improve the Cardiovascular Function?

A regular and effective exercise plan will strengthen your heart health. This enhances the ability of your heart to pump blood throughout the body and to your lungs. As a result, more blood flows to your muscles, and the oxygen level in your blood increases.

Protecting your cardiovascular health, or in other words, looking after your heart, is the key to avoiding a host of problems. Everyone can benefit from some moderate-intensity exercise to get their heart rate going and boost their cardiovascular fitness. Part of managing that is having a regular exercise routine and knowing the best heart rate for cardio workout activities.

Here is an overview of the things you need to know about cardio and aerobic exercise, testing your heart rate, and finding simple but effective workouts you can do at home.

 

How Does Cardio Help Your Heart?

Cardio Exercise Decreases Resting Heart Rate and Blood Pressure

Like any muscle you train, your heart gets stronger when it beats faster during cardio workouts. It stays stronger even when it is resting, so your body is healthier all the time.

Lower Blood Fats and Boost Good Cholesterol

Good cholesterol helps the body keep bad cholesterol away from your heart, keeping the arteries clear and reducing your risk of heart attacks.

It Helps Dilate Blood Vessels and Get Energy To Your Muscles

Blood vessels help your heart pump oxygen around your body to your muscles and brain. When they are stiff and restricted, you get aches, pains, and circulation problems. Cardio helps increase their flexibility and helps them feed your muscles more effectively.

 

Why Does Target Heart Rate Matter?

Reaching your target heart rate when working out matters because it helps your body efficiently pump oxygen and burn fat. If you don’t push it hard enough, your muscles don’t get the energy they need to build strength and stay flexible, push too hard, and you could over-exert yourself.

Knowing where your ideal target heart rate zone lies and how to measure it helps you stay in better control of your physical activity and get more from your workouts. It can also make a difference if you are on a journey to try to lose weight, as you can ensure your body is working at the rate it needs to burn enough calories.

 

What Is the Estimated Maximum Heart Rate Goal for Cardio Exercise?

Your target zone for your heart rate depends on your age and how vigorous your workout plan is. The goal is to hit between 50 and 70 percent of your maximum heart rate- which you can find if you subtract your age from 220. When you are pushing for a harder workout, you can strive for a higher percentage between 70 and 85.

How Can You Measure Your Heart Rate?

Take two fingers and press lightly on the artery in your wrist on the side where your thumb is.

Count your heartbeats using your pulse or heart rate for 30 seconds, and multiply the number by two. This gives you the beats per minute. Compare that to 220 minus your age (your maximum heart rate) and figure out the percentage. From there, you can see if you are in your target heart rate zone.

 

20 At-Home Cardio Workouts for a Minimal Equipment Exercise Routine

Here are 20 simple cardio workouts you can do without leaving the house or spending a fortune on gym equipment.

• Leg stands

Start easy by standing with legs a bit apart and slowly lift one leg, bending your knee toward your abdomen. Hold it for a few seconds and repeat with the opposite leg.

• Arm circles

These are great if you are looking for easy things to do when sitting down. You can sit or stand with your arms stretched out to the sides, then move in small circular motions toward the front for 10 seconds, then to the back.

• Jog on the spot

Jogging in place is a great warm-up cardio activity to get your heart going and stretch your muscles. You can go at a pace that feels good for you and slowly build up until you reach your target heart rate.

• Climb the stairs

Who needs a stairmaster when you have stairs? Going up and down the stairs is excellent exercise for your lower body, and if you are out of practice will have your heart rate climbing faster than you are!

• Mountain climbers

Get down onto all fours with your arms and legs extended. One leg at a time, pull your knees to your chest in a running motion.

• Burpees

Start standing, crouch to the floor, put down your hands, and jump back with your legs. Then, reverse! Burpees can be tough, but they are very effective.

• Shuttle runs

Perfect for the backyard, shuttle runs work your heart through short sprints. Start with a small distance and go gradually further.

• High knee kicks

Stand with feet shoulder-width apart and bring one knee at a time upward as far as you can. If you can, add a bit of a jump in between to make it more like O.T.T. jogging on the spot.

• Walk

Get out of the house and go for a brisk walk around the block. It does wonders for the body and mind.

• Power walk

Take it up a notch with speed walking. Holding small weights as you go can add to the intensity.

