Are you having heart problems, either as a newly developed issue or a chronic condition? Did you know that you can improve your heart’s health by strengthening it through exercise? It’s true! With some heart issues you can safely strengthen it with properly controlled activities that help decrease any flare ups or problematic symptoms.

Let’s get down to the basics. Your heart is basically a pump that sends oxygenated blood throughout your body.  I won’t go over the details but if you want to keep your heart healthy, you should focus on doing more aerobic exercises. These are strenuous workouts that use a lot of oxygen. They are commonly called as “cardio.” See? It’s even in the name! In this article, we discuss some of the specific ways cardio workouts help the body be better.

But before we proceed, it’s important to note that overtraining is to be avoided all the time. It strains the muscles too much and put extra burden on the heart. It can also lead to conditions that require the intervention of folks who are trained in institutions like Lifesaver Education that focus on several first-aid procedures.

More appropriate heart rate

Did you know that the resting heart rate of athletes are between 40 to 30 beats per minute? If you’re not an athlete, then your recommended resting heart rate is between 60 and 80. Make sure to have your blood pressure and pulse regularly checked by your physician. It never hurts to have a check up every now and then and ask fitness tips from someone who specializes in the human body.

More efficient oxygen absorption

We all need oxygen to live.  If you want your muscles and organs to absorb as much oxygen as they can, then the heart has to pump more blood into them. More blood, more oxygen. It’s that simple. Wrong! Well, partly. Blood vessels are made up of veins and arteries and, in between them, capillaries. This is where the oxygen transfer occurs. It’s like a bus terminal — would you rather have a terminal with a lot of buses or a terminal with an efficient system to efficiently transport people? The more you are exposed to strenuous cardio exercises, the more your muscles effectively receive oxygen. Probably that’s why an athlete’s resting heart rate is so slow.

Reduces cravings for unhealthy sweets

Researchers from Johns Hopkins have found conclusive evidence that not only do cardio exercises help keep a healthy heart but it also reduces the risk of diabetes as well by as much as 50%! Now isn’t that the greatest deal ever? Being exposed to these types of physical activity can also greatly impact your diet.  Through exercise, your muscles will start to process blood sugars well, and you’ll soon start to opt for natural sweeteners or even remove sweets from your diet.

It’s called cardio, but the heart does not work alone when you do strenuous exercises. These workouts affect everything from your mental health to your diet. Everything is connected when the body feels a physical challenge such that every aspect of the body experiences growth when we stick to our workout programs. However, most of us have corporate jobs that cause us to get stuck in a cubicle or an office, immovable for hours on end. If we want growth and improvement, we need to at least stretch our legs every once in a while. Why not go further and stretch those legs down your local park or school track? Yeah I’m talking about jogging. What are you waiting for?