Cholesterol

Q: How does exercise reduce my cholesterol?

A: Typically, several lifestyle changes are recommended to help reduce and manage cholesterol levels.  These lifestyle changes include:

•          Weight Loss

•          Eating heart-healthy foods

•          Smoking Cessation 

•          Moderation of Alcohol Intake

Exercise such as walking, swimming, and running are prescribed to help lose weight.  Exercise helps create a caloric deficit which results in weight loss and the lowering of cholesterol levels.

Strength training is also an excellent activity for lowering cholesterol.  Every pound of lean muscle mass added through strength training requires calories to maintain it.  Therefore, more and more calories are burned as you increase the amount of lean muscle mass carried on your body.

Beyond the extra calories burned by the increase in activity level, new research has shown:

•          Exercise stimulates enzymes that help move low-density lipoproteins (LDL) from the blood to the liver. From there, it is converted into bile or excreted.  Therefore, as you exercise more LDLs are expelled.

•          Exercise increases the size of the protein particles that carry cholesterol through the blood.  Smaller particles are more likely to squeeze into the lining of the heart and blood vessels and cause blockage.  Exercise results in larger particles which are less likely to squeeze into the lining of the heart and blood vessels and cause blockage.