Keeping your cholesterol at a moderate level takes work and time. It’s vital in lowering your chances of heart disease, stroke, or other illnesses. It involves knowing your numbers, eating right, and exercising. Along with doing these things, here are a few other tips for reducing your cholesterol in 7 days.
Know Your Cholesterol Levels
It’s important to know where you stand regarding your LDL (low-density lipoproteins) and HDL (high-density lipoproteins) cholesterol. Which is higher- the LDL or HDL cholesterol? The LDL cholesterol is known as your bad cholesterol and the HDL cholesterol is good. HDL cholesterol prevents the buildup of cholesterol in your arteries, while LDL cholesterol clogs the arteries and puts you at risk of a heart attack or a stroke. The HDL must be higher than the LDL cholesterol. Before you start the process of reducing your cholesterol levels, it’s important to start setting some realistic and attainable goals.
Improving Your Diet
We can start by setting some goals to improve our diet. What we put in our mouths has a serious impact on our cholesterol. If all you eat is processed, high-cholesterol food, it’s likely your LDL, or bad, cholesterol will increase. Several types of foods could help in reducing your cholesterol. Foods with fiber such as oats, flaxseeds, and beans are vital in lowering your cholesterol. Unsaturated fats such as avocados, olive oil, and nuts are essential to a person’s diet. Processed foods with saturated fats are what you should eat less of and foods with Omega-3s such as fatty fish, walnuts, and chia seeds are beneficial in keeping cholesterol levels stable.
Engage in More Heart-Healthy Exercises
Exercising is also vital in keeping your cholesterol levels down. It’s always important to stay active by engaging in various cardio-friendly exercises. Consider walking or jogging 10-15 minutes a day. Do some strength training to help boost metabolism and heart health. Developing a lifestyle of walking often and stretching every morning and night. Exercise is very important in increasing levels of HDL and decreasing levels of LDL, or bad cholesterol.
Managing Stress and Sleep
Besides eating right and engaging in adequate, heart-healthy exercises, it’s also important to manage your stress levels. Getting at least 8 hours of sleep each night is instrumental in lowering your bad cholesterol. The more stressed out you are, the higher your bad cholesterol will be. When you need time to rest and unwind after a hard day at work, why not consider engaging in deep breathing exercises for a few minutes?
Utilize Natural Supplements and Home Remedies
Natural supplements could also be a good addition to exercising, sleeping, and eating well. You could use some natural herbs from your garden or refrigerator. Some people like to buy natural supplements from health stores. A few good examples of natural herbs in lowering bad cholesterol include garlic and turmeric. Some people like to use probiotics for their gut to regulate their cholesterol.
Lowering your bad cholesterol takes effort and time. It’s important to implement all of these things into your health to reduce your cholesterol naturally. How have you been reducing your cholesterol in 7 days? Do you exercise often, eat healthy, or get enough sleep? Share what’s been working for you in reducing your cholesterol in the comments section below. As always, be sure to like or share this post with the next person trying to stay healthy.
