How much exercise do I need for a healthy heart?

Living an active life is one of the best things you can do for your heart, but if you don’t love exercise, or you’re trying to form new habits for an active life, it can help to have a goal to work towards.

So how much exercise do you need to enjoy the benefits of better heart health? Let’s take a look at how it works, and the changes you’ll need to make.

Why exercise is important for a healthy heart

Regular exercise makes your heart work a little bit harder than it does when you’re resting, which can cut your risk of heart disease by a third, according to the Heart Foundation. That’s because exercise helps you to manage your weight, which reduces the pressure on your heart, and heart disease risk factors like high blood pressure and cholesterol.

If you are experiencing heart related symptoms, you should speak to a doctor to find out the right treatment for you. You can request a telehealth consultation with one of our Australian-registered doctors from anywhere in Australia, seven days a week.

How much exercise do I need?

The Australian Government has created national exercise guidelines to clarify how much exercise we need – at a minimum – to be healthy. For adults aged 18–64, the recommendation is for a weekly goal of:

·  150–300 minutes of “moderate intensity” physical activity

·  75–150 minutes of “vigorous intensity” physical activity, or

·  a combination of the two.

The guidelines say that exercising for twice that amount of time is ideal, but that these times are the minimum you should be doing.

How to hit your exercise target

It’s important to choose exercise that you enjoy because you’re more likely to keep it up. Here are some ideas of activities you might like to try.

Moderate intensity is any activity that requires effort but allows you to still hold a conversation, such as:

·  brisk walking

·  cycling at a moderate speed

·  horse riding

·  recreational swimming

·  doubles tennis

·  dancing

·  mowing the lawn

·  vacuuming, mopping, washing windows

·  aqua aerobics.

Vigorous intensity is any activity that makes you breathe harder, or puff or pant, such as:

·  aerobics

·  jogging

·  swimming laps

·  fitness classes

·  cycling at a faster speed

·  singles tennis

·  basketball

·  netball

·  any form of football

·  rowing.

Incidental exercise

If you’re not a fan of sports, or household chores, the good news is that incidental exercise also counts towards your weekly target, as long as it’s done in bursts of 10 minutes or more at a time. This can include:

·  walking instead of driving, or parking further away than you need to

·  getting off the bus one or two stops early to walk

·  riding your bike to the shops

·  taking the stairs instead of the lift

·  walking the dog.

It’s also important to have a healthy diet and reduce your sugar intake, and if you are experiencing heart related symptoms, you should speak to a doctor to find out the right treatment for you. You can request a telehealth consultation with one of our Australian-registered doctors from anywhere in Australia, seven days a week.

This article was written by Carolyn Tate, a Brisbane-based writer with a particular interest in women’s health, mental health and living well. Carolyn holds a Bachelor of Professional Writing and a Bachelor of Political Science.