How Men and Women Over 50 Can Get Heart Healthy

Your heart is a vital organ that you need to protect. Most of us don't think about the health of our hearts while we are young. But as we get older we start to think about keeping ourselves a little healthier. Heart Disease is the number one killer of women. In one article that I wrote, Heart Disease and 5 Easy Things a Woman can do About It, I spoke of easy things a woman can do different to reduce her risk of heart disease. While those tips can help to reduce a woman's risk of heart disease, this time I want to touch more on what a woman and man over 50 can do to improve their heart's overall health. Even though you are over 50 now, it is not to late to start taking care of your heart now.

Get active:

You need to be active to get your blood flowing properly. When your blood flows properly, your heart is healthier. Find activities that you enjoy that will get your heart pumping. Take a jog around the park or play a game of golf. If you opt for the game of golf, you need to go it without the golf cart. Look also into activities that you may have never tried before. Trying something new can be fun as well as heart healthy. Maybe check into water aerobics or take a martial arts class.

Rather do something around the house? Why not put a new spin on your housework? Doing everyday house work can burn calories but right now we are looking at heart health. So to get your heart pumping why not put on some music with a fast tempo and clean while moving to the tempo of the music. This will get your heart pumping and give you a clean home.

Learn to Relax:

Stress and tension are brutal on a person's heart. To keep your heart healthy you need to learn how to relax. When you are feeling tense try counting until you feel yourself relax. This technique is great when you are in a public place or have company over. This will not remove tension and stress completely but is a great quick fix during these times.

When you can still away make time to take a nice soak in the bathtub. Add bubbles to really help set the mood to relaxation. Like candle light? Well light the candles and turn off the lights and just let the stress and tension melt away.

For those who are up to classes, take part in a yoga class. These classes can help you find ways of releasing tension right out of your body. Don't worry if your body does not bend this way and that way. There are yoga classes designed for people over 50.

Eating Right:

Food is another area of your life that will effect your heart. Face it ladies and gentlemen you are not as young as you use to be and your heart can not take all the fried and fatty foods that it once could handle. So start eating healthier foods that will benefit your heart. Here are some changes that you can make that will help keep your heart healthy.

Cut out the fried and fatty foods that you are consuming. For the ones that just has to have that fried chicken, go for it but do so in moderation. Moderation being once or twice a month. Not once or twice a week.

Use cholesterol free margarine instead of butter. For best results buy a bottle of margarine that you can spray onto your foods. This way you can just spray a light mist on your food for flavor only.

Start eating more fresh fruit and vegetables instead of canned fruits and vegetables. Canned fruits are soaked in syrup and canned vegetables are high in sodium. So go with fresh instead.

Remember the old saying that " You are what you eat." Eat heart healthy and you will be heart healthy. Don't forget that just because you are over 50, it is never to late to change your lifestyle for a healthy heart.