• Jump rope

Go back to elementary school with your trusty jump rope. This is an excellent intermediate-intensity workout that burns fat and elevates your heart rate quickly. If you don’t have a jump rope, do the motion without it.

• Hula hooping

Another fun throwback to childhood that does wonders for your cardiovascular fitness is hula hooping. Although you can do the motion without the hoop, it works better with one, and you can pick one up cheaply. Swing those hips, work your abdomen, and get the blood pumping.

• Stool steps

Get a small stool (you can also use the bottom step) and step up and down one foot at a time. Speed it up if it feels too easy.

• Squat jumps

Drop into a squat, then spring up to a jump- landing back in the squat before pushing off again.

• Jumping jacks

Jumping jacks can be as low or as high intensity as you want. They are great for working out your entire body and quickly increasing your heart rate at home.

• Lunges

Keep your hands on your hips with one leg forward. Bend your knee and lean forward, then push back up again.

• Air jabs

Get into a fighting pose and quickly but powerfully shoot out your arms to punch the air.

• Freestyle dancing

Put on some music and let your body move to the beat! Dance until you feel your heartbeat rising, and try to continue for 10 minutes at full pace.

• Side shuffles

Move from side to side by dropping into a wide-legged squat and shifting your weight to one side as you come back up. Keep going until you reach the wall, then go back the other way.

• Toe touches

Stand with legs apart and take turns touching each foot with the opposite hand.

 

Summary

Hit your target heart rate and stay fit from the comfort of your home with the 20 cardio-tastic exercises!

Are you interested in knowing the best cardio workout for healthy heart rates? Today is the right time to focus on your fitness goals. Regular exercise will help you build muscle and lose weight, but it does so much more!

Aerobic exercise (cardio exercise) requires repetitive contraction of your large muscle groups to get your heart to beat faster. It’s highly beneficial for your cardiovascular health (the heart and blood vessels).

What Can Cardio Exercise Do for Heart Health?

A regular cardio exercise routine can:

• Improve oxygen flow throughout the body
• Strengthen the blood vessels and heart
• Reduce your risk of diabetes, heart disease, stroke, Alzheimer’s disease, and some cancers
• Lower your blood pressure or cholesterol

What’s the Best Workout for Heart Disease and Blood Pressure?

Most people wonder what exercise is heart-healthy, and the good news is that it doesn’t really matter the type. You simply have to do something!

There’s no cure-all for exercise or one way to do it. For example, you could be a cross-trainer, so you work out for 30 minutes but use different muscles for 10 minutes at a time to keep the routine interesting.

Some people pair strength training exercises with cardio training to lower body weight and gain muscle. You don’t have to use the same strategy as someone else to get the heart-health benefits of cardio workouts. The goal is to exercise regularly. 

Everyone has a daily routine. You might take a shower and brush your teeth before you do much else. Aerobic exercise should be included on that list. Though resistance training is crucial, you require a mixture of heart-healthy activities to stay youthful, avoid the risk of heart attack, and get help losing weight. Likewise, exercise can lower high blood pressure!

Try Heart-healthy Exercises Today

It’s best to exercise four or five times per week. One part of your schedule is to have varying types and intensities. When you change up the routine regularly, you won’t have to deal with overuse injuries and can work different muscle groups. Likewise, you’re not doing the same things over and over and get bored.

Most professionals recommend moderate exercise two to three days per week for about 30 minutes. You should be short of breath and sweat a little on those days, but you can talk normally.

Use longer aerobic exercise activities that take an hour or longer one day per week. This could include brisk walking around your neighborhood, Zumba classes, and bike rides. The movement doesn’t matter, but you should enjoy doing it and stay moving throughout.

A Note about Resistance Training and High-intensity Interval Training

If you start with the exercise program above, that’s three days of your routine. On the fourth and fifth days, you should focus on interval training. High-intensity training could be the best exercises ever because they stimulate various muscles and get different responses from the blood vessels and heart.

One type of high-intensity training includes exercising hard for a short period, resting, and then working hard again. This is excellent for heart health and is often referred to as HIIT.

Along with cardio training, you should consider weight training one to two days per week for your overall health. Strength training exercises with resistance bands or weights will make the muscles stronger, help with metabolism, and will improve bone strength. Therefore, you might avoid certain conditions like diabetes.

