You want to make sure that your heart is healthy, and you know that exercise, especially cardio, is what you should be doing to make that happen.

But is doing steady state cardio - like going for a brisk walk or a jog - the best thing for a really strong and healthy heart?

Well, the answer might surprise you.

Today you’re going to learn how you can specifically leverage exercise and what your workouts should look like to make your heart as strong as possible.

My Personal Cardio Evolution.

I used to be a total cardio fiend—training for marathons, logging miles on the treadmill, and believing that steady-state cardio was the best way to burn calories and the only way to build endurance and heart health. But despite all that running, I wasn’t as fit as I thought. It wasn’t until I started exploring different training methods that my cardiovascular fitness actually improved.

If you think cardio only means jogging or hopping on the elliptical, think again! Today, we’re going to break down how you can train your heart in smarter, more effective ways. **

Why This Matters – Your Heart Needs More Than Just a Jog

Cardiovascular fitness is one of the 6 aspects of fitness (the others being muscular strength, flexibility [or joint mobility], balance, coordination and power)

Cardiovascular fitness is about how efficiently your heart, lungs, and muscles use oxygen—and it’s critical for long-term health, especially in midlife.

• Hormonal changes during perimenopause and menopause can affect heart health, so keeping our cardiovascular system strong is more important than ever.
  • Last week we looked at the big picture - all of the healthy habits that impact your heart.
  • This week it’s all about intentionally building a stronger heart through exercise.

But here’s the great news: A good heart-healthy workout doesn’t have to look like traditional cardio! If your heart rate is up and you’re breathing hard, you’re doing something good for your heart. So, let’s rethink how we approach cardio!

How the Cardiovascular System Gets Stronger with Exercise

Your heart is a muscle, and just like your biceps or quads, it gets stronger when challenged with exercise. In fact, your entire cardiovascular system gets stronger with exercise in a couple of different ways, which I think are really interesting:

I find it’s helpful to think of your heart like a rubber pump with tubes coming off of it.

• Exercise increases the size of your pump, your heart chambers, so you can send out more blood with every beat
• Exercise also conditions the heart to relax more easily and then pump with more force with every beat
• Exercise doesn’t just make your heart stronger, but also makes the tubes coming off of it stronger too:
  • Over time with exercise, your blood vessels actually expand and have a larger diameter, and also become more flexible
  • “Exercise also spurs the production of nitric oxide, a molecule that relaxes and widens blood vessels.” https://www.health.harvard.edu/heart-health/the-many-ways-exercise-helps-your-heart
    • All of these things are what lowers your blood pressure.
• Not only that, but exercise also improves the efficiency of oxygen exchange. You get better at grabbing oxygen from your lungs and the better at transfering it to the cells that need it.
• 🔹 Research Insight: A study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology found that even small amounts of varied cardiovascular exercise significantly improve heart health and longevity (source).

Here are some clues that tell you your heart is getting stronger:

• You’ll feel less winded with certain activities (carrying large items or walking up stairs or uphill won’t wind you quite so much and you’ll be able to talk while you do it.)
• You’ll recover quicker in between bursts of activity - won’t need as long of rest breaks
• Your resting heart rate will be lower (normal resting heart rate ranges from 60-100 bpm.)
• Your active heart rate for a certain activity might be lower, too (MIGHT be…)
• You’ll have lower blood pressure

Ok, what kind of exercise is going to do this?

Understanding Heart Rate Zones (Zones 1-5)

I think it’s really helpful to have a general understanding of different cardio zones. Think of these zones like gears on a car - you’re a 5-speed.

• Zone 1 (Very Light) – Recovery, easy walking.
• Zone 2 (Low Intensity, Steady-State – LISS) – Walking in 2 inches of snow. Endurance-building, increases stamina.
• Zone 3 (Moderate Intensity) – Where most people naturally settle - usually start to sweat, talking becomes more difficult. Jogging or running - still steady state, you can sustain it for longer than 2 minutes, but you’re working.
• Zone 4 (Hard Effort) – No longer steady state, definitely not talking. You’ll need a break by 2 minutes. A fast run.
• Zone 5 (Max Effort, HIIT) – Short bursts around 10-30 seconds, anaerobic (so you’re working harder than your oxygen can actually keep up). Full sprint.

There are always trends with cardio zones, and why one zone is somehow magical. Right now, Zone 2 training is getting a lot of attention, but the truth is that for heart health, studies show that training in a mix of these zones leads to greater cardiovascular adaptation and efficiency than staying in just one (source).

But, let’s talk about the pros and cons of steady-state cardio vs. interval training

Steady-State Cardio vs. Interval Training – Pros & Cons

Steady-State Cardio (LISS): sustained effort in the lower zones (1-3)

• Low-impact, great for endurance.
• Builds aerobic capacity over time.
• Can be time-consuming and may not maximize fat burning post-workout.

Interval Training (HIIT): short bursts in the higher zones (4-5)

• Shorter, more efficient workouts.
• Burns more calories post-workout (afterburn effect).
• Can be stressful on the body if overdone, but there’s a way to do it right.

Takeaway: Both have benefits! The best approach is to mix them up based on your current level of fitness.

Here’s an example of how to mix it up:

• Do high intensity work 2 or 3 days a week. Workouts that get you breathing really hard, needing rest breaks, and pushing your heart rate.
• On the in between days, do low intensity steady-state workouts, that have the added the benefit of keeping you moving and recovery well

Strength Training for Cardio? Yes!

Strength training can double as cardio if structured correctly. Circuit training, kettlebell swings, sled pushes, and battle ropes all elevate heart rate while building muscle. This is especially powerful for women in midlife because it preserves muscle mass while improving heart health.

Research Insight: Studies show that resistance training with minimal rest periods improves cardiovascular endurance and VO2 max, similar to traditional cardio (source).

Rethink Your Cardio This Week

Think of it like this… Your Heart is Like Your Home’s Plumbing System

Think of your heart like the plumbing in your house. If the pipes are never used, they get rusty and clogged. If you blast water through them at full pressure all the time, they wear down quickly. But if you regularly turn on the faucets at different intensities—sometimes a slow trickle, sometimes a strong flow—the pipes stay clear, strong, and efficient.

That’s exactly how you want to train your heart. Mix it up. Give it slow and steady work, occasional powerful bursts, and even resistance to strengthen it over time. You don’t have to run marathons—you just have to keep the system flowing in different ways.

So, this week, think about how you can ‘turn on the faucets’ in new ways. Maybe it’s adding a few sprints to your walk, lifting weights with less rest, or even dancing around your kitchen. However you do it, just keep that heart pumping.

More Resources & Links

Harvard Health Article - The Many Ways Exercise Helps Your Heart

Listen to Episode 434. How to Strengthen Your Heart—One Habit at a Time

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