Have a Little Respect For Your Heart
Medically reviewed by Drugs.com.
What would you say to somebody who asked you to do 70 push-ups a minute, every hour, for the rest of your life? We could probably guess that your answer would most likely be unprintable here, or one of disbelief. But that’s what we expect our hearts to do from the day we are born to the day we die.
Our hearts are only about the size of our fists, yet they move about 5 quarts of blood every minute, or around 2000 gallons a day. During exercise, our heart beats faster and more forcefully, pushing out nearly 20 quarts per minute, ensuring our hard-working muscles get all the oxygen and other nutrients they need, in addition to removing metabolic by-products such as lactic acid, hydrogen ions, and carbon dioxide. Suffice it to say, our hearts work hard.
But let’s say you were up for a hard challenge and agreed to do the required 100,000 push-ups a day. But, hang on, that would be too easy, because most of us don’t make things easy on our hearts.
So while you are doing your push-ups, you also need to smoke; drink alcohol; balance a 20 pound barbell on your back; juggle paying the bills, work, and picking up the kids from soccer practice; eat salty, fatty, nutrient-depleted food; not sleep; and forget to go to your doctor for a check-up. Sound insane? Of course, but aren’t we all guilty at some level of heart-neglect?
February is American Heart month so make it your month to be kind to your heart, actually, why not make it your year. Pay attention to your diet and eat mainly plant-based foods. Stop smoking if you smoke and limit your intake of alcohol. Get outside and do some physical activity every day; it’s good for both your body and your mind. And make sure you see your doctor every now and then. Just to check how the ol’ ticker is ticking!
For more information on staying heart healthy see here.
Just FYI …..that would be an impressive 2,943,360,000 push-ups!
Posted February 2019
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