Spotlight: Heart Health and Exercise
I have a heart condition: Can I still exercise?
It’s a question we hear very often. Cardiovascular disease may present various health conditions, from atherosclerosis and heart attacks to aortic aneurysms and dissections. In recent decades the instance of cardiovascular disease has become more common.
Depending on a person’s cardiovascular condition, exercise may be recommended to maintain heart health. However, with heart conditions coming in various forms and severity, one may become overwhelmed when trying to figure out how to get back into a physical fitness regimen.
In general, if you have a pre-existing cardiovascular condition, the goal of an exercise routine is to improve your health without over-straining your heart.
With this in mind, getting an evaluation by a professional is the best place to start. Having a solid understanding of your baseline physical fitness while keeping in mind your heart health status offers the potential for great success when beginning an exercise program.
When getting back into exercise, it is important that your condition is monitored by a healthcare professional who understands you and your heart condition. One of our chiropractic physicians, Dr. C.J. DeFabio, has published articles in multiple research journals on exercise protocols and aortic dissections that you may want to check out.1,2
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00325481.2020.1824728?journalCode=ipgm20 1
https://irispublishers.com/accs/pdf/ACCS.MS.ID.000548.pdf 2
If you have a heart condition and want to get back into exercise, schedule an exam today! The information gathered from a physical exam is invaluable. Adding expert health professionals to your team will ultimately best serve your health needs and facilitate the achievement of your exercise goals. Give us a call today to set up an in person or TeleHealth consultation 773.878.7330.
References
- DeFabio DC, DeFabio CJ. Exercise parameters for the chronic type B aortic dissection patient: a literature review and case report. Postgrad Med. 2020 Nov 8:1-6. doi: 10.1080/00325481.2020.1824728. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 32940109.
- Donald C DeFabio, Christopher J DeFabio. Is High Intensity Exercise Safe for the Chronic Thoracic Aortic Dissection Patient?. 2(5): 2020. ACCS.MS.ID.000548. DOI: 10.33552/ACCS.2020.02.000548.
