Is your heart in good shape? Luckily, there are ways to improve. We’re here to help you stay healthy with some tips and tricks for a healthy heart. At Heart Health Park, our team is committed to keeping you healthy! Learn the best ways to keep your heart happy at home and on the go. To learn more about how we can help you take care of your ticker, check out our blog!
The heart is a vital organ that keeps our blood pumping through the body, providing oxygen and nutrients to every cell. It’s also responsible for removing waste or toxins from cells. We need to take care of it! Heart disease is the number one cause of death in the United States, but there are some things you can do to protect your heart. Read on for tips on how to boost your heart health from Heart Health Park’s experts themselves.
Heart health is important for everyone. It’s that time of year again where one of the most popular things to do is go to the park. However, not all parks are created equal! We’ve teamed up with Heart Health Park to give you some tips on how you can stay healthy this summer. Heart Health Park is a new way of living in the digital age. It offers a series of activities that are fun and interactive, challenging people to live an active lifestyle while also educating them on heart health.
There are three ways for you to get started at Heart Health Park:
1) Stop by our website and learn about all we have to offer.
2) Download our free apps and take your workouts with you anywhere.
3) Get your friends together and compete in our team challenges! We hope this blog post has helped you learn more about how Heart Health Park can help improve your heart health!
An active lifestyle can have a profound effect on your heart health. We all know that being active benefits the body, but did you know it can also keep your heart in better shape? Walking, biking, and even gardening are just a few of the many activities that can give your heart a boost. Make your visit to Heart Health Park an exciting one! Try out some of our different activities to see how they feel. You might surprise yourself by discovering something new you enjoy. If you’re looking for wheelchair accessible activities, we have plenty! Read more about them below.
Best Ways to Boost Your Heart Health
Heart health is very important. It’s crucial for your general well-being to keep your heart healthy. Research has shown that cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, with about 610,000 deaths each year. The good news is that you can reduce your risk of developing heart disease by eating a diet rich in whole grains, vegetables, fruits, and nuts. And it’s never too early or too late to take care of yourself! Here are some ways you can boost your heart health at Heart Health Park!
Eat a Heart-Healthy Diet
Incorporating a healthy diet into your lifestyle is an important part of maintaining a healthy heart. It’s never too soon or too late to start eating better and taking care of your heart.
The good news is that you don’t need to drastically change your diet overnight! There are lots of simple, small changes you can make to your diet that will have a major impact on your heart health.
One way to help improve your heart health is by adding more vegetables and fruits to your diet. This includes leafy greens, cruciferous veggies like broccoli and cauliflower, tomatoes, peaches, strawberries, apples, pears, oranges, beets, carrots and pumpkin. You’ll want to eat at least five servings per day (that’s about two cups).
You also want to include whole grains in your diet. Try out brown rice instead of white rice; wheat bread instead of white bread; whole grain pasta; oatmeal; and whole grain breakfast cereals like oats or oat bran cereal. These all contain important nutrients that will help keep your heart healthy.
Exercise Regularly
Exercise is a great way to maintain a healthy heart. The American Heart Association recommends 150 minutes of moderate exercise a week, or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise a week. This includes walking, biking, swimming, and more.
Despite your busy schedule, there’s always time for a walk around the block or a few sets of stairs at the office. Exercise doesn’t have to be about going to the gym—it can be as simple as taking a brisk walk for 30 minutes each day.
In fact, research from Michigan State University found that those who walked briskly at least four hours per week lost an average of 12 pounds in six months! That’s 8 pounds more than those who only walked one hour per week.
Of course, if you’re struggling with whether to prioritize exercise or other tasks on your list, take note that people who exercised regularly were also less likely to experience depression or anxiety. So there’s really no downside!
Control Your Blood Pressure
Not sure what your blood pressure is? It’s a very important number.
Do you know if your blood pressure is normal? There are two numbers that represent your blood pressure: the top number, or systolic, which is the first number in a ratio; and the bottom number, or diastolic, which appears second. A normal blood pressure reading is 120/80 mm Hg.
