How to Keep Your Cholesterol In Check

Your cholesterol is not just one number, it is a combination of three numbers. To keep your cholesterol numbers balanced you need to keep track of your good HDL cholesterol, bad LDL cholesterol and triglycerides.

CHECK YOUR CHOLESTEROL LEVELS - Have your doctor check your cholesterol levels at least once per year at your physical. It is important to have a starting point so that you can keep track of how your cholesterol levels have changed. You will also need to know which cholesterol level you need to work on. Many people have normal or low bad LDL cholesterol but their good HDL cholesterol is too low and needs to be raised to a more acceptable level. Some people have high bad LDL cholesterol and high triglycerides which means that they need to lower both.

CHANGE YOUR LIFESTYLE - Add exercise to your daily routine. Whether you need to low bad cholesterol and triglycerides or raise good cholesterol, exercising can help you do both. Exercise for at least one hour per day and spend a second hour doing some type of physical activity or sport. Walking is an excellent exercise that is very easy to do. You can start slowly and increase the amount of time that you walk each week. There are numerous physical activities that you can incorporate in your daily routine such as raking leaves, pulling weeds, mowing the lawn, jump roping with your kids, playing tag, and playing sports.

EAT CHOLESTEROL HEALTHY FOODS - Incorporate healthy foods into your diet. Foods such as avocado, salmon, mackerel, sardines, olive oil, garlic, and fruits and vegetables will help you to keep your cholesterol levels in check. Make sure that half of your plate is vegetables at every meal.

Eliminate foods high in saturated fats, containing high fructose corn syrup or partially hydrogenated oils or highly processed foods. With a little change in your lifestyle, you can keep your cholesterol levels balanced.