Priority Tips for a Healthy Heart
Author: Linda Sinden Date Posted:16 January 2020
Here are a list of tips for boosting your heart health. As you review these tips, count up the number to which you can say.. Yes, I do that!
- Avoid spending excessive amounts of time watching TV, performing mental work or working late at night
- Make it a point to get deep sleep each night. Early to bed and early to rise
- Eat organic, fresh foods where possible. Avoid rich foods that are high in fat
- Eat in a settled, quiet atmosphere
- Eat home-cooked meals as much as possible
- Avoid fast-food restaurants
- Avoid coffee and carbonated beverages. Caffeine may increase your blood pressure
- Create a home environment that is pleasing and restful to the senses
- Avoid emotional confrontations. Nurture your heart with love and affection
- Avoid anger, pressured work habits, and worrying. Use mild rather than pungent spices in your food
- If you’re under stress, practice the Transcendental Meditation program, which has been proven in more than 600 scientific studies to reduce stress and related diseases such as hypertension, atherosclerosis and stroke
- If you are under pressure, feeling nervous and anxious, give yourself an Ayurvedic oil massage (abhyanga) regularly using Vata Massage during winter and Pitta Massage Oil during summer.
- Remember: Happiness is divine medicine for your heart.
- Consider taking Cardio Support to help strengthen different levels of your heart muscles, helping to improve blood flow while supporting both the physical and emotional heart.
- Make sure you get enough exercise every day. According to Maharishi Ayurveda, exercise increases heart strength, depletes excess fat and brings a feeling of lightness to the body
About Exercise
Our bodies are designed to move—movement and breathing is how we circulate Prana, our vital life energy. When considering heart health it is helpful to remember that the heart is a muscle and muscles need exercise to stay strong and often need an exercise regimen to repair when needed.
"From physical exercises one gets lightness, a capacity for work, firmness, tolerance of difficulties, elimination of impurities and stimulation of digestion"—Charaka
These are the benefits that Ayurvedic Physician, Charaka described in 300 BC.
Exercise can help you achieve and maintain a healthy weight and control diabetes, elevated cholesterol and high blood pressure ' all risk factors for heart disease. If you have a heart arrhythmia or heart defect, there may be some restrictions on the activities you can do, so be sure to talk to your doctor first. With your doctor's OK, aim for 30 to 60 minutes of physical activity most days of the week. Even if you can't make time for one 30- to 60-minute exercise session, you can still benefit from breaking up your activity into several 10-minute sessions. Ayurveda explains that exercise is meant to give more than it takes and be a pleasurable activity that you will look forward to.
Why is walking ideal?
Walking is considered the ideal exercise for all body types. For Vatas, a walk is soothing, and a long walk has a tranquilising effect upon them. For Pittas, a walk is cooling as it gives them an opportunity to slow down from the driving pace of their day. Kaphas find a brisk walk helps to throw off sluggishness or minor congestion, and it helps warm up their slower digestion.
Here are some tips for daily exercise:
- Exercise to 50% of your capacity - the point where you get a light sweat on your forehead or tip of the nose.
- Breathe comfortably through your nose while exercising.
- Exercise 2 hours after a large meal.
- If recovering from an acute illness, or during the monthly cycle for women it is best not to exercise. Your body is busy with self repair at this time.
- Choose exercise forms that suit your Prakruti or constitution.
- Consider taking 2-4 tablets of Organic Premium Amla Berry before breakfast and evening meal to help strength, stamina and lean muscle growth.
Do what makes you happy!
This saying has particular importance when considering a lifetime of being physically active. Do what gives you joy and share the joy with your friends and family. Enrolling others in being physically active with you is a great way to catch up and to help them look after their health also. Exercising to 50% of your capacity is enjoyable and fitness levels are built and maintained in an easy and natural way.
Wishing you the bliss of balance with a toned and fit body.
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Linda Sinden has been a practising Maharishi Ayurveda Consultant since 1990 and is a regular contributor to our weekly Insights. She has a practice in Auckland, New Zealand and also provides phone or Skype sessions for those who need assistance, but don’t have a consultant in their vicinity. Email: lindasinden@orbislife.co.nz Skype: Linda.Sinden |
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