In my last post, I talked about the sources of stress and how they can affect your cardiovascular health.  Today’s post is about natural ways to reduce stress without having to resort to drugs.  If you ARE already taking medication for a stress related condition, please discuss it with your medical provider before making any decisions. 

A good first step to reducing stress is exercise.  If you are not doing anything now or getting little exercise, immediately start getting active.  Exercise has been proven to help lower your blood pressure, increase your sense of well-being, and reduce the amount of stress-inducing hormones in the blood.  Start with walking - at least two miles per day.  Bike riding, swimming, light jogging, and treadmills are other good ways to build up cardiovascular strength.

Since a lot of stress is internally induced by your mind, consider trying some form of meditation.  Now, you’re probably envisioning some sort of weird chanting, insense burning, etc.  But, actually, meditation can be nothing more than sitting silent in a quiet room while visualizing positive, relaxing scenes.  It’s important to clear your mind when meditating and focus on your senses.  There are many excellent sources of information on this at the library or bookstore.  You can also take a class at the local YMCA or Health club.

Adopt some lower stress habits too, like turning off the news and major network TV.  New program are notoriously loaded with negative stories that stress us out and embed negative images in our mind.  If you’re going to watch TV, focus on programs with relaxing content.  One of my favorites is the Sunrise Earth program in HD.  All it is, is video footage from some natural area in the world with nature sounds in the background.

Your diet can also affect your levels of stress.  If you’re consuming a lot of foods with caffeine or other stimulants, it can make you more jumpy while raising your blood pressure.  High glycemic foods (ones that convert to sugars quickly in the digestive process) will send your blood sugar levels on a roller coaster ride that makes you eat more often.  You want lower glycemic foods that digest more slowly and provide a more even level of nutrition over the course of the day.  Also, as always, eat more whole foods including fruits and vegetables. 

 Sleep deprivation is another big culprit of high stress.  It’s critical to get enough quality sleep each night to keep stress levels under control.  By dealing with some of your stress issues and using meditation, this can help you sleep better.  Also, melatonin supplements are a natural way to improve sleep.  But, if you think you have a sleep disorder, such as apnea or chronic insomnia, it’s a good idea to consult with a doctor or medical professional. 

It’s critically important that you also manage your life stresses effectively.  Generally, this means dealing with problems rather than letting them go on and on, delivering lots of stress.  Talking about them with others can help.  But, sometimes you just need to take action and get them out of your life.  This will make you feel a lot better in most cases, since it’s usually the fear of a negative outcome that prevents you from dealing with the problem.  Make sure to seek professional help if it’s something beyond your ability to deal with.  Marriage problems are a good example of this.

Finally, there are herbal supplements which can help your body deal with stress. B vitamins, gingko biloba, Zea mays extract, Siberian ginseng, and Rhodiola rosea extract are just some choices to deal with stress.  Go to a natural health store and ask about the supplements they have for stress management.

That’s just a few ideas that can greatly help lower your stress levels.  You’ll also experience better heart health as a side benefit.

Our cardiovascular health is under attack from a lot of different sources these days.  High cholesterol, homocysteine, inflammation, pollution, smoking, lack of exercise, and bacterial infections are some of the biggest causes of heart disease.

 But, one EXTREMELY underrated cause of heart problems today is stress.  Now, we’re not talking about the periodic stresses we experience normally like trying to get the kids to school on time or trying to hit a good golf shot while your buddies are watching.  Our bodies are made to handle these stressors.

The type that’s a huge problem are chronic, continual stresses that don’t go away.    These are much more serious and can include things like caring for a seriously ill child, marital problems, a high-pressure work environment, and worries about the economy.  These types of stress damage the body, heart, and cardiovascular system in ways that science has only just begun to understand. 

But, in my opinion, it may be responsible for more heart attacks and strokes than any of the other major physical risk factors.  And it’s certainly more dangerous when combined with other problems like those mentioned above. 

First, realize that there are two general causes of stress:  Internal and external.  Internal stress is generated by our own minds and thinking patterns.  Based on what we’re thinking and believe, the brain can release hormones which cause parts of our body to go into “stressed mode”.  This can include an increased heart rate, higher blood pressure, sweating, dry mouth, to name just a few things.  Negative emotions such as anger, grief, hostility, and cynicism, as well as depression and anxiety are all big causes of internal stress.

