Recent reports found that the introduction of yoga into a personal fitness plan can do wonders for the heart.
If you've been told that you have high triglycerides or that your diet leans too heavily on processed snacks, it may be time to start working on getting a healthy heart. Besides abstaining from sugar and incorporating more fruits and vegetables into your diet, what else can be done to keep your ticker in good shape? Yoga and meditation exercises, that's what.
In recent years, more than a few studies have suggested that the holistic health regimen may improve cardiovascular health. This may come as little surprise, considering that research consistently indicates just how effective yoga programs can be at reducing pain and improving well-being.
The Yoga Journal noted that yoga can keep the heart fit, even though the system is low-impact and relatively relaxing. The source recounted an experiment conducted by John Schumacher, a yoga instructor and 20-year veteran of the Washington, DC, yoga scene.
Schumacher believed that his heart health was excellent, even though he only practiced stretching, posing and deep breathing. To prove his suspicion, he underwent a physical and a battery of blood tests.
The results? The 52-year-old had less than a 1 percent chance of experiencing a heart attack, which is excellent for a man his age, the source noted.
"I've always maintained that yoga provides more than adequate cardiovascular benefits. Now I have the evidence that regular yoga practice at a certain level of intensity will provide you with what you need," he explained to the journal.
Multiple studies back him up. Three recent reports – in the Indian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology, the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine and the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine – found that the introduction of yoga into a personal fitness plan can do wonders for the heart.
The studies determined that people who regularly practiced yoga tended to have lower blood pressure, higher insulin sensitivity and better blood lipid profiles.
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Tags: healthy heart, yoga and meditation, Yoga and meditation exercises
