Your Guide to Exercising for Heart Health

What are the best exercises for heart health?

The “best” exercises for heart health depend on your individual physical health and fitness level. Everyone is different, and it’s important to start off slowly and safely with any exercise routine.

There are several ways to classify exercise types, but experts usually use two broad categories:

• Aerobic exercise: These are moderate to vigorous intensity activities that involve moving large muscle groups for prolonged periods. These exercises increase your heart and breathing rates to help circulate oxygen throughout the body.
• Resistance exercise: These exercises focus on using force to move resistance, or weight, to help strengthen and increase muscle mass, power, and size. The most common example is weightlifting.

In general, aerobic exercises target your cardiovascular (heart and lungs) performance more than resistance training exercises.

Aerobic exercise increases the amount of blood your heart pumps and the air circulating throughout your lungs. When you’re doing an aerobic workout, you’ll notice your breathing increases along with your heart rate.

Moderate intensity activities are about a 5 or 6 on a scale of 10. They noticeably increase your heart rate and breathing, but you can still talk without feeling too breathless. Examples include:

• brisk walking
• unburdened hiking
• water aerobics
• recreational bicycling
• slow jogging

Vigorous intensity exercise is challenging. You’ll notice a significant increase in your heart rate and breathing. You may only be able to say one or two words before catching your breath. On a scale of 10, vigorous intensity exercise is a 7 or 8.

Examples of exercises that often reach vigorous intensity include:

• running
• sprinting
• jumping rope
• tennis
• hockey
• basketball
• swimming laps

When it comes to aerobic workouts, the effort you put in and the difficulty involved can change your intensity level. A brisk walk on flat terrain, for example, might only be moderate intensity, while a brisk walk up a long hill or staircase might reach vigorous intensity.

How much exercise does your heart need each week?

Physical activity recommendations from the American Heart Association (AHA) state that adults should get at least:

• 150 minutes of moderate intensity aerobic activity a week, or
• 75 minutes of vigorous intensity aerobic activity a week, or
• a combination of both each week

This should be paired with moderate to high intensity muscle strengthening at least twice a week, with an overall goal of 300 total minutes of any physical activity weekly.

Regular movement throughout the day is best for children under age 5 years. People ages 6 to 17 years should aim for at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous intensity activity daily.

Kids are also advised to incorporate 3 days of muscle- and bone-strengthening activities a week.

A healthcare professional, such as a primary care physician, can go over how these general guidelines apply to you. Your age, medical history, and heart health goals all matter.

If you’re recovering from a major cardiac event or procedure, for example, your exercise program will look a lot different than that of someone primarily focused on heart disease prevention.

Exercise target heart rate for a healthy heart

Most exercises accommodate a spectrum of effort and difficulty. For instance, one exercise, like swimming, can be at a moderate or vigorous intensity, depending on how hard you push yourself.

Calculating your target heart rate (THR) is one way to accurately track the intensity of your workouts. THR is a percentage of your maximum heart rate.

According to the AHA, you can estimate your maximum heart rate by subtracting your age from 220. The number you get is your maximum beats per minute (bpm).

Your THR or bpm during moderate and vigorous intensity activities should be different:

• Moderate intensity exercise: THR between 50% and 70% of your maximum heart rate.
• Vigorous intensity exercise: THR between 70% and 85% of your maximum heart rate.

To calculate these, multiply your estimated maximum heart rate by the percentage converted to a decimal. Here’s an example of how to calculate the moderate intensity THR for someone who is 40 years old:

• 220 – 40 = 180 bpm (maximum heart rate)
• 50% of maximum heart rate: 180 x 0.50 = 90 bpm
• 70% of maximum heart rate: 180 x 0.70 = 126 bpm

So, if you’re 40 years old, your target heart rate for moderate intensity exercise is between 90 and 126 bpm.

There are several ways to track your heart rate during exercise. You can do so manually by pressing a pulse site on your body, such as your neck or wrist, or by using a variety of devices, including chest bands, wrist or arm wearables, and a smart ring.

What happens if your heart rate is too high during exercise?

Your maximum heart rate indicates the boundary between beneficial stress on the heart and dangerous strain.

Maintaining an elevated heart rate may cause damage to your heart and blood vessels and increase the risk of an adverse cardiac event. Research also suggests that it may increase the risk of developing arrhythmias.

Going over your target heart rate isn’t always as dangerous as exceeding your maximum heart rate, but it can still put undue strain on your heart, contributing to conditions like overtraining syndrome.

If you go over your target heart rate, slow down or stop what you’re doing to cool down fully and rehydrate. Continually monitor your heart rate to ensure it’s returning to baseline.

If your heart rate remains elevated even after resting, or if you’re having chest pain, trouble breathing, or loss of consciousness, seek medical attention as soon as you can.

Tips for making exercise part of your routine

Starting an exercise routine may feel daunting, especially if it’s never been a main focus in your life or if you’re managing or recovering from a heart condition.

However, there are many strategies and tips to help incorporate exercise into your daily routine:

• Focus on activities you enjoy, and find ways to vary their intensity as you progress.
• Take micro-breaks for exercise and physical activity during the workday.
• Work with a doctor to set realistic goals that match your fitness level.
• Make everyday necessities opportunities for exercise, like parking farther away so you walk more.
• Increase the intensity, duration, and frequency of workouts gradually.
• Include exercise in your schedule so it’s planned and not done “when you have time.”
• Use your lunch break to be active, such as by walking or joining a nearby fitness class.
• Find a workout buddy to help you stay motivated and enjoy your workouts more.
• Reward yourself for reaching exercise milestones (like running X number of miles for the first time).
• Be flexible. A shorter exercise routine is better than none if your time is more constrained than usual.
• Add variety to your routine with new exercises, fitness classes, or scenic locations.

Remember, be kind to yourself. It’s OK to have days when exercise is the last thing you want to do or if you need an extra rest day. If you do miss a day, don’t let it slow you down. Get right back on schedule as soon as you can.

From Our Editors

“I find it easier to consistently exercise if I’m doing a type of physical activity I really enjoy. For example, I’m not a huge fan of running but I love dancing, so trying dance workouts turned exercise into something I now look forward to and want to maintain. I also find it easier to stay consistent with exercise if I have an accountability partner. Over lockdown, a friend and I would follow a workout video together over Zoom. Having her there to encourage me to get started each day made it so much easier to stay motivated.”

— Megan, Editor

Learn more about how to incorporate 10 minutes of exercise daily for heart health.

^{Quotes represent individual opinions. All content is strictly informational and should not be considered medical advice.}

The bottom line

Moderate to vigorous intensity exercise is good for your heart. It can strengthen your heart muscle and improve a variety of functions that promote heart health.

While aerobic activity is specifically recommended for your heart health, strength training and flexibility work are also part of a complete fitness program.

Regular exercise can help prevent heart disease and improve health outcomes. Starting slowly with practical goals and focusing on activities you enjoy can help you ease into an exercise routine.