Heart health: be physically active and enjoy healthy eating
Small changes to your eating and physical activity habits can make a big difference to your heart health.
Cardiovascular disease is still Australia’s leading cause of death for both men and women. In addition, the overweight and obesity epidemic continues and now more than half of our adult population is overweight or obese, which increases the risk of coronary heart disease, stroke, congestive heart failure and type 2 diabetes. But the good news is you can reduce your risk of heart disease, as well as achieve and maintain a healthy weight, by making small changes to your lifestyle.
Combine regular physical activity with healthy eating to help you achieve and maintain a healthy weight, and look after your heart.
Enjoy healthy eating
Healthy eating is not ‘dieting’ and is not about following strict rules. Instead the emphasis is on enjoyment and nourishment.
Healthy eating is about choosing:
- mainly plant-based foods — vegetables, fruit, nuts, seeds and legumes (dried peas, dried beans and lentils) and grain-based foods (preferably wholegrain) such as bread, pasta, noodles and rice;
- moderate amounts of lean meats, skinless poultry, fish and reduced fat dairy products; and
- moderate amounts of polyunsaturated or monounsaturated oils and fats.
Let’s get physical
Being physically active is an important part of leading a healthy lifestyle. At any age, physical activity provides a range of health benefits. And the good news is activity doesn’t have to be vigorous — moderate activity, such as brisk walking, is great for your health.
For general heart health benefits, the Heart Foundation recommends at least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity on all or most days of the week. This activity can be accumulated in bouts of 10 minutes or more if this is more convenient. It’s really about finding ways to incorporate physical activity into everyday living.
Research has confirmed that it is never too late to start being active and people who do no physical activity are twice as likely to die from coronary heart disease than those who do regular, moderate physical activity.
Regardless of your age, the health benefits start to occur as soon as you take up regular physical activity.
Compared with people who are not active, those who are regularly physically active tend to:
- have improved long-term health;
- be less likely to have a heart attack;
- feel more energetic;
- manage their weight better;
- have a healthier blood cholesterol level;
- have lower blood pressure;
- have stronger bones and muscles;
- recover better from a heart attack (if this has occurred); and
- feel more confident, happy, relaxed and are able to sleep better.
Practical tips to help you get active
- Choose activities you enjoy; in that way, you will be more likely to keep doing them.
- Vary the type of activity you do, so that you don’t become bored with the one thing, therefore increasing your chance of maintaining your activity throughout life.
- Set yourself small, realistic goals for your activity. For example: ‘Tomorrow I’ll start with a 15-minute walk to the train station rather than driving.’
- Purchase a pedometer to measure the distance you have walked or run, and set yourself targets to work towards. This will help to keep you motivated and will give you a sense of achievement.
- Set aside certain times of the day or one period that suits you to be active — you’re more likely to be committed if you schedule it into your routine.
- Be active with friends or your family. This way you can motivate and encourage one another and have fun at the same time.
- Join a club or a group, and enjoy some physical activity while socialising. The social support you may gain from being active with others can also improve your health.
Last Reviewed: 13 January 2010
- 1. Commonwealth of Australia Preventative Health Taskforce. Technical paper 1. Obesity in Australia: a need for urgent action. Commonwealth of Australia; 2009. Available from: http://www.health.gov.au/internet/preventativehealth/publishing.nsf/Content/tech-obesity (accessed April 2010).
2. Heart Foundation of Australia. Health eating and drinking. Modified Dec 2009. Available from: http://www.heartfoundation.org.au/sites/HealthyEating/whatishealthyeating/Pages/default.aspx (accessed April 2010).
3. Heart Foundation of Australia. Physical activity [Website]. Modified Oct 2009. http://www.heartfoundation.org.au/Healthy_Living/Physical_Activity/Pages/default.aspx (accessed April 2010).
4. Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing. Physical activity guidelines[Website]. Modified March 2009. http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/content/health-pubhlth-strateg-phys-act-guidelines (accessed April 2010).
