Overview

Physical activity has significant health benefits for all ages, ethnicities, and races. It is for a healthy lifestyle, but also for maintaining mental and emotional aspects. Physically active people have low chances of depression and a reduction in cognitive function, such as judgment and learning skills, in older age. The organ that most benefits from regular exercise is the heart. Moderate and regular aerobic exercise provides benefits in heart muscle strengthening, by improving the blood flow, leading to an increase in oxygen levels in the blood. This reduces the chances of heart stroke, heart enlargement, or cardiomegaly. Hence, patients must choose the right exercise for different heart conditions.³

Heart and exercise

Heart enlargement or cardiomegaly is a heart disease where the heart is abnormally thick and there is an over-stretching of heart valves, which leads to an increase in heart size. Certain conditions lead to heart enlargement, such as cardiomyopathy, drugs, alcohol, arrhythmia, an inactive lifestyle, and hypertension. 

It is found that regular 30-minute exercise can help prevent an enlarged heart. With the help of aerobic activities, the circulatory system, including the heart, works more efficiently, which leads to overall improved health.²

Examples of aerobic activities useful for an enlarged heart are walking and cycling. Walking improves cardiovascular fitness with a low impact, and cycling is a beneficial exercise for heart health that can be tailored based on the age and health condition of an individual. Cycling can include both indoor and outdoor.

Other aerobic activities include water aerobics or swimming, which have the most impact on respiratory and heart health as they increase blood circulation. These exercises, along with everyday activities like walking, can provide a means of a full-body workout without putting stress on the heart. Therefore, the activities above help to reduce heart problems by lowering blood pressure and heart rate, while also reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes.¹

Another type of exercise is resistance training, which increases muscle strength. These can be performed based on age and body type or weight, which usually involves the use of resistance bands and cables, but also weight lifting. It is found that more stronger the muscles are it will be to perform aerobic exercises without getting easily tired or having a loss of breath. However, it is also suggested to have a proper breathing pattern and not to hold breath while performing these, as it could lead to an increase in blood pressure. This technique is highly recommended for people suffering from heart failure or a heart attack. With age, the muscles lose their strength, which makes it even more important in older age to perform resistance exercises.¹

The third type of exercise is flexibility and balancing exercises, which are yoga, tai chi, and pilates, which lead to improvement in balance and flexibility. This exercise is for everyone with any kind of heart disease or heart-related conditions. 

Conclusion

It is found that irrespective of what kind of heart-related condition or issue one suffers from, it is imperative to have a regular exercise pattern based on the condition.  Exercise not only increases the blood flow around the body but eventually delivers oxygen levels to the body, reducing the risk of conditions like heart attack and heart failure. Depending on the type of exercise, the duration of exercise might vary. Therefore, it is very crucial to have a healthy lifestyle for all heart health, mental and overall physical health.