{"id":789782,"date":"2026-02-26T07:33:21","date_gmt":"2026-02-26T07:33:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/789782\/"},"modified":"2026-02-26T07:33:21","modified_gmt":"2026-02-26T07:33:21","slug":"five-heart-healthy-activities-to-do-in-february","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/789782\/","title":{"rendered":"Five Heart Healthy Activities to Do in February"},"content":{"rendered":"

Did you know that heart disease remains the\u00a0leading cause<\/a>\u00a0of death in the United States? February is\u00a0American Heart Month<\/a>\u00a0and there\u2019s no better time to educate yourself about the risks for heart disease and learn about the steps you can take to live a more heart-healthy lifestyle.<\/p>\n

Getting regular physical activity is one of those ways as\u00a0physical activity<\/a>\u00a0can not only help you lose excess weight and improve physical fitness but it can also lower many heart disease risk factors such as \u201cbad\u201d LDL cholesterol levels, help increase \u201cgood\u201d HDL cholesterol levels and manage high blood pressure. In addition, physical activity can help to lower stress and improve mental health as well as lower your risk for other conditions such as type 2 diabetes, depression and cancer\u2014all good reasons to take care of your heart.<\/p>\n

Ready to build some heart-healthy habits? Check out some of Parks & Rec\u2019s programs and activities below to help you get started.<\/p>\n

Getting Start with Meal Prep<\/strong><\/p>\n

Join our certified nutrition coach and personal trainer to learn how planning makes perfect! Prepping your meals in advance can help you save time, money and live a healthier lifestyle.\u00a0Register<\/a> today for the class on Saturday, Feb. 17 at Chinn Aquatics & Fitness Center<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Intro to Pilates Method \u2013 Core Stability and Body Control with Jump Board<\/strong><\/p>\n

Jump board trains the intrinsic muscles in our feet, as well as promoting correct alignment through the ankle, knee and hip joint. Correctly adjusting the alignment of the lower leg can have a ripple effect through the body, fixing other misalignments along the way. It strengthens and lengthens the muscles as well as burns calories. Join us at\u00a0Sharron Baucom Dale City Recreation Center<\/a>\u00a0for this class.\u00a0Sign up\u00a0here<\/a>. (Requires Pilates Reformer experience.)<\/p>\n

\u201cSweatheart\u201d Xstreme Hip-Hop Step & Body 360 + Combo Class<\/strong><\/p>\n

Join Simone and Andrea for this \u201cSweatheart\u201d Combo Class at\u00a0Dale City<\/a>. Double the fun with Xtreme Hip Hop Step and Body 360+ together. Spread the love by wearing red! Optional: Bring your sweetie or a friend to make it twice the fun! All fitness levels are welcome. Register<\/a>\u00a0today.<\/p>\n

Go for a Swim<\/strong><\/p>\n

Swimming is a great low impact exercise for your heart and lungs. Our facilities at both\u00a0Chinn Aquatics & Fitness Center<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Sharron Baucom Dale City Recreation Center<\/a>\u00a0feature heated indoor pools. At Chinn, the main 40-meter heated pool has eight 25-yard lanes available for lap swim and a shallow water area for family\/recreation swim and classes. At Dale City you\u2019ll find a 25-yard heated indoor pool with open swim and lap swim times available by reservation.<\/p>\n

You can also check out Aquabilities<\/a>\u00a0classes\u2014a great low impact, small group exercise class expressly designed for those with arthritis and\/or joint issues. Register for upcoming sessions\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Get Outside for a Hike<\/strong><\/p>\n

Going for a brisk walk through a park is one of the simplest ways to get some physical activity and cardiovascular fitness in. Check out some recommendations here<\/a>. If it\u2019s too cold outside for you, then recreation centers offer treadmills and other machines you can use to get your heart pumping.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Did you know that heart disease remains the\u00a0leading cause\u00a0of death in the United States? February is\u00a0American Heart Month\u00a0and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":789783,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[7708],"tags":[229798,229797,7709,7714,7713,966,102688,533,64248,5295,2832,532,2831,170582,7710,519,122176,7711,7712],"class_list":["post-789782","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-royals","tag-sweatheart-xstreme-hip-hop-step-body-360-combo-class","tag-american-heart-month","tag-british-royal-family","tag-catherine","tag-catherine-middleton","tag-heart-health","tag-hike","tag-kate-middleton","tag-meal-prep","tag-pilates","tag-prince-of-wales","tag-prince-william","tag-princess-of-wales","tag-pwc-parks-recreation","tag-royal-families","tag-royal-family","tag-swim","tag-uk-royal-family","tag-william"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/116135776089887282","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/789782","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=789782"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/789782\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/789783"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=789782"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=789782"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=789782"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}