More Steps for a Healthy Heart
It’s heart month and throughout February, we want to share different ways to improve your heart health. One way to not only increase your heart health, but also improve overall health is standing and walking more during the day. As humans, we were created to move and a sedentary lifestyle can increase your risk for heart disease, diabetes, and obesity.
If you have an office job, you end up sitting for a lot of hours during the day. In addition to the health concerns we mentioned before (heart disease, diabetes, and obesity), sitting can also lead to low energy, back and neck pain, and high blood pressure and high blood sugar. By making a few simple changes in your work habits, you can greatly improve your health.
A few ways to add more movement to your day include taking micro breaks often. Taking a minute or two to stretch and walk around is a great way to add a few more steps to your day and stretch out our muscles. Another great option if your company allows is a standing desk. Many people find that standing desks not only allow more standing time during the day, they also help improve energy and productivity.
If you live close enough to your place of work, try walking or biking to work. This is a great way to add a little exercise to your day. And we’re sure you’ve heard it before, but take the stairs! Other ways to include steps in your day would be to walk to someone’s office instead of calling or emailing and walking on a treadmill during zoom meetings or webinars.
Another great way to be more mindful of your steps is by tracking them. Whether you buy a simple pedometer or invest in a fitness tracker, both are great options to help keep you accountable. A good goal to strive for is 10,000 steps in a day.
So as you can see, making a few simple changes to your daily routines can make a big difference in the number of steps you take. Increasing your daily number of steps will help decrease your chances for other health risks. If these seem like too many changes, start with one a week and slowly build up. Your heart and health will thank you for it!