Strong arm and leg muscles are important in almost every aspect of your life, from playing on the sports field to simply preparing dinner for your family. Strength is also vital to the most important muscle in your body --- your heart. In fact, cardiac patients have weaker leg muscles than those with healthy hearts, according to the "International Journal of Medical Sciences." Strengthening exercises use weight or resistance to make your muscles work harder which, in turn, make your heart stronger.
Pressor Response
Exercise improves your pressor response, which means you will have better control over how efficiently your heart pumps when you move around. Physical activity causes a sedentary person's blood pressure to rise dramatically, whereas the same activity would have virtually no affect on the physically fit person. Cardiac, elderly and frail patients benefit greatly from strength-building exercises. Pressor response to resistance exercises depend largely on muscle strength and muscle mass, according to the American Heart Association's magazine, "Circulation."
CHF
Losing your breath during exercise is the hallmark of congestive heart failure, or CHF. CHF is a disease in which the muscles of your heart cannot efficiently pump blood to the rest of your body. According to the Exercise Physiology Lab at the University of Louisville, Kentucky, an increase in muscle strength improves the heart health of CHF patients, regardless of gender or age. Strong muscles enable you to exercise longer with improved breath control, increasing the cardiovascular benefits of exercise.
Gaining Muscular Strength
Use a combination of aerobic and resistance exercises to gain muscular strength and improve your cardiovascular system. Moderate- to high-intensity workouts improve the strength and endurance of both your skeletal and cardiac muscles. Aerobic exercises use large muscles to move your arms and legs in a way that provides a workout for your heart muscles. The large muscles require more blood and oxygen during aerobic exercise, prompting your heart to work harder, thereby exercising the muscles of the heart. Resistance exercises increase muscle mass and strength.
Recommendations
The American Heart Association suggests you participate in moderate aerobic exercise for at least 30 minutes, four to seven days each week. Exercise vigorously enough to raise your pulse and respiratory rate but not to the extreme that you cannot carry on a conversation. Regular aerobic exercise not only strengthens your muscles but conditions your heart to pump blood efficiently throughout your entire body.
References
- "International Journal of Medical Sciences": Comparison of Skeletal Muscle Strength Between Cardiac Patients and Age-Matched Healthy Controls; K. Baum, U. Hildebrandt, et al.; 2009
- "Circulation": Resistance Exercise in Individuals With and Without Cardiovascular Disease; Michael L. Pollock, PhD, Barry A. Franklin, PhD, et al.; 2000
- The Exercise Physiology Lab at the University of Louisville, Kentucky: Effect of Resistance Training and Aerobic Conditioning on Muscular Strength and Submaximal Fitness for Individuals with Chronic Heart Failure: Influence of Age and Gender; Swank AM, Funk DC, et al.; May 2010
- American Heart Association: What Type of Physical Activity Is Best?
