How to Support Heart Health

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1Picking the Right Food

2Eating the Right Way

3Staying Fit

4Living Well

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Whether you've had a scare, or you're just looking out for yourself, you're right to focus on maintaining a healthy heart. Luckily, you can support your heart's health with some common sense measures like eating well, moving your body, and getting enough sleep. When you take care of your heart, you increase the length and the quality of your life.

Steps

Method 1

Method 1 of 4:

Picking the Right Food

1. 
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   Focus on produce. Vegetables and fruits have many properties that can help fight cardiovascular disease. If you center them in your diet, you will eat fewer items that work against heart health. Try planning meals that feature vegetables as the main attraction, such as curries, stir-fry, salads, and vegetable soups.

   • Keep fruits and vegetables around to snack on. Put a bowl of fruit out in your kitchen so it catches your eye.
   • While frozen vegetables and even canned fruit can be perfectly healthy, watch out for added sugar or salt. Eat fresh produce when you can get it.
2. 
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   Opt for whole grains. Whole grains help you regulate your blood pressure, making them healthier for your heart than white-flour carbohydrates. Opt for bread and bread products made with whole-wheat flour, high-fiber crackers and cereal, and whole grains like brown rice, barley, farro, buckwheat, or quinoa.

   • Try oatmeal for breakfast, and air-popped popcorn (without butter) for a whole-grain snack.
   • Avoid white flour items and items with a lot of added sugar, like muffins or waffles.
3. 
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   Eat good fats. Opt for monounsaturated fats instead of solid fats. Olive oil, canola oil, and vegetable and nut oils are good options. Eat foods with polyunsaturated fats, such as fish, avocados, seeds, and nuts.

   • Cold-water fish contain omega-3 fatty acids, which can benefit your heart health by lowering your triglycerides. Eat salmon, mackerel, and herring.
   • Flaxseeds and walnuts are also a great source of omega-3 fatty acids.
   • Avoid saturated fats and trans fats by limiting the number of solid fats in your diet. Skip butter, animal fat, margarine, and shortening.
   • If you're a fan of margarine, get a version that is trans-fat free or cholesterol-lowering.
   • Limit the amount of gravy, cream sauce, and nondairy creamer you consume.
4. 
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   Go for lean proteins. Legumes, such as beans, peas, and lentils, are great sources of protein and contain no cholesterol and very little fat. They can serve as excellent substitutes for meat protein, but they're also delicious with rice and vegetables.

   • Eat lower fat dairy items, like skim milk. If you like creamy things, try yogurt instead of sour cream or butter.
   • Pick lean cuts of meat and skinless chicken.
   • Eggs are also a great source of lean protein.
5. 
   5
   Be conscious of your salt intake. It can be hard to tell how much salt you're eating, as salt is generally hidden in your food. Avoid processed foods as much as you can, and always check the labels of canned or frozen foods to see how much salt is added. Eat fresh food when you can.

   • Flavor food with herbs and spices instead of relying on salt.
   • When buying prepared meals, check the label. Opt for reduced-salt or low-sodium when you can.
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Method 2

Method 2 of 4:

Eating the Right Way

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   Control your portions. Even if you're eating healthy foods, you can damage your heart health by eating too much (or too little!). To eat proper portions, pay attention to your hunger. Start yourself off with small servings, and only return for seconds if you don't feel sated.

   • Consider the size of your plates. The bigger the plate, the more likely you are to over-serve yourself. Purchase small plates and bowls to encourage small serving sizes.
   • Serve yourself the low-calorie healthy foods first. Fill half your plate with salad and vegetables before you go for the heavier items.
2. 
   2
   Plan your meals. You are more likely to make healthy choices if you plan your meals ahead of time. On the weekends, or whenever you have time off work, make menus and plan your week out in advance. Make a grocery list of everything you'll need before you shop, and beware of impulse purchases.

   • Try cooking ahead for yourself so you don't have to stop and cook every meal. Make food so that there will be leftovers, and keep track of when you made them so things don't go bad.
   • Balance your weekly diet so that you don't eat too much of the same thing all at once. Try making two to three main dishes at a time so that you can alternate.
3. 
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   Indulge on occasion. Stressing out about your food choices will not support your heart's health. As long as it's not a daily habit, it's okay to eat the occasional handful of chips or slice of birthday cake.

   • However, once it is a habit, try to control and alter it as soon as possible. For instance, you may choose not to keep chips in the house if you're always reaching for them.
   • If you eliminate one unhealthy snack, try to replace it with something healthier that you like — for instance, if you get rid of chips, try keeping some nuts or cut-up vegetables around for snacking.
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Method 3

Method 3 of 4:

Staying Fit

1. 
   1
   Start small. You don't have to splurge on a gym membership and train for a triathlon to support your heart health. Any change towards more activity is helpful. Even adding as few as 10 minutes of energetic activity a day can make a difference.

   • Add activity into your daily routine. Walk the dog, walk to the grocery store and cook at home, bike to work, or take the stairs instead of the elevator if you can.
   • Start some active hobbies, like gardening.
   • Try the 7-minute workout for a short, vigorous burst of action. A brief but hardy workout may be just as beneficial as a longer session.
2. 
   2
   Exercise daily and weekly. Get 150 – 300 minutes of moderate exercise or 75 – 150 minutes of vigorous exercise a week. Get both moderate and vigorous exercise to create a sustainable weekly routine.

   • Try to get least half an hour of moderate activity (such as yoga or briskly walking) most days of the week. Work up to longer jaunts of vigorous exercise.
   • Experiment with a few different kinds of vigorous exercise you think you might like, such as running, hiking, cycling, or swimming.
   • Establish a daily and a weekly routine. Keep track in your calendar!
3. 
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   Include aerobic activity. To lower your cholesterol and blood pressure, work up to getting about 40 minutes of aerobic activity three to four times a week. Aerobic exercise is also called endurance exercise—it's exercise that speeds up your breathing and your heart rate.

   • Try moderate aerobic activity like brisk walking.
   • Go for more vigorous activity, such as dancing, swimming, biking, jogging or running.
   • Get some daily aerobic activity by climbing the stairs.
   • Have some fun by playing team sports like basketball, soccer, or tennis.
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Method 4

Method 4 of 4:

Living Well

1. 
   1
   Sleep. Get a full night's sleep to support your heart's health. If you are an adult, you need around seven to nine hours of sleep a night. Try to support your sleep by going to bed and waking up around the same time each day.

   • One way to measure the quality of your sleep is how you feel on waking. If you wake up feeling refreshed, you're probably getting enough sleep.
   • If you're struggling to wake up when your alarm goes off, you might need more sleep or higher quality sleep.
   • Talk to your doctor if you can't seem to get rested. You might have a medical condition that is disturbing your sleep.
2. 
   2
   Quit smoking tobacco. Tobacco damages your heart and blood vessels at an alarming rate. If you smoke, quit. If you don't, don't start.
3. 
   3
   Keep an eye on your weight. Carrying excess weight, especially in your upper body, can be hard on your heart. Being overweight can also lead you into contracting diseases that are hard on your heart, such as high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

   • Calculate your BMI. While BMI isn't a perfect indicator, and fails to account for muscle mass, it can help you gage your rough ideal weight.
   • Use waist measurement. Another rough way to see if you are overweight is to measure straight around your waist. Men are usually overweight if their waist is wider than 40 inches (101.6 centimeters, or cm), while women are considered overweight if their waist is wider than 35 inches (88.9 cm).
   • Talk to your doctor about the ideal weight for you. Your doctor will calculate in your medical history and information about your genes and lifestyle.
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