Your heart is a muscle. It needs to be exercised and bicep curls don't cut it. Aerobic activity is what is needed. In order to maintain heart health (not to mention youthful energy), it is necessary to increase the endurance of the heart through aerobic activity.

The fortitude of your heart becomes an important indicator when measuring your physical fitness age versus your actual biological age. At the Kyoto University in Japan, a 1989 study proved that regular physical activity might provide physiological improvements that in turn might reduce the rate of aging.

Aerobic fitness is possible to maintain throughout life and certainly possible to improve upon if you have let it go. Take a look at master athletes, for example. They are the folks you see at the pool, on the courts or in the fields who are no longer participating in high school or college athletics but continue competing against other master athletes in a variety of sports ranging from track and field, swimming, water polo, rowing, cycling, cross-country skiing. Basically they are athletes who compete in age-group-oriented sporting events.

According to the American Heart Association, participating in a cardiovascular conditioning program can help: • lower blood pressure • increase HDL cholesterol • decrease total cholesterol • decrease body fat due to utilizing fat as energy • increase heart function and its ability to pump more blood • decrease stress reactions and anxiety • reduce glucose-stimulated insulin • increase oxygen output to body • decrease resting heart rate • increase cardiac output • increase aerobic work capacity

Master athletes are great role models for anyone whose activity level has dropped.

The aerobic fitness of master athletes (measured by maximal oxygen consumption) shows some decline, but not nearly as much their sedentary friends. Master athletes have lipid profiles similar to those of young adults, which decrease their risk of heart disease, according to Rosenbloom and Bahns in 2006. I remember seeing my 80-something neighbor at a master's swim meet in the pool right next to my son who was practicing water polo. Very cool.

It's your turn. What sport did you love as a kid? Is there a sport you religiously watch on television or a sport that intrigues you? Those might be good indicators of where to begin again. Type your sport plus the words "masters" and "Southern California" into your search engine; you'll be amazed at what turns up.

My son's coaches participate in a master's water polo program. At the last meet I saw them drumming up interest, inviting people to join them. These folks are very approachable. My friend recently went to our Santa Clarita Aquatic's Center for lap swim and mistakenly ended up in the master's swim lanes. She quickly tried to excuse herself since she had not exercised in years but gentle encouragement from the coach kept her right where she was.

The wonderful thing about being with a group is that you generally work harder than you would normally. It is really difficult for anyone to push himself or herself the way a trainer will. But if joining a group isn't your style, you can increase your aerobic activity using more independent methods.

Your goal is to raise your heart rate. Use the chart printed here to find your heart rate goal. You can use the tried and true method of finding your pulse at your wrist; count the beats for 10 seconds and multiply that number by six. If you are returning to exercise, talk to your doctor about what he/she thinks about you undertaking an aerobic program before you begin.

Anything that you do to raise your heart rate will increase your heart's strength. Do not push yourself past the 50-percent level when beginning. The 80-percent level is for experienced athletes and should not be a goal for you for quite a while; speak to a qualified trainer about setting about a program to reach that goal.

Would you like a final spark of encouragement? In July of this year, Jeanette Gustat, co-author of a Louisiana study of people ages 24 to 44, stated that memory and verbal skills decrease as age and insulin levels increase (even though insulin levels were still low enough to be normal). Insulin levels can be kept at a lower level with cardiovascular conditioning, so get moving!


Karena Lineback is the author of "OsteoPilates: Reduce Risk, Increase Bone Density, Look and Feel Great," contributing author to "Cancer Wellness" and the president of Pilates Teck.