1. 1. 1. Introduction

1. 1. 2. Why your heart health is Important

1. 1. 3. What happens when you lift Heavy

1. 1. 4. Six Common Mistakes Lifters Make

1. 1. 5. How to Make your Heart healthier (For Weight Lifters)

1. 1. 6. Early Warning Signs you should not skip

1. 1. 7. Supplements to Support Your Heart Health

1. 1. 8. Conclusion
   2.  

1. Introduction

When we step into the gym, our performance is always measured by how much we lift and how much we can go on a weight-lifting volume, but what we need to understand is that Performance is something, and your inner health is another thing. Although running behind performance and record-breaking is crucially important when we are hitting the gym or bodybuilding, neglecting our health is a performance limiter

Imagine in the middle of the sets you run out of breath, or you are fatigued and cannot cope with the workout. On the other hand, what is the purpose of looking healthy, and you cannot do 5 minutes of fast walking or take up the stairs without running out of breath, ever heard of Cardiovascular health

Personally, during my extreme preparations for my competition, I have always been healthier than ever, both in terms of my heart rate, Blood pressure, and my overall health

To understand the balance between a healthy heart and weight lifting addict you need to continue reading that blog

2. Why your heart health is Important

1. 1. Enhance Performance: The heart is your main organ to enhance your performance. The healthier the heart, the more likely it is to increase your efficiency

1. 1. Reduce your resting heart rate: The more your cardiovascular health increases, the lower your resting heart rate will be, which will reduce your heart strain

1. 1. Improve vascular health: Vascular health is the condition of your blood vessels, so improving it means better transportation for blood, oxygen, and nutrients

3. Six Common Mistakes Lifters Make

1. 1. 1. Skipping Cardio: Many lifters tend to leave cardio aside as they feel they lose size, or it’s boring, but the reality is Cardio never interferes with reducing muscle mass if done in moderation

1. 1. 2. Overtraining: Many lifters overtrain 6 or 7 days of resistance training or with long workout duration, along with no cardio, which increases fatigue and reduces muscle building, simply by reducing weight-lifting days and adding cardio to boost recovery

1. 1. 3. Relying on supplements: Many lifters rely on supplements to boost their energy, so combining high caffeine supplements along with other workouts can definitely raise their heart rate, which can be used in moderation, but abusing these substances along with low cardio training can affect their heart health in the long term

1. 1. 4. Poor Hydration and Poor Electrolytes: Both Water and electrolytes are essential for heart health. The heart is a pump, and the fluid, which is the blood, needs to have enough water and electrolytes to be able to reach all the muscle cells, so not enough water or electrolytes adds pressure on the heart

1. 1. 5. Poor Warmup: Jumping straight into heavy lifting adds a lot of pressure on your heart as your heart is trying to pump a massive amount of blood flow, and when your muscles are cold, the blood viscosity is very high, which increases the pressure and load on your heart

1. 1. 6. Improper Breathing: Holding your breath excessively makes blood pressure spike; it can be done in moderation only. Also, shallow breathing reduces the oxygen required for the blood, which also adds extra pressure on your heart as the body needs more blood to compensate for the low oxygen
      Reference link
      Impact of breath-holding on circulation and oxygenation: https://www.iomcworld.com/open-access/cardiovascular-response-to-breathholding-explained-by-changes-of-the-indices-and-their-dynamic-interactions-13437.html

4. How to Make your Heart healthier (For Weight Lifters)

1. 1. 1. Cardio: You must aim for at least 25 minutes of cardio 3 times a week, up to 6 days. The best approach is fasted cardio, as we all do as bodybuilders, and the perfect timing is early in the morning for me. For example, I always do 30 minutes at 4:00 am when I wake up, which has the maximum protection for heart strokes, and it avoids the morning surge (rapid heart rates in the early morning, which causes blood clots)
      Reference
      NIH / PMC — Cardiovascular effects of exercise: Shows that regular exercise is associated with reduced cardiovascular mortality and disease risk. Cardiovascular Effects and Benefits of Exercise (NIH/PMC)

1. 1. 3. Poor Diet: that is one of the main concerns for an effect on heart health, consuming excessive amounts of unhealthy fats or even saturated fats, also adding a lot of sodium in your Regime can lead to serious heart problems, so it can either damage your heart slowly or even cause a clot
      Not drinking enough water can lead to viscous blood, which also affects the heart’s ability to pump blood and, in extreme cases, can lead to heart attacks
      Reference:
      Mayo Clinic – Heart-healthy diet: Tips on limiting unhealthy fats and sodium for heart disease prevention. Heart‑Healthy Diet Advice (Mayo Clinic)

1. 1. 3. Irregular health check-up: If you do not have a blood work every 6 months, do not be surprised by unexpected health risks in the future. For me, as a bodybuilder, whether I am competing or not, I have to do the bloodwork because if anything is alarming, I will need to address it before it goes beyond my control. We can see many bodybuilders die at a young age, most of them either do not do the medical checkup or ignore the results

