The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that heart disease is the number one killer of American men and women. Being fit can prevent heart disease, as well as other chronic health problems. To determine your fitness level, check your heart rate after exercise, make note of your strength level by doing push ups or weight lifting and measure your flexibility through a sit-and-reach test, suggests MayoClinic.com. Check with your primary care physician before beginning an exercise program to improve your fitness.
History
Before 1950, people tended to associate regimented exercise with the military or professional athletes, notes Lance C. Dalleck and Len Kravitz of the University of New Mexico. A landmark in connecting heart disease and fitness evolved from the work of Dr. Kenneth H. Cooper as chronicled in his 1968 book "Aerobics" and supported by the work of the Cooper Aerobics Center in Dallas. Cooper advocates a philosophy of disease prevention through exercise and fitness.
Types
Many conditions fall under the broad umbrella of heart disease, including coronary artery disease, problems with heart rhythm and heart defects. Physicians often use the term "heart disease" synonymously with "cardiovascular disease" or "coronary artery disease," meaning narrowed or blocked blood vessels leading into and out of the heart. Other types of heart disease result from infections or problems with the heart muscle, valves or rhythm. CAD occurs when plaque builds up in arteries, leading to reduced blood flow and possible clots. Physicians recommend improved fitness to reduce risks from CAD.
Considerations
In addition to physical inactivity, heart disease risks increase with obesity, smoking, high blood pressure and lower levels of high-density lipoproteins. All of these risk factors improve with increased levels of fitness and lifestyle changes. Depending on your age and general physical condition, get advice from your doctor on methods to increase physical activity, improve fitness and lose weight. Ask your physician if you need a stress test or cardiac assessment before beginning a fitness program.
Expert Insight
"Circulation", the journal from the American Heart Association, reported in November 2010 that fitness, as measured by cardiorespiratory performance, confers resistance to CAD. In 2008, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services presented its "Physical Activity Guidelines Advisory Committee Report," in which it presents strong evidence supporting the benefits of exercise and fitness for preventing serious health problems associated with CAD. Exercise also can help you maintain a healthy weight, eliminating obesity, which is another cause of CAD.
Heart Fitness Activities
Health-care providers suggest increasing aerobic activities to improve heart health and lessen risks for heart disease. You should choose activities that increase your heart rate such as walking, swimming and cross-country skiing. Combine aerobic activities with strength training, such as lifting weights and doing push ups and pull-ups. For optimum fitness, you should exercise three to four times per week for at least 30 minutes at a time. Look for informal fitness activities that you integrate into your daily activities, such as walking up stairs, walking across parking lots to shop and increasing the pace of cleaning the yard and housework activities.
References
- MayoClinic.com: Fitness
- University of New Mexico: The History of Fitness
- Cooper Aerobics Center: Dr. Kenneth Cooper
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Heart Disease
- American Heart Association: Effect of Cardiorespiratory Fitness on Acute Inflammation Induced Increases in Arterial Stiffness in Older Adults
- MedlinePlus: Exercise and Physical Fitness