External stress is caused by outside affectors like someone chasing you or a stressful job situation.  Again, the kind of external stress that’s a problem is the chronic or continual kind which doesn’t relent for long.

Research has clearly shown the negative impact of chronic stress on our heart health.  High stress has been shown to accelerate atherosclerosis, as well as increased levels of LDL cholesterol and triglycerides, while also slowing their removal from the blood.  It can also narrow the blood vessels and increase clotting levels. 

One study done over 25 years on doctors with high hostility levels were found to have more than 4 times the risk of having a heart attack than those with lower scores.  Another study found younger men with high anger levels were found to have twice the amount of calcium buildup in their arteries - a sign of atherosclerosis.  Finally, a 1998 study showed that women who suppressed their anger were found to have more advanced atherosclerosis than those who did not. 

On the other hand, a 2001 study done at Harvard found that men who scored highly on tests measuring level of optimism were only half as likely to get heart disease compard to more pessimistic men. 

Although we can’t always eliminate outside stressors, we can manage them better.  And internal stress IS something we can control.  Dr. Kirk Laman, in his book 3 Simple Steps To Improving Your Heart Health, believes in what he calls “An Open Heart”: “An Open Heart is a heart that is open to giving and receiving love. It is a heart that feels happy, content, and at peace. Hearts that are open are resistant to heart illness.”

In tomorrow’s post, I’ll go into what you CAN do about stress today.  All it takes is a desire to take control of your health and life.  Although you can’t always control what happens to you, you absolutely can control how you think and respond to it.  This is where most stress in peoples’ lives come from.  See you tomorrow!

One of the best things of all you can do for your heart and overall health is getting regular cardiovascular exercise.  It helps lower stress, reduce triglyceride & cholesterol levels, strengthens the heart, and reduces blood pressure to name a few benefits.

 A superb exercise for doing this is rowing.  Rowing provides a total body workout that engages all the major muscle groups of the body - legs, abdomen, shoulder, back, arms. 

 This summer, I took a learn to row class through our local rowing club down at the river.  There were people in our class of all age groups - from around 30 on up to 64.  It has been a real eye-opening experience for me.  I watched high school and college rowers often rowing in the morning or afternoon, and they made it look so easy!  But, once in the boat with the oar in my hand, it was a totally different matter!

Before you jump to a quick decision about not wanting to be in a boat out on the freezing water, let me explain that rowing can be done entirely on land.  Most health clubs have rowing machines, sometimes called “ergs”.  A common make is Concept 2.  In fact, even if you decide to take a rowing class, they will always start you on the erg to teach you the correct rowing motion, or “stroke”.  This is where you should start.

If you are a member of a health club, go down there and ask a trainer to show you how to use a rowing machine.  They sometimes have a diagram on the erg showing how the stroke is done basically.  But, this is no substitute for someone showing you how. 

But, let me give you a warning here.  Not all (or even many) trainers know the correct way to row.  Done properly, the rowing stroke enables you to use your body in the most effective manner and get the best possible workout.  Most of the people I see at the health club are doing the stroke completely wrong. 

So, to help you, I’ve provided a couple videos below that you can watch before going down to the club.  The first shows the stroke in a diagram method.  The second shows an actual person rowing, showing how to do it right, then showing what not to do. 

Rowing Video 1:

Rowing Video 2:

One of the fun benefits of learning to row is that the workouts are challenging and not tedious.  Unlike the boring cardio machines at the Club, in rowing, you need to pay attention to what you’re doing.  Also, it’s a lot of fun to exercise with other people.  Rowing is a tremendous team sport.  In learning to row, you also learn teamwork skills.

But, if you don’t want to depend on others to row, either stick with the erg machines or you can learn how to scull, which enables you to row in a single boat.  This does require more skill to master, so you should work your way up to it. 

So, give rowing a try.  The best way to check into it is to look for beginning rowing classes offered through a local rowing club or health club.  That way you can talk to people already rowing who can answer your questions.