We all know that there are many benefits to working out: managing your weight, reducing the risk of different types of diseases, strengthening your muscles and bones, and improving your day-to-day life by just feeling better and functioning more efficiently. But engaging in physical activity on a regular basis also provides huge benefits to your heart as well.

Studies have shown that exercise has many positive effects on heart health. A regular exercise routine can help you lower your blood pressure, fight against the risk of developing diabetes, reduce body inflammation, and help you maintain a healthy body weight which keeps your heart pumping at optimal levels. 

Let’s take a look at five different ways that working out regularly can benefit your heart health on a long-term basis.

Strengthens Heart & Lung Functionality 

The heart is – quite literally – the organ that is the heart of your circulatory system, which helps deliver oxygen, hormones and nutrients to your entire body. The circulatory system pumps blood from the heart to the lungs to get oxygen, and then the heart then sends oxygenated blood through your arteries to the rest of your body. 

In turn, your veins then carry oxygen-poor blood back to the heart to start the circulation process all over again, making its health a critical factor in keeping your organs, muscles, and tissues all healthy long-term.

So when you exercise regularly, this physical activity helps strengthen your heart muscle, which leads to major improvements in how blood is transported to your lungs and throughout the rest of your body. This helps keep oxygen levels in your bloodstream elevated, which has a positive impact on your circulatory system, but will also leave you feeling better overall.

Studies have shown that regular exercise can also increase the size of your heart’s chambers, which allows the heart to pump blood more efficiently so that it’s easier to transport throughout your body and filter out toxins as well. Exercise also helps reduce visceral fat, which is the type of fat that can accumulate around your organs, which is strongly linked to a higher risk of heart disease.  

Reduces Coronary Heart Disease Risk Factors 

Coronary heart disease (CHD) is a serious issue that affects thousands of people. In 2021, more than 375,000 people died from coronary heart disease in the U.S., and about 1 in every 20 adults over the age of 21 in our country are living with CHD. When you are living with the effects of coronary heart disease, that means that plaque has built up in your arteries which reduces the blood flow to the heart. If left untreated, these areas where plaque has built up can rupture, resulting in a blood clot which can cause a heart attack, a pulmonary embolism or it can even be fatal if left untreated.

According to the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, inactive people are more likely to develop heart disease than people who are physically active. Studies suggest that inactivity is a major risk factor for heart disease, similar to high blood pressure, elevated cholesterol levels, and smoking.  

The thing about coronary heart disease is that even though you might be doing everything right already – eating healthy and staying active – CHD can also occur if your family has a history of heart disease, which puts you at risk. But by being mindful of your physical activity and staying focused on exercising regularly, that can help combat the risk factors for coronary heart disease, giving your health a long-term boost.

Helps Minimize Heart Attack Risk Factors 

If you’re dealing with coronary heart disease, regular exercise is beneficial because it helps boost how your heart functions, which can also help minimize your risk for a heart attack. According to John Hopkins, studies have shown that people who engage in regular aerobic activity are less likely to suffer a heart attack or any other cardiac event. 

Exercise is one of your most effective tools for strengthening your heart muscle, as well as keeping your weight under control and combating potential artery damage from high cholesterol, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure, which can all lead to a heart attack or a stroke. Working out regularly can also help reduce the risk of a second heart attack amongst those who have already suffered an initial heart attack, too.

It is important to note that vigorous exercise routines may not be safe for some people who are dealing with heart disease, so be sure to consult with your physician first to determine what types of physical activity is right for you before putting yourself at risk.

Improves Blood Pressure

How does high blood pressure happen? This condition, also known as hypertension, occurs in your body due to a stiffening of your arteries over time. But when you exercise regularly, this can help keep your heart and your arteries healthy and functioning normally resulting in better blood pressure levels. 

Regular physical activity can boost the amount of blood that is circulating through your system by up to 25 percent, and in turn, this improvement in circulation causes your blood vessels to be more flexible and helps them expand and widen through the production of nitric oxide.

The risk of high blood pressure can also increase with age, but keeping a regular exercise routine can make a big difference in fighting against hypertension. If your blood pressure is already high, physical activity can help you lower your levels over time. You should plan to start your workouts out slowly and work more physical activity into your daily routine until you’re able to do more advanced exercises. 

Doctors recommend that you get at least 30 minutes of physical activity into your schedule every day to keep both you and your heart healthy for years to come.

Alleviates Stress 

Stress is something that we all deal with to varying degrees. It’s an inescapable force in all our lives. That means that regardless of how hard you try, your heart is always going to have this negative force working against it because stress hormones greatly impact your heart’s health.

Most people think that stress just directly impacts your mental well-being but it can be detrimental to your physiology as well. Doctors have found that stress increases inflammation in your body, which is linked to things like high blood pressure and your lower “good” HDL cholesterol levels. These factors make it harder for your heart to function efficiently.

Chronic stress can also affect your heart in other indirect ways, as when you are dealing with anxiety, it causes you to sleep poorly, make healthy food choices, or be mindful of your weight. These types of lifestyle changes also put your heart health at risk. One of the best ways to deal with stress is to make it work for you: when you’re feeling overwhelmed, take a 10 minute break to decompress, put on some relaxing music, or just disconnect from the world around you for a few moments so that you can recenter your mind, and get back on track while minimizing stress.

Track Your Fitness with ZOZOFIT

As you engage in physical activity in order to keep your heart healthy, you definitely will want to start tracking your health in other ways to ensure that you are making the best possible choices for your long-term health. ZOZOFIT is the best fitness tracking option for anyone wanting to be mindful of how their fitness routines are shaping up. When you use ZOZOFIT’s 3D body scanning technology in our app, you can track your body’s transformation and body fat percentage reduction over time. 

ZOZOFIT now offers equipment-free scanning which makes using the app even easier. All you need is your iPhone and either a one month or three month subscription and you can scan anytime, anywhere. You'll even receive a free 7 day trial before your subscription begins. Android users can scan with ZOZOFIT while using our ZOZOSUIT along with the ZOZOFIT app where you’ll receive free unlimited scanning when you use the ZOZOSUIT during each scan.