Cholesterol is one of the fatty substances that circulate in the blood. If we have too much, it can stick to the inner walls of our arteries, narrowing them and increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease . However, it is not only the amount of cholesterol in the blood that can put us at risk, but also the type. Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol – known as “bad cholesterol” is more likely to cause problems , while high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol protects the body from cholesterol buildup. When high cholesterol is diagnosed, the first thing doctors say is that, in addition to improving diet, sports and exercises to lower cholesterol are the best recipe to lower levels naturally . In this article we show you some exercises that help you reduce high cholesterol that you can introduce into your routine to improve your health.
The 5 best exercises that help you reduce high cholesterol
Walk at a good pace
Walking a minimum of 30 minutes a day is the first of the exercises that help you reduce high cholesterol more than doctors always recommend. There are people who, due to their overweight, joint and muscle diseases, or simply their low physical condition are not prepared to start doing sports from one day to the next. Therefore, the ideal is to start little by little, and gradually increase the duration of the walks and the intensity of the walk . And, once the body has adapted, you can move on to other activities such as hiking, Nordic walking or running.
Running
This sport that is gaining more and more followers is ideal for reducing high cholesterol levels, since a 2013 study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine found significant improvements in HDL cholesterol levels in runners who trained a minimum of three times a week . In addition, running has all the possible advantages: it can be done anywhere, anywhere, it doesn’t cost money and everyone knows how to do it.
Riding a bike
Cycling is another of the best exercises that helps you reduce high cholesterol, since it burns almost the same energy as running, but it is much less aggressive on the joints , which is an important factor for many people as they age . The hips and knees are vulnerable to arthritis, and we all need to be careful with them. Therefore, if you are beginning to feel some pain in these joints but want to reduce high cholesterol, this may be your best option.
A good way to start introducing this habit into your routine is work. If biking to work is possible, give it a try. A study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association has shown that people who cycled to work were less likely to develop high cholesterol than those who did not.
Weight training
So far, we’ve been talking mostly about aerobic exercise, as these are generally the exercises that help you the most to reduce high cholesterol and your risk of heart disease. However, several studies maintain that resistance training is also extremely beneficial for people with high cholesterol. The journal Atherosclerosis published a research article showing that study subjects undergoing resistance training were able to clear LDL from their bloodstream faster than those who were not. In another study published by BMC Public Health Trusted Source , scientists reported that the combination of endurance and aerobic exercise helped people lose more weight and fat than either of these alone , showing that resistance training can also help you protect cardiovascular health
