Heart health doesn’t have to be complicated!
One of the most powerful ways to look after your heart is simply to move your body. You don’t need to climb a mountain, join a gym, or become a triathlete (unless you want to!). Heart-healthy movement can be as simple as increasing your daily steps, parking a little further away, or standing up from your chair a few extra times each day. Every bit adds up.
The most important thing to remember is that you can start improving your heart health today. Small, consistent changes to how much you move can have a big impact over time, helping you feel more energetic, capable, and confident in your body.
What Happens to the Heart When We Move?
Movement truly is medicine for the heart. Your heart is a muscle, and like any muscle, it becomes stronger and more efficient when you use it regularly. With exercise, the heart pumps blood more effectively, delivering oxygen and nutrients around the body with less effort.
Regular movement also improves blood flow and helps keep your arteries flexible and healthy. Over time, this can lower blood pressure and improve cholesterol levels, both of which are important for reducing the risk of heart disease and stroke.
You may also notice you feel less fatigued and have better endurance. That’s because your body becomes more efficient at using oxygen, allowing you to do everyday tasks with less effort. Just 30 minutes of movement most days can make a meaningful difference — your heart will thank you for it.
Strength + Aerobic Training for Heart Health
The two main types of exercise that aid heart health are aerobic (cardiovascular) exercise and strength training. Both important with different roles. Aerobic exercise includes activities like walking, running, cycling, and swimming. These activities train your heart and lungs to work more efficiently.
Over time, aerobic exercise:
- Strengthens the heart muscle so it can pump blood more effectively
- Improves circulation and can help lower blood pressure
- Lowers “bad” cholesterol and can raise “good” cholesterol
- Improves endurance, making everyday activities feel easier
Strength training includes exercises using weights, resistance bands, or your own body weight (such as squats, push-ups, planks, and step-ups). While it might not make you breathless in the same way as cardio, it is just as important for heart health.
Strength training:
- Helps reduce body fat, which is linked to heart disease risk
- Improves how your body uses glucose and insulin, lowering the risk of type 2 diabetes
- Supports healthy blood pressure
- Improves overall circulation and metabolic health
Together, aerobic and strength training create a strong foundation for a healthy heart and body.
How Much Movement Do We Need?
So how much movement is enough to see the benefits? According to the World Health Organization, adults aged 18–64 should aim for:
- 150–300 minutes of moderate or 75–150 minutes of vigorous aerobic exercise each week
- At least two days of strength training
Adults aged 65 and over should aim for similar aerobic targets, plus:
- Strength training on three or more days per week
- Activities that challenge balance to help reduce falls
Children and teenagers aged 5–17 should aim for:
- At least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity daily, mostly aerobic
- Muscle- and bone-strengthening activities on three or more days per week
Remember, these are targets to work towards — doing some movement is always better than doing none.
Movement Across the Lifespan
While the type and intensity of movement may change as we age, its importance never does. In childhood and adolescence, movement supports growth, bone strength, coordination, and lifelong healthy habits.
In adulthood, the focus shifts to maintaining strength, fitness, and mobility. Regular exercise helps counteract age-related changes, supports balance, and reduces the risk of injury and chronic disease.
Balance can decline with age due to several factors:
- Reduced muscle strength and mass
- Slower nerve communication, affecting reaction time
- Decreased awareness of body position and movement
- Changes in vision, inner ear (vestibular), and sensation from joints and skin
- Joint stiffness limiting movement at the ankles, knees, and hips
- Blood pressure changes that may cause dizziness with position changes
- The good news is that targeted strength, balance, and mobility exercises can help address many of these changes, supporting independence and confidence as we get older.
Getting Started Safely
No matter where you’re starting from — brand new to exercise, returning after a break, building on your current routine, or coming back from injury — there is a type of movement that can support your heart health.
The most important step is simply to begin. Choose an activity you enjoy, as you’re far more likely to stick with something that feels rewarding rather than like a chore.
Start small and build gradually. For example, if walking is your goal, begin with 10 minutes at a comfortable pace. Add a few minutes each session as your confidence and fitness improve. This steady progression allows your heart, muscles, and joints to adapt safely.
As your tolerance increases, you can progress by walking a little faster, adding hills, increasing resistance, or gradually lifting heavier weights. These small, manageable changes lead to meaningful improvements over time.
This is where physiotherapists can help. A physiotherapist can guide you in choosing the right exercises for your goals, fitness level, health conditions, or injury history. They can ensure good technique and help you progress safely, reducing the risk of setbacks while building heart-healthy habits that last.
Local Peninsula Relevance
The Mornington Peninsula offers a wonderful range of places to be active and community groups so you don’t have to do it alone. Local community centres run exercise classes, and there are many walking, running, swimming, and bushwalking groups across the region. Being active with others can make movement more enjoyable and help you stay consistent.
Ready to take the next step in your health, recovery, or movement?
Whether you’re looking to move better for life, recover from injury, or build strength, balance, and confidence, our physiotherapists on the Mornington Peninsula are here to support you.
We provide personalised, evidence-based care to help you reduce pain, restore movement, and build long-term resilience — so you can feel stronger in your body and more confident in your everyday life.
General Physio / Injury (MSK)
Ready to move better and feel stronger?
Whether you’re recovering from injury or managing ongoing pain, our physiotherapists can help you restore movement, reduce discomfort, and build long-term strength.
Book your physiotherapy appointment online or call 03 5976 4944
