Ready to start an exercise program? That’s great, but before you begin, I suggest you take a health exam. An effective screening exam will help you identify any medical conditions or factors that put you at risk during exercise. The simplest and most effective way to do this is to work with your doctor to review your risk factors for coronary artery disease (CAD), the leading cause of death in the U.S. The eight positive risk factors (i.e. , increases the risk of CAD) identified by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) are as follows:

1. Age. Men and 45 years and women and 55 years.

2. Smoking cigarettes. Current cigarette smoker or people who quit in the previous 6 months; or exposure to secondhand smoke (ie, secondhand smoke).

3. Family history. Heart attack or sudden death before the age of 55 in the father or first-degree male relative (eg, Brother) or before age 65 in the mother or first-degree female relative (eg, Sister).

Four. High blood pressure. Systolic blood pressure (SBP) e 140 mmHg or diastolic blood pressure (DBP) e 90 mmHg confirmed by measurements on at least two different occasions; or antihypertensive medication.

5. High cholesterol. LDL cholesterol> 130 mg / dL or HDL cholesterol <40 mg / dL; o con medicamentos para reducir los lípidos. Si el colesterol sérico total es todo lo que está disponible, use> 200 mg / dL.

6. Fasting blood glucose. A fasting blood glucose level of 100 mg / dl but <126 mg / dl confirmed on at least two separate occasions.

7. Obesity. Body mass index> 30. Also, waist circumference> 40 inches (102 cm) in men and> 35 inches (88 cm) in women.

8. Sedentary lifestyle. People who do not get 30 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity most days of the week.

There is also a negative risk factor. A high serum HDL> 60 mg / dL reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease. ACSM provides a risk stratification to determine if you are within a Under, Moderate gold High risk category. If you are low risk, you are ready to begin your exercise regimen. However, if you are at moderate or high risk, I highly recommend that you receive a complete physical examination from your physician before beginning an exercise program.. This is particularly important if you plan to do high intensity exercise. Your doctor may have specific guidelines for the exercises you can and cannot do, and may want to facilitate an exercise test (for example, a stress test) before authorizing you to start your program:

* Low risk: asymptomatic men and women (without existing disease or disease symptoms) and have no more than one positive risk factor.

* Moderate risk: men and women who are asymptomatic but have two or more positive risk factors.

* High Risk: Anyone with existing disease or symptoms of disease (eg, diabetes, asthma, kidney or liver disease, lung disease, cardiovascular disease, cystic fibrosis, angina, heart murmur, dizziness, shortness of breath).