Making sure your heart is healthy for the Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — Preparing your body for the Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon is a job in itself, and making sure your heart's health is in its prime condition will help you well beyond the 26.2 miles of the race.
6 News's Stan Smith spoke with a cardiologist to get advice about how to make sure your heart is in the right condition to compete.
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Whether you're running to earn a spot on the podium at the Knoxville marathon or leisurely competing to knock this off your bucket list, running 26.2 miles is not for the faint of heart. Making sure your heart is in good shape for the marathon is something that you should take into account.
'You know, being healthy and being active can mean a lot of different things for different people. So, if you are someone who doesn't do any activity, starting slow is important. And as the American Heart Association preaches — and I completely agree with — 30 minutes of something every day is activity,' said Dr. Briana Costello, a cardiologist with fort sanders, and an avid runner herself.
She says there are so many ways to prepare yourself to ensure your heart is able to keep up on race day.
'So, if you're going from zero to 100, you want to make sure you get some time for rest in there,' she said. 'From a cardiac standpoint, we really push 150 minutes of activity a week. So again, if that's walking or if it's Zumba or swimming or jogging, whatever that is, getting those minutes in will reduce your risk of heart disease, stroke, heart attack and death.'
As for other ways to keep your heart in shape along with the rest of your body, Dr. Costello said to make sure you drink plenty of water and have the right amount of electrolytes and calories because those act as fuel to keep your heart pumping.
According to the CDC, one in 20 adults aged 20 years and older have coronary artery disease, so if you're unsure about where your heart health stands, Dr. Costello advises you to schedule an appointment with your doctor to see if running long distances is right for you.
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'If you're not sure, is my blood pressure too high, or do I need to go see someone to talk about my blood pressure or my cholesterol or my diabetes? You know, getting into your primary doctor or a cardiologist who can kind of help further risk stratify you and guide you on your health journey is super important. Doing that early and being preventive is so much better than being reactionary and having to do, you know, secondary measures for preventing another heart attack or stroke.'
Don't worry if you aren't able to make it out to the event. We've got you covered right here on 6 News. Our team is bringing you race coverage this week, and Sunday we'll be spread out along the racecourse bringing you live updates from the marathon all morning.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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