Strength training comes in various forms, and you don’t have to use the free weights at the gym. Instead, you can use Pilates, calisthenics, and Tai Chi or Yoga to build flexibility and balance, along with strength.

How to Work in Resistance Training and Aerobic Exercise Throughout the Week

The order in which you perform all those exercises isn’t important. However, you may want to space out strength training and HIIT to give muscles time to recover and avoid injury. Go for a brisk walk when you don’t have a lot of time, and use the weekends for longer routines.

The goal here is to boost heart health slowly. Vigorous exercise is essential, but you need a good full-body workout with weights to ensure flexibility and balance. 

Though moderate-intensity routines are great, you should push yourself periodically. When starting a new exercise program, it’s wise to go slowly and gradually raise your fitness level. You’ll start noticing more muscle mass and get the heart pumping safely.

The Overall Heart of the Matter

The National Institutes of Health published the results of a two-year study that looked at how exercise might affect heart health. About 60 middle-aged women and men (about 53 years old) who didn’t exercise regularly used a heart catheter to measure the youthfulness or flexibility of the heart after just two years of exercise. There was also a control group that used flexibility and balance exercises.

Overall, the results of the study were compelling. It indicated that it’s possible to reverse the consequences of living a sedentary lifestyle if you commit to heart health and choose a regular exercise routine that you can stick with in middle age.

What to Do Now

If you’re worried about developing heart disease or have a family history of high blood sugar, it might be wise to start an exercise routine now. Begin at a moderate intensity, such as walking at a brisk pace. Get your heart rate up, but be careful that you don’t overdo it initially.

You’ll soon notice that your heart rate is lower at rest, you’ll reduce your high cholesterol, and you will have a stronger heart muscle. In some cases, you may avoid heart failure.

Physical activity is crucial, and there are so many options available. Flexibility exercises can help you relax, while swimming laps will get the heart rate up high. You may also consider push-ups to build your upper body strength.

Regardless of what you do, varying your heart rate is crucial. If you’re constantly binge-watching shows on television, you’re leading a sedentary lifestyle that could be damaging in the long term. Make small changes now and start slowly to improve.

Are you looking for cardio workouts for heart health? You have come to the right place. 

You’ve probably heard that exercise is a great way to keep your heart healthy. By improving blood flow, it can help to lower your blood pressure, as numerous studies have proven, but which exercises should you choose?

Because your heart is one of the most important organs in your body, it’s important to take care of it. 

In this article, we’ll provide more insight into cardio workouts that promote heart health and describe our top three exercises to encourage a healthy cardiovascular system.

Why Is Adopting an Exercise Routine Important for Those with Heart Disease and Elevated Blood Pressure?

Before delving into the various exercises you should try, let’s first talk about why aerobic exercise is important for you. 

The truth is that cardio workouts offer a plethora of benefits. They can increase blood circulation, reduce cholesterol and blood pressure, control weight, and lower the risk of contracting type 2 diabetes. This reduces the likelihood of developing heart disease.

If you already have poor heart health and high blood pressure, regular exercise can help to raise your heart rate., which is crucial for getting your high pressure and cholesterol levels under control.

A stronger immune system, better mood, higher stamina, and the ability to remain independent and active as you age are additional advantages of aerobic exercise.

Should You Warm Up and Cool Down Before and After Your Exercise Routine?

Exercise also requires warming up and cooling down, two crucial aspects that are frequently overlooked.

Warm Up Before Your Workout

Before exercising, you must warm up for your blood vessels to expand and ensure your body’s muscles have enough oxygen. 

Also, it raises the body temperature of your muscles to maintain the appropriate degree of flexibility and balance, which enhances their performance during activity. Warming up helps to gradually increase your heart rate, which lessens the strain on the heart. This will also minimize the possibility of experiencing irregular heartbeats when exercising.

Cool Down After Your Workout

After working out, it’s equally necessary to cool down. Your heart rate rises, your body temperature goes up, and your blood vessels dilate after physical activity. You can feel lightheaded or ill if you stop too suddenly. 

Following a workout with a proper cool-down regimen will lessen these occurrences, enable a gradual recovery of your vital signs, and help you return to normal.

