Exercise for people with heart disease

If you have been diagnosed with a chronic heart condition, you may have to make certain lifestyle modifications in order to promote health and keep your heart in a good shape. You will need to stay physically active since this will maintain your heart's health. However, you may not be safe when doing some of the exercises you used to do. So, consult with your doctor before indulging into any kind of workouts after being diagnosed with a chronic heart condition.

The Doctor Recommends...

Once you consult your doctor and inform him/her about your exercise plans, he/she may tell you to change the medications you are currently taking. New medications may cope with your exercises better, so you need to bear this in mind. Also, your doctor may tell you whether your exercise plan is safe for you or not.

Do not forget to ask your doctor about regular household chores, since some of these may be too much for your condition. Namely, pushing and pulling heavy objects, lifting these or even gardening, shoveling or mowing may require physical effort beyond your recommended limits.

Finally, before you leave the doctor's office, ask him/her about the safety of working out on exercising machines, or lifting weights, jogging, swimming etc. Once you get the confirmation, you are ready to move on.

Workout Tips for People with Heart Disease

First and foremost, make sure you have enough rest after your exercises. Avoid exercising outside the house once the weather is cold, excessively hot or too humid. All these conditions may worsen your coronary health easily, so be careful.

Secondly, always keep a bottle of water with you and stay properly hydrated. Dehydration can lead to muscle cramps and many other health problems.

Once the exercising is over, do not take cold showers or sauna sessions since these might put a serious strain on your heart.

Monitor your heart rate carefully during your exercises and, if you can, stay away from hills and steep surfaces. If your workout routine gets interrupted, return to it gradually, gaining slowly the strength levels you had before the cessation.

If exercising makes you lose breath easily or causes extreme tiredness, stop doing it and seek medical assistance or opinion. Also, during your bad days, when you are not feeling healthy, skip exercising and rest until you are ready again. Ultimately, any irregularities in the heartbeat will require you to stop with the physical activities and call the doctor. Do not ignore aches or pain, especially if these occur in the heart area. All in all, seek medial advice if anything goes wrong with your health during your exercising sessions or between them.