1. 1. 4. Abusing PEDs (Performance Enhancing Drugs): we all know that PEDs come with many risks, and whoever chooses to take that path needs to take extra precautions. It is like playing with fire; if you do not know what you are putting in your body and how to reduce the risks, then you are risking your life, and I am not here to encourage taking any PEDs I am just explaining the risks, so using them without knowledge or ignoring the risks can lead to serious health issues so when it comes to your heart, it can lead to cardiac arrest, for example prolong use of PEDs increases the LDL cholestrol which rapdily increases fat deposit in arteries which leads to clot and heart attacksThe The
      American Heart Association has explained exactly why PEDs are linked to LDL increase

      Scientific Statement:
      Explains that anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) use is linked to increased LDL (“bad”) cholesterol, decreased HDL (“good”) cholesterol, hypertension, and a higher risk of heart attack, stroke, and sudden cardiac death.
      https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/CIR.0000000000000467

1. 1. Blood pressure monitoring: when it comes to heart health, the first check we have to do is measuring BP, as during our weight lifting session, blood pressure rises significantly due to the high demand of oxygen and blood flow for the muscles, but the long-term effect on blood pressure should be reduced as heart effeciency should be increased but at the same time as also we explained above there is many other factors if not doe properly can lead to increase of blood pressure like not eating enough sodium or eating so much sodium or not drinking enough water or as we explained abusing PEDs so the best practice is to have regular BP check
      Harvard Health – Strength training and blood pressure
      Shows that BP can rise during lifting, but regular training lowers resting BP over time.
      https://www.health.harvard.edu/heart-health/strength-training-and-blood-pressure

6. Early Warning Signs you should not skip

A. Continuous fatigue: If you are always feeling tired even when you are resting or even after sleeping

B. Chest Pain: feeling pressure on your chest or unusual burning

C. Feet Swelling: It happens when your heart is not able to pump properly

D. Racing heart: Abnormally high heartbeat even when you are resting

E. Feeling Dizzy: Feeling lightheaded or even sometimes fainting suddenly indicates that the brain is not receiving enough blood

F. Frequent Urination at night: One of the signs of heart failure is fluid retention, which increases the need to use the bathroom at night

When to Seek Immediate Emergency:

1. 1. Severe Chest pain

1. 1. Pain moving to the arm and getting worse

1. 1. Difficulty breathing

1. 1. Very high heart rate

1. 1. Sweating

American Heart Association (AHA) – Warning Signs of a Heart Attack
Explains that symptoms like chest pain, shortness of breath, or pressure that doesn’t go away after a few minutes require immediate emergency care.
https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/heart-attack/warning-signs-of-a-heart-attack

7. Supplements to Support Your Heart Health

1. 1. 1. Coenzyme (CoQ10)*: This enzyme is produced naturally in the body to generate ATP (energy levels) in the heart cells, so adding that supplement will definitely boost the energy levels in your heart cells

1. 1. 2. Vitamin D: Either by exposure to sunlight or in many parts of the world with low sunlight, it needs to be consumed as reduced levels of vitamin D increase blood pressure

1. 1. 3. Magnesium: Adding that electrolyte helps regulate heartbeat and also stabilize BP

1. 1. 4. Omega 3: unless you are eating a lot of fish in your diet, you will need to add omega 3 frequently per day, for many benefits to your heart, reduced triglycerides, which contribute to hardening of arteries, reduced blood pressure, and also anti-inflammatory benefits to cardiovascular tissue

* CoQ10 in cardiovascular disease and supplementation
Clinical research summarizes CoQ10 as an energy-transfer molecule present in high levels in the heart and discusses evidence that supplementation may support cardiovascular health, particularly in conditions such as heart failure.
Link:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7222396/ (PMC article)

8. Conclusion:

Lift heavy, eat healthy, but keep track of your heart health. Now, many trainers prioritize their athletes’ health. If you do not need to compete this year due to your blood check, do not risk it; always prioritize health over anything else

For enhanced bodybuilders and athletes, pay even extra attention, always monitor your heart, maintain it for longevity, what will you gain if you have lots of medals and lose your health

Be Smart, Think long term

References

• • American Heart Association.
    Strength and Resistance Training Exercise.
    https://www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/fitness/fitness-basics/strength-and-resistance-training

• • World Health Organization (WHO).
    Physical Activity Guidelines.
    https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/physical-activity

• • British Journal of Sports Medicine.
    Associations of Muscle-Strengthening Activity With Mortality.
    https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/56/13/755

• • Harvard Health Publishing.
    Strength Training Builds More Than Muscle.
    https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/strength-training-builds-more-than-muscle

• • Mayo Clinic.
    Fitness Training: Elements of a Well-Rounded Routine.
    https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/fitness/in-depth/fitness/art-20046433

This content is for informational purposes only and does not replace professional Medical advice
Always consult a healthcare professional before starting any training program.

Written by Mohamed Riad – Mediterranean Champion Bodybuilder (2023, 2025)
specializing in advanced training and performance health
Want a personalized training and nutrition plan? Contact me today at the link below:
https://www.instagram.com/mohamedriadofficial/