A cardiologist reveals their exercise regimen for a healthy heart

It can be hard enough to find the motivation to exercise, but that’s only half the battle.

From HIIT to hot yoga, there are plenty of workouts to choose from — and they can be tough. Should you be doing cardio or strength training? How often and for how long should you exercise?

Although exercise is often considered in terms of losing weight and muscle mass, it is also important for the health of our heart. So, what do cardiologists do to keep their hearts healthy? Newsweek discussed with Dr. Shaline Rao of NYU Langone Hospital to find out.

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“I’m not a natural athlete or exerciser,” Rao, who is a cardiologist, said Newsweek. “I look at it as part of preventive health. I advise people on exercise and nutrition, and I want to live by my advice! power.”

So, what does a typical week look like for Rao?

“I exercise three to four hours a week at a local gym where 30 minutes of cardio and 30 minutes of weight training are included,” he said. “I need the encouragement of others and the strength of a coach to keep me busy. Sometimes I take a family yoga class and I have a group of local moms who join me for walking fast. I like to combine leisure time with exercise so I often try to include friends and family in my exercise routine.”

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Although you don’t need to exercise every day, avoid spending all your exercise time on the weekend.

“Exercise is good for you, the recommendation is 150 minutes a week, but there is an increased risk of injury if you exercise vigorously on the weekend but don’t have time to exercise throughout the week,” Rao said. . “Any exercise has been shown to improve cardiovascular outcomes, but where possible, spreading the time is good for building endurance.

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“Weekend warriors still get some benefits, but it helps if you start in good physical condition.”

Ultimately, he says a consistent schedule is best, whatever that means for you.

“Finding a combination of aerobic exercise, strength training, and stability/flexibility training provides the best combination for cardiovascular health and overall wellness,” he said. Rao.

• Aerobic Exercise: “30 minutes of physical activity five days a week is a good goal to try. Aerobic exercise includes activities that get your heart pumping like running, swimming , dancing, rowing.”
• Strength/resistance training: “A good rule of thumb for resistance training is to include this effort at least two non-resistance days per week.”
• Flexibility/stability: “Flexibility exercises, such as stretching, do not directly contribute to cardiovascular health. What they do is to improve muscle health, which enables you to stay flexible and free from joint pain, cramping and other muscle problems.an important part of being able to maintain aerobic exercise and resistance training so include this before and after after exercise to protect your ability to maintain exercise is important.”

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