Heart doctors on Wednesday strongly advocated walking as an exercise to strengthen the heart.
The advocacy was raised during the Philippine Heart Association’s (PHA) Usapang Puso sa Puso conference with the theme “Bawas Kilo, Bawat Metro.”
Dr. Joanna Manalo underscored that “walking is a workout” that could help lower the incidence of heart attacks.
She lamented however, that women were more physically inactive than men, making them susceptible to heart ailments.
Dr. Luigi Pierre Segundo said lack of exercise leads to obesity, which in turn causes cardiovascular diseases and diabetes.
Dr. Milagros Yamamoto, past PHA president, urged women to protect themselves from heart diseases, saying “your advocacy is to have good health because you are the ones taking care of your family and even of your neighbors.”
“Usually, women do prioritize their children and husbands to the point they are ignoring their health. If you feel you are not feeling well consult (a doctor). You might not know that you have been suffering from a heart ailment,” she told participants of the Wear Red Day 2023.
Manalo said one must have a one-hour exercise a day.
“At least you exercise for 10 minutes, then another 10 minutes, and so on and so forth until you have completed one hour a day. You can walk inside the house even while watching television,” she said.
“Sad to say, there are more women who are not physically active (even before the COVID-19 pandemic,” she noted.
According to Segundo, 1,400 steps of walking is equivalent to one kilometer.
He said exercise, including walking, is good for the heart.
The PHA stressed that cardiovascular problem is still the No. 1 killer disease in the country.
Citing the data from the Department of Science and Technology-Food and Nutrition Research Institute’s Expanded National Nutrition Survey in 2019, the portion of female adults (aged 20 to 59) that are physically inactive is significantly higher (46.6 percent) than males (32.9 percent).
As for low transportation-related activities (hiking, walking, biking etc.) these were more common among females (72.1 percent) than males (62.4 percent), while for work-related activities, more than half (57.3 percent) of adults were not engaged in moderate to vigorous intensity occupations.
There also were significantly more physically inactive elderlies (60 years old and above) females (55 percent) than males (44.7 percent).
To address such alarming statistics, the “Bawas Kilo Bawat “Metro” workout routine presents simple enough steps that anyone can follow over a period of 15 minutes (that need not be done in one go, as long as within the day) to achieve a total of 1,400 steps or the equivalent of walking one kilometer.