Stretching exercises are advised during cool-down because they can aid in lowering the accumulation of lactic acid in the muscles. This can lessen cases of cramps and stiffness.

Our Top Three Workouts for Good Heart Health

Want to reduce your own body weight and maintain a healthy heart? Here are three exercises to try. 

Resistance Training

Resistance training, usually referred to as strength training, can aid with body composition. It can promote fat loss and the development of lean muscle mass, which is important if you’re someone who has high levels of body fat. 

Strength training, in addition to aerobic exercise, has been shown to increase high-density lipoprotein (HDL), which is good cholesterol, while lowering low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or bad cholesterol.

During resistance training, the primary muscular groups in your extremities, chest, shoulders, hips, abdominal region, and back should all be worked.

Strength Training Exercises to Add to Your Exercise Routine

We recommend performing two to three sets of each of the exercises mentioned below: 

• Training with resistance bands.
• Weight training with gym equipment.
• Lifting free weights. 
• Performing exercises such as push-ups, lunges, and sit-ups that do not require any additional equipment.
• High-intensity interval training.

Two days of non-consecutive exercise per week should be sufficient. Make sure you’re warming up and cooling down before and after your workout!

Aerobic Exercise

Cardio, sometimes referred to as aerobic exercise, offers a number of heart health benefits. It increases your stamina and is highly recommended because it raises your heart rate, which will cause you to work up a sweat. 

They also support reduced blood pressure, improved circulation, and promote blood sugar regulation, which is essential if you have diabetes.

Moderate Intensity Workouts to Try:

If you’re starting out, we recommend that you start slowly and gradually pick up the pace as your body becomes more accustomed to regular exercise. Here are a few beginner-friendly recommendations:

• Swimming 
• Riding a bicycle
• Walking

Level Up Your Cardio Exercise Program

When you’re ready to kick it up a notch, here’s what you should try:

• Brisk walking
• Hiking uphill
• Jogging
• Dancing
• Playing a sport

If you’re choosing a moderate-intensity workout, it should last 30 minutes, five days a week. However, if you’re doing more strenuous exercise, 30 minutes three days per week is sufficient to keep your heart healthy.

Stretching Exercises

Stretching or balance exercises and other flexibility-enhancing workouts may not immediately improve heart health, but they lower your risk of cramps, joint pain, and muscular stress when you perform heart-healthy routines.

Exercises designed to improve balance and mobility can also assist elders in maintaining stability and avoiding falls.

Examples of heart-healthy exercise include the lying hamstring stretch, shoulder extension, and quad knee extensions. 

There are several exercises you can choose from to add to your workout. Make sure you’re stretching all the major muscle groups and warming up and cooling down before and after your exercise routine. 

The Bottom Line

Keeping your heart healthy is one of the most important things you will ever do. Numerous studies have proven the effectiveness of physical activity on the cardiovascular system, so finding an exercise regime that works best for you is essential.

We recommend strength training, aerobic exercise, and stretching to keep the blood pumping and lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels. 

Make sure you’re warming up and cooling down properly to prevent injury and starting out slowly. 

 

Sources: 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6159802/

https://www.health.harvard.edu/heart-health/the-many-ways-exercise-helps-your-heart

Exercise is important when it comes to maintaining good heart health. We all know how beneficial aerobic exercise can be, but is stretching good for your heart, too? 

In this article, we’ll explore the dangers of poor cardiovascular health and look at some scientific evidence supporting the claim that adopting a 12-week passive stretching regimen can help you keep your heart and blood vessels healthy.

The Dangers of Cardiovascular Disease

Any abnormality of the vasculature is referred to as “vascular disease.”

100,000 miles of blood vessels, including veins and arteries, comprise an adult’s vascular system. Serious issues with this system may result in discomfort, impairment, or even death. When arteries are compromised and not functioning correctly, it can lead to stroke, blood clots (pulmonary embolism), and heart attacks.

Good blood flow results in decreased systemic pressure, which lessens the likelihood of arterial wall injury. High blood pressure brought on by reduced blood flow from an injured artery or arteries increases the risk of heart attack and stroke.

Because it can be challenging to reverse once it persists, arterial stiffness is harmful. You should take action quickly and experiment with strategies like stretching to improve the arteries’ flexibility.

