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Health is Where the Heart Is
The statistics are grim. And the truth hurts. Just think –
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America’s # 1 killer is
cardiovascular disease;
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Over 900,000 Americans died
from heart and blood vessel disorders;
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Two out of five US deaths are
caused by heart disease;
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Over 2,500 Americans die each
day from a form of cardiovascular disease;
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Approximately 250,000 people in
the US succumb to heart attacks before reaching a hospital;
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Half of victims of a heart
attack wait more than two hours before seeking help;
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Fifty million Americans have
high blood pressure, the leading cause of heart disease. The sad news?
35% of these people don’t even know it.
These statistics should be sufficient reason to focus on the benefits of
cardiovascular exercise. Your heart is the most important muscle in your
body. It is responsible for pumping blood and oxygen efficiently throughout
the whole anatomy. Without this efficient pumping, we deprive our bodies of
the nutrients they need to maintain quality of life.
If you’re new to health and fitness and your doctor has advised you to help
your heart get stronger through cardiovascular exercise, the best route to
take is to hire and certified fitness trainer. Your program must be a
perfect blend of cardio exercise and resistance training. This is why a
certified trainer is preferable to one who, in spite of many years spent in
a gym, has not undergone certification.
A good trainer will start you with a thorough warm up. Dr. Paul Chek is a
holistic health practitioner and neuromuscular therapist. He heads the Chek
Institute, a California-based organization that specializes in correct
fitness training and which has been consulted by many corporations and
private individuals.
Dr. Chek says that before beginning your cardio-vascular exercises, the
prelude to it – that is, the warm up – must take into account the S.A.I.D
principle. This is the acronym for “specific adaptation to imposed demand.”
SAID, according to Dr. Chek, is replicating all those body movements to be
used in any given exercise for 50-75% of the predicted training intensity.
Therefore, if Monday’s cardio exercise is going to be spent on a stationary
bike, the legs must be given a thorough warm-up. If it’s brisk walking and
fresh air outside another day, then the legs, arms, and torso must be
treated to a proper warm up.
A good cardiovascular program should not be a monotonous routine. You can
opt for some aerobic workouts coupled with resistance training or weight
training. Spurts of training – or what others call sudden bursts - are a
good way to rev up your body. Cardiovascular exercise not only is
beneficial to the heart, but it contributes to an increase in enzyme and
metabolic activity.
Cardiovascular benefits generated by regular physical exercise will burn
fat, thus reducing the likelihood of clogged arteries. Clogged arteries are
what you want to avoid at any cost. They prevent oxygen from making its way
to the heart.
The benefits of cardiovascular exercises must be stressed to both young and
old alike. Children and adults must enroll in a fitness program and stay
with it. They must be made aware that the life muscle – the heart – needs
TLC (tender loving care). And cardiovascular exercise is one form of TLC.
Given that the heart is a vital muscle, the National Heart Foundation has
made grants of about $6.5 million for research into detecting and treating
heart disease and stroke. Over thirteen million Americans have some kind of
heart trouble.
Proven fact: regular and consistent cardiovascular exercises like running,
tennis, swimming, biking – any activity that requires intensity and sets
your heart pumping – can stave off heart disease in the long term.
Be kind to your heart. Do your cardiovascular exercises most days of the
week.
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