Higher BMI could make you prone to atrial fibrillation. Here are 5 exercises to reduce your BMI

Here's another reason for you to start exercising!

By: Aishwarya Iyer | | Published: August 7, 2018 8:38 pm

Hormone ghrelin can cause weight gain. © Shutterstock

If a new study is to be believed, people with a higher body mass index (BMI) have a significantly higher risk of developing atrial fibrillation than those with a normal weight. Atrial fibrillation is a condition that makes your heart race faster that could put you at a risk of stroke. People with a higher BMI are said to be prone to get affected by atrial fibrillation and this could be reduced if you exercise. Also Read - A glass of wine a day may up your risk of atrial fibrillation by 16 per cent: Obesity plays a role too

“People who reported that they didn’t exercise at all had about double the risk of developing fibrillation, when compared to those who were physically active and whose body weight was normal,” said co-author Lars Elnan Garnvik from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology’s (NTNU). Also Read - Does winter weather up the risk of heart diseases? Find out what the expert has to say

“However, people who were obese but who exercised a lot limited the increase in risk to no more than approximately 50 per cent. This suggests that physical activity is good for limiting the increased risk of atrial fibrillation in obese people,” Garnvik added. Also Read - World Bicycle Day 2020: Give cycling a shot to stay in shape

For the study, published in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, the research team involved 43,602 men and women who participated in the study between 2006 and 2008.

“Physical activity and exercise reduce a lot of the known risk factors for atrial fibrillation, like high blood pressure, high blood sugar, high cholesterol and chronic inflammation,” said co-author Lars Elnan Garnvik from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU).

“Physical activity can also improve a person’s fitness level, and we know that people in good shape have a reduced risk of heart failure,” Garnvik added.

Lowering your BMI is the key to a healthy living. Various exercises could help you in losing weight, 5 of them are:

Sit-ups: Even though this exercise has become old school now, it is great for your body. Even though one might want to try the abdominal crunches instead of this, remember that this will work better on your muscles too.
Running: Our absolute favourite, running is too good for your body. Apart from helping you with weight loss, it also helps you to have a healthy heart and lights up your mood.
Swimming: Any exercise that makes you breathe heavily indicates that it’s making your body work harder. And swimming is no different. Swimming has many health benefits, cardiovascular fitness and weight loss being 2 of them.
Pranayama: Not getting enough oxygen is one of the common barriers that is stopping you from losing weight. Breathing exercises will help you to lower your BMI while benefiting your heart.
Cycling: Cycling not only helps in increasing your metabolic rate, muscle building and burning body fat but also promotes a healthy heart. Studies prove that they also help in lowering your blood pressure.