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 Exercise has been shown to modify all the risk factors for heart disease in a positive manner and is the most powerful and safe ‘medicine’ for your heart. The next logical questions are, “How much exercise should you do; and what type of exercise?”

An easy way to remember the recommendations is to think of the FITT principle.

F- Is for FREQUENCY of training, which should be 4-6 days a week.

I - is for INTENSITY, that is, how hard should you exercise. To obtain maximum cardiovascular benefit, you should exercise between 55-90% of your maximum heart rate.

Your maximum heart rate is 220 minus your age. Therefore if you are 25 years old, your maximum heart rate is 195, and you should exercise between 137 and 166 beats per minute, which corresponds to 55 to 90% of your maximum heart rate. The lower end of the heart rate range is for older and de-conditioned people. As your fitness level improves you can start exercising at the higher end of the heart rate range.

If you do not want to actually measure your heart rate a simple way of monitoring exercise intensity is the “talk test”; if you are too breathless to carry on a conversation with someone beside you, then you are probably working too hard and need to slow down.

 A third method is to use a system called Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE). Using this, you should exercise at an intensity, which you perceive to be between “fairly light” and “somewhat hard”.

T – is for TIME. The recommended time is 20-60 minutes of continuous or intermittent aerobic activity. New research has shown that you can split up your exercise bouts into three intermittent bouts of minimum ten minutes each and derive the same benefit as one continuous thirty-minute bout.

T – is for TYPE of exercise. The best type of exercise to develop and maintain cardio-respiratory fitness is aerobic exercise. The term “aerobic exercise”, simply means using oxygen for energy. It is any exercise, which uses large muscles, such as the arm, legs etc., and can be performed continuously. Examples include brisk walking, jogging, cycling, swimming, rowing, and other similar activities.

  What about weight training?

 The other aspect of training is strength, and is best achieved by resistance training, which translates to “lifting weights”. Contrary to popular belief, you do not need to be young to engage in, and benefit from resistance training. In fact, to the contrary, the greatest benefits may be experienced by post-menopausal women, in whom osteoporosis is a major problem. Resistance training helps by strengthening the bones, and has shown to positively influence “quality of life measures”, in various studies. Another popular myth is that to benefit from weight lifting, one must do at least three or more sets. For health benefits you should do one set of 8-10 exercises that condition the major muscle groups 2-3 days per week. Multiple-set regimens may provide greater benefits if time allows. Most persons should complete 8-12 repetitions of each exercise.

 Safety Tips

  » Warm-up before exercising. During the first five minutes, exercise at a slower pace.

» If you get chest discomfort, nausea or giddiness stop exercising and consult your doctor.

» If you have more than 2 risk factors for heart disease consult your doctor before starting any exercise.

» When exercising in the heart, make sure you drink plenty of water before, during, and after the exercise.

» Cool-down at the end of exercise. Do not suddenly stop the exercise; gradually slow down over the last 5 minutes.