The top number indicates how hard your heart is pumping to circulate blood throughout your body. The bottom number indicates how much your arteries are relaxing and narrowing with each beat of the heart.
You want both numbers to be as low as possible to reduce risk of cardiovascular disease. If you’re not sure if your blood pressure is high, speak with a doctor!
Control Your Blood Sugar
Diabetes is a serious disease that raises the risk of heart disease. In fact, many people with diabetes will develop heart disease over their lifetime. It’s crucial for people with diabetes to control their blood sugar levels because high blood sugar can damage your heart and lead to cardiovascular problems.
It’s recommended that people with diabetes eat a low-sugar diet and maintain their blood sugar levels within a healthy range. The best way to lower your sugar intake is to focus on eating whole grains, vegetables, fruits, and nuts. These foods are rich in nutrients that will help you control your blood sugar levels.
Control Your Cholesterol
In order to maintain a healthy heart, it’s important to keep your cholesterol levels in check. Cholesterol is a fat that naturally occurs the body and it’s produced by the liver. It helps make cell membranes, hormones, vitamin D, and bile acid.
Most people don’t have high cholesterol because their body produces enough for them to use. But if you have too much cholesterol in your blood stream or you produce too much of it on your own, this can lead to serious health problems, including hardening of the arteries.
There are two types of cholesterol: high density lipoprotein (HDL) and low density lipoprotein (LDL). HDL is good because it takes cholesterol from your cells and sends them back to your liver where they can be removed from the body through digestion or excretion. LDL is bad because it causes cholesterol buildup in your arteries and may lead to heart attacks due to poor blood flow.
The best way to control your cholesterol is by eating foods that have a low-fat content or are rich in fiber so they can help you feel full without adding too many calories. You should also talk with your doctor about starting an exercise program which will help improve HDL levels as well as lower LDL
Lower Cholesterol with healthy fats and fiber
Healthy fats have been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease. Some of these healthy fats are monounsaturated fat found in olive oil, avocados, and nuts.
Another way to lower cholesterol levels is by eating more fiber. Fiber can be found in whole grains, vegetables, fruits, and nuts. Research has shown that people who eat a diet rich in fiber have lower cholesterol levels.
Lower Cholesterol with exercise
Exercise is an important part of any healthy lifestyle. But did you know it may also be able to lower your cholesterol?
Regular exercise can help reduce unhealthy cholesterol levels in your blood. Exercise also helps improve the health of your heart and blood vessels. This improves your ability to move blood through your body, delivering much-needed oxygen to all your cells.
Take a stroll at Heart Health Park! You’ll get all the benefits of exercise, while enjoying the beautiful scenery that surrounds this historic landmark.
Lower cholesterol by controlling your blood sugar
One of the benefits of eating a heart-healthy diet is that it can help lower your cholesterol. Your blood sugar levels can be an indicator of your risk of heart disease, so keeping them in check is important.
A healthy diet might not just improve your cholesterol levels, but it can also help you get healthier generally. A low-calorie diet with plenty of vegetables and fruits will help you lose weight and lower your blood sugar levels, which will decrease your risk for heart disease.
Don’t let diabetes get in the way of living life! Eating healthy can help you stay heart healthy.
Control Your Weight and Get Enough Sleep.
In addition to a healthy diet, maintaining a healthy weight and getting enough sleep are important factors in heart health.
The National Sleep Foundation recommends that adults sleep for seven to nine hours each night. Getting less than six hours of sleep may increase your risk of heart disease as well as other health problems.
Similarly, maintaining a healthy weight through eating a nutritious diet and regular physical activity is important for overall health and can make a difference in your cardiovascular function and risk for heart problems.
If you struggle with weight management, talk to your physician or consult an accredited dietitian or nutritionist about what you should eat and how much you should exercise to achieve your desired weight.
