Filed under: Advice, Fitness, Ask a Fitness Expert
Dear Sarah,
We are often told that first and foremost exercise is essential to keep our hearts healthy. As I like to walk to work (it takes about 40 minutes and I walk briskly), I’m wondering if this is enough exercise to keep my heart in tip-top shape, or do you think I need more? And can you tell me how exactly exercise benefits the heart?
Thanks,
Lisa
Dear Lisa,
Your heart is the most important muscle in the body, far more important than that six-pack you have been longing for! Unfortunately, heart health often falls off our radar, which is probably why heart disease is becoming one of the biggest epidemics — and greatest challenges — in our culture. According to the American Heart Association, 910,000 Americans die each year due to cardiovascular disease. That is equivalent to the death toll of 9/11, every 27 hours. Canadians are not any better — the number of overweight and obese Canadians according to the Canadian Community Health survey is 59 percent. And yet, cardiovascular disease is the number one most preventable disease.
Continue reading Forget the Six-Pack, Get Your Heart in Shape First