It’s no fun to see new evidence of aging when you look in the mirror. Every time a wrinkle appears, your heart sinks a little. But trust me… what’s going on inside your body is even more alarming.
Aging is hard on your vital organs… especially if you don’t take good care of yourself. And your heart is particularly vulnerable to the harsh hands of time.
Did you know that getting older is the number one risk factor for cardiovascular disease? That’s because your heart and blood vessels get stiffer, narrower and more sluggish as you age, until eventually they can’t do their job any more. That’s when you end up with things like heart attacks, strokes and congestive heart failure.
But before you start worrying about what’s going on in that ticker of yours, you should know that there’s a simple, effective and totally free way to slow down or stop heart aging — exercise!
Even better, a recent study tells you exactly how much exercise you need to keep your heart youthful for as long as possible…
Exercise for a youthful heart
Researchers from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center recently determined how much exercise you need to keep your cardiovascular system in working order as you age.
Their study included 102 people over 60 years old. They found that exercising two to three days a week for 30 minutes was enough to keep middle-sized arteries from getting stiff and old. These are the arteries that provide blood to your head and neck.
But researchers also found that it took a little more effort to keep larger arteries young and pliable…
The larger, central arteries that provide blood to your chest and abdomen needed 30 minutes of exercise four to five days per week to stay youthful and healthy.
All in all, the results of this study should make you pretty happy, because they show that heart aging is in your hands. You don’t need an expensive pill to keep your heart young… you just need 30 minutes a few days per week.
Now is the time to save your aging heart
Previous research shows that waiting until 70 years old to try and reverse heart aging is too little, too late. That’s because your heart does have a deadline when it comes to saving it. So, if you haven’t hit your 70th birthday, get serious about your exercise routine now.
Try to get at least 30 minutes of exercise four days per week, so you can keep those middle-sized arteries and large arteries young and healthy. Even if your schedule is crazy busy, do your best to fit in a workout when you can.
When I’m short on time, I find it easier to do a 30 minute workout video at home rather than take a trip to the gym. There are plenty of free workout videos online, including free home workouts here, or you can get a workout video subscription like DailyBurn or FitFusion TV. Then you can work out any time of day.
But remember… any exercise you do helps slow heart aging. So, even if you can’t squeeze in a workout four to five days a week, or you don’t have a full 30 minutes, or whatever else is holding you back from getting more exercise, keep the mindset that every little bit counts. Do what you can, when you can. Your heart will be much healthier (and more youthful) as a result.
Editor’s note: There are numerous safe and natural ways to decrease your risk of blood clots including the 25-cent vitamin, the nutrient that acts as a natural blood thinner and the powerful herb that helps clear plaque. To discover these and more, click here for Hushed Up Natural Heart Cures and Common Misconceptions of Popular Heart Treatments!
Sources:
J. North and D.A. Sinclair. “The Intersection Between Aging and Cardiovascular Disease.” — Circulation Research, 2012.
Exercise to stay young: 4-5 days a week to slow down your heart’s aging — MedicalXpress. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
Shibata, et al. “The effect of lifelong exercise frequency on arterial stiffness.” — The Journal of Physiology, 2018.
