Can Exercise Cure Varicose Veins?
If you suffer from varicose veins, you may want to do everything you can to ease the symptoms and slow the progression. For many people, this includes exercise, and more specifically exercises that are believed to contribute to “curing” or reversing the condition. Unfortunately, exercise by itself won’t repair varicose veins, although it can improve your overall health. Also, as part of a general healthy lifestyle it may offer some protection against the development of additional varicose veins. Let’s discuss the benefits of exercise when you have varicose veins, what kinds of exercises are ideal for varicose vein sufferers and which you should avoid.
Benefits of Exercise in Regards to Varicoe Veins:
The ideal exercises for varicose veins help blood pump from the legs back up to the heart as it’s supposed to, something that doesn’t happen when you have venous reflux, which is the primary cause of varicose veins. With venous reflux, the valves in the veins becomes weakened and don’t efficiently pump the blood back to the heart. Moderate, low or non-impact exercises can be both beneficial as a preventative and as a symptom reliever because they increase blood circulation in the legs and prevent pressure from building up.
Which Exercises Work?
Walking is one of the best exercises not only for overall health, but also for alleviating the symptoms of and possibly preventing varicose veins. For starters, because it is low-impact, it’s good for people at all fitness levels and it doesn’t place too much strain on the body (which can actually exacerbate varicose veins). Plus, it strengthens th calf, which in turn helps support efficient blood flow. There are other low-impact exercises that strengthen the calf and boost blood flow. These include riding a stationary bike and using an elliptical machine. Do you sit at work all day? Even simply flexing your calf muscles and rotating your ankles while sitting can help to increase the blood circulation in your legs.
You Can’t Run Away From Varicose Veins:
Not only does exercise alone not cure varicose veins, certain exercises can make the condition worse. So even though walking is beneficial, running is not. This high impact exercise can actually aggravate the swelling of leg veins. Weightlifting should also be avoided. It can place a strain on the veins and blood circulation, and can potentially cause blood to pool in the veins. If you insist on having high impact exercises as past of your regular workout, try to immediately engage in some type or aerobic activity to boost blood flow afterwards. Before you start an exercise plan, consult your doctor – ideally a physician with expertise and experience in treating varicose veins – and ask what kinds of exercises are safe for you to engage in. While you can’t eliminate your varicose veins with exercise alone, your doctor may have suggestions about how to increase your activity level and safely incorporate exercise into your daily routine.
If you have questions about exercising with varicose veins, consult with vein experts here at Alpha Vein Clinic. Dr. Sassan Kaveh and his staff are very sensitive to patient needs and concerns. We can help you improve your overall lifestyle to protect against varicose veins, and crate customized treatment plans to alleviate any existing varicose veins or other vein problems
Alpha Vein Clinic
3150 N. Tenaya Way Ste. 400
Las Vegas, NV, 89128
(702) 430 7661
Dr. Sassan Kaveh
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