Can exercising have damaging effects on your heart? If so, can you prevent it?

Renee Neltner

As it turns out, there is a chance that exercising can damage your heart. Although this is pretty rare, there are circumstances where exercise can have damaging effects.

Where "routine exercise is highly effective for prevention and treatment of many common chronic diseases and improves cardiovascular (CV) health and longevity", excessive exercise or over training "may induce pathologic structural remodeling of the heart and large arteries".

Since this kind of heart condition is brought on by partaking in over training, it is possible to prevent it. Make sure that while you are training your body, you give it enough time to rest and repair any damages before you get back up and go at it again. Allowing your body to recuperate after you exercise is just as important as the exercise itself.

Sources:
http://www.mayoclinicproceedings.org/article/S0025-6196%2812%2900473-9/abstract