How Stretching Exercises Can Boost Heart Health

The main advantage of stretching for better heart health is its ability to considerably reduce stress levels, preventing many of the long-term negative consequences of long-term stress on the body. 

Stress overworks the sympathetic nervous system, resulting in high blood pressure and inflammation. Additionally, your muscles can grow more sensitive to insulin by performing various stretching activities, which helps to regulate your blood sugar levels. 

Stretching also causes the parasympathetic nervous system to become active, which instructs your body to calm down and breathe easier, improving cardiovascular health. This can therefore increase the advantages of a healthy diet and exercise, making it easier to achieve heart health.

What’s more, by stretching regularly, you can improve vascular endothelial function while you lower blood pressure, improving blood flow to major muscle groups.

New Study Shows Just How Beneficial 12 Weeks of Passive Stretching Exercises Can Be

According to a recent study conducted at the University of Milan in Italy, stretching for 12 weeks improved circulation, lowered blood pressure, and reduced artery stiffness. 

Good blood flow leads to a lower incidence of strokes and heart attacks because it causes less wear and tear on the arterial walls. High blood pressure, excessive cholesterol, and/or inflammation are common in those with arterial stiffness.

Test Method

Roughly 40 men and women were gathered and split into three groups during the study. One group stretched their legs, ankles, and feet for 40 minutes five days a week, whereas the other group limited their stretching to one side of the body for the same amount of time.

The third group, on the other hand, made no attempts to stretch.

Findings

12 weeks after the study’s conclusion, the blood vessel health of individuals in the two groups that had been stretching had dramatically improved. Their arteries were significantly less rigid, and their blood vessels’ performance improved.

The participants involved in the study did what is known as passive stretching, a technique that uses stretch bands and gravity to get a healthy stretch. Fortunately, performing this kind of stretching at home is simple.

Should Stretching Exercises Replace Aerobic Exercise to Lower High Blood Pressure and Improve Blood Flow? 

Even though stretching increased blood flow and blood vessel function, researchers have emphasized that the advantages of stretching for the cardiovascular system aren’t quite as substantial as engaging in aerobic activities such as jogging, walking, or bicycling. 

Stretching is a wonderful alternative, though, if you are only able to engage in movement at home and find it difficult to raise your heart rate. To find the best exercise regimen to improve your heart health, you should adopt a combination of stretching and aerobic exercise.

Moreover, stretching is not a substitute for other measures used to maintain a healthy heart. Keeping your weight under control, lowering high cholesterol, blood sugar, and/or systolic and diastolic blood pressure with healthy eating, and taking prescribed drugs as instructed, all aid in maintaining flexible vasculature and healthy blood flow.

Is Stretching Good for PAD Sufferers? 

Constricted, hardened arteries cause the painful condition known as peripheral artery disease (PAD). Your legs don’t typically get sufficient oxygen to support your activity when you have PAD, which causes pain. This is due to decreased blood flow to your legs.

Usually, doctors advise starting a walking routine to boost circulation to your legs and ease arterial stiffness. Although walking initially hurts, many PAD sufferers see symptoms improve over time. Particularly when they combine walking with other therapy methods.

However, for some, the initial pain is unbearable. This is why stretching offers so much promise in helping patients improve peripheral arterial stiffness.

What Are Some Effective Stretching Exercises

Here are a few exercises to kick-start your stretching exercise regimen:

The Kneeling Groin Stretch

To do this stretch, kneel on the floor with your right and left leg outstretched. Put your hands and forearms on the ground. Stretch your knees apart and lower your hips slightly. Hold this position for a minimum of 45 seconds.

Lying Hamstring Stretch

This exercise is an excellent substitute for traditional hamstring stretches. It works well if you have tight hamstrings but are unable to lower your head below your heart due to health concerns.

To do this stretch, find a wall you can lean against and lie down on the floor, placing both legs on the wall above. Slowly approach the wall, aiming to rest your legs entirely against it as you do so.

As you start to feel stretched out, stop and gradually go closer to the wall. Maintain this posture for 30-second intervals, adjusting your distance as necessary.

Final Thoughts

The results of this new study offer great promise for those suffering from vascular disease. However, stretching should not be a substitute for aerobic exercise and a good healthy diet. These three things can help you greatly improve your heart health when used in conjunction.