If you’d like to take your well-being into your hands, you need to improve your cardio health to the best of your ability. There are a number of exercises you can perform that will help you build your heart healthy and strong like you would any other muscle.
When you perform cardio regularly, you can circumvent several heart problems that pose a threat to your life and well-being. Add fitness to your routine so that you improve your quality of life and wellness.
Boosting heart health is more than possible when you follow the tips below.
1. Sets of Burpees
Exercise is great both for preventing heart conditions and building muscle. In this regard, it doesn’t get better than burpees. A burpee is a type of high-intensity interval training (HIIT). HIIT is an exercise that consists of rounds of bursts and rest.
By speeding your heart up and resting briefly, you work your heart and build its strength and longevity. Burpees fit the bill since they’re a type of exercise that consists of squatting and launching into a pushup plank position, completing the pushup, launching to your feet, and then finishing it by jumping high into the air.
Burpees are a great total-body exercise that lets you build muscle, shed fat, and most importantly — improve your heart health.
2. Jumping on a Trampoline
One of the best pieces of exercise equipment you can invest in is a mini-trampoline. It may not sound like a workout if you’re thinking about children’s toys — but try jumping on a trampoline for 2 minutes straight and you will quickly see just how much of a workout it is. If you’re thinking that a trampoline won’t fit in your current workout space, you can always go with an inflatable trampoline that can easily be deflated and stored in between workout sessions.
The elastic resistance of the trampoline when mixed with gravity gives you a launching board. From there, you will notice your heart rate continuously accelerate. This exercise also builds lower body muscle, which is excellent for the production of human growth hormone (HGH).
You will get the opportunity to both slim down and improve your heart condition all at once.
3. Full-Form Pullups
Simply installing a pull-up bar can also give you more of a workout than you think. This is an intense total body workout that uses your own body weight and gravity as leverage.
The amount of resistance used in pull-ups causes your heart rate to elevate. It raises your High-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol while lowering your Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol.
Performing pull-ups with proper form will also help you build testosterone levels.
People that perform pull-ups regularly get the benefit of improvement in total-body muscle tone. You will notice pectoral muscle growth, in addition to strengthening your core.
Likewise, your back muscles, lateral muscles, biceps, and triceps will also get a workout.
Proper form is everything when it comes to doing pull-ups. This exercise builds strong quadriceps, hamstrings, and glute muscles. A toned and muscular body makes your health more durable overall.
4. Running for Cardio
Running is still one of the most heart-healthy exercises that you can participate in. By running for extended stretches of time, your heart rate remains elevated. It would shock you to see how healthy you can become by simply running a mile a day.
You’ll keep your cholesterol levels in check while also promoting endurance and longevity. You can also take it as a challenge to continuously beat your times or run greater distances. Many people enjoy running 5Ks or training for a marathon or half-marathon.
Running can also serve as a form of HIIT exercise. You can do this by engaging in sprints followed by short periods of rest, followed by another set of sprints. Change the distances that you are running and continuously challenge yourself to push through these exercises when you feel fatigued.
This is how endurance is gained and how a healthy heart is built.
5. Resistance Strength Training
Resistance strength training is still one of the most effective ways to build a healthy overall body. Many people enjoy going to the gym or setting up free weights and weight machines in their homes.
Doing exercises like the bench press, dumbbells, squats, free weights, and a series of other exercises will make you stronger while also improving your heart.
These exercises increase blood circulation throughout your entire body which is excellent for your blood pressure and health as a whole. There are several other forms of resistance strength training even if you do not have access to or enjoy traditional weight lifting.
A lot of people are taking to kettlebells for their resistance training because they move more fluidly and naturally with your body. You can use kettlebells with more versatility and work muscle groups that you won’t challenge or isolate as much when using traditional weight lifting techniques.
Other people appreciate resistance bands because they are easier on the body but still provide a strenuous workout. Regardless, by continuously subjecting your muscles to resistance, it promotes blood flow and forces your heart to continuously get stronger.
Boosting Heart Health on Your Terms
As you can see, methods of boosting heart health don’t have to be limited to one or two sets of exercise. The possibilities are endless, and you will notice improvements both in your body and your health as a whole.
In addition to the suggestions above, you can also improve heart health by becoming a regular practitioner of yoga, going on long walks, or jumping in the pool for a swim. Get creative to see which workouts you like best.
Consider these tips and check back with us for more health and fitness information.