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Walk
Away From Heart Disease
A brisk but comfortable walking pace is a good way to strengthen
your heart.
That's the claim of a University of Massachusetts study
presented Nov. 11 at the American Heart Association's annual
conference in Orlando, Fla.
"A large segment of the population still believes exercise
must be vigorous, demanding or involve more complicated
activities than walking to adequately raise one's heart
rate. This perception of 'no pain, no gain' can discourage
people from starting to exercise at all," says study
investigator Kyle McInnis, a University of Massachusetts
professor, in a prepared statement.
McInnis and his colleague studied 72 obese women and 12
obese men, average age 41, who sought professional advice
on safe levels of exercise.
"These were middle-aged people like many others. They
were between 30 and 100 pounds overweight, with below-average
aerobic endurance, and had been thinking about starting
to exercise and lose some weight," McInnis says.
On the first visit, the study volunteers had their heart
rate and oxygen use measured while they walked on a treadmill
with a gradually increasing steepness until they became
fatigued. On a different visit, the volunteers were told
to maintain a brisk but comfortable pace while they walked
a mile on the treadmill.
They completed the walk in an average of 18.7 minutes with
an average speed of 3.2 miles per hour. During this self-paced
walk, all the volunteers achieved recommended levels of
exercise intensity, based on their previous heart measures.
The AHA recommends that people regularly take part in moderate-to-vigorous
exercise that boosts heart rate to more than 55 percent
of its maximum.
"Comparison with the treadmill tests showed that when
participants self-selected a speed that was comfortable
but brisk, their heart rate and level of exertion was in
a safe range but high enough to improve their cardiovascular
fitness," McInnis says.
"You really can get your heart rate up to the level
that your doctor would recommend, and you don't have to
jog or run to do it," he adds.
Here's where you can learn more about healthy
living and your heart.
Article Source: HealthDay
Article Author: N/A
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