How to Increase Cardiac Output

Cardiac output is the amount of blood that the heart pumps in a given time period. It is calculated as stroke volume multiplied by heart rate. Stroke volume is the amount of blood (in milliliters) that the heart pumps out per beat, and heart rate is the number of times the heart beats per minute. If either component increases, so does cardiac output. The reason to increase cardiac output is to get more oxygen and nutrients to working muscles and to take away the carbon dioxide and lactic acid produced by these working muscles.

Things You'll Need

  • Gym shoes
  • Workout clothes
  • Bike (optional)
  • Salmon and/or fish oil
  • Flax powder and/or flax oil
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Instructions

    • 1

      Bike, run or do some form of aerobic exercise intensely for 1 to 3 minutes nonstop. Rest for 3 to 4 times longer than you were exercising, and then repeat the cycle. Do this for 20 to 30 minutes. By doing aerobic exercise, your heart rate and stroke rate increase to get blood to your muscles faster, thus increasing cardiac output. During intense exercise, cardiac output can go up 7-fold. Put in perspective, a person's average resting cardiac output is 4,900 mL/minute. During exercise, cardiac output can go up to 35,000 mL/minute.

    • 2

      Lift weights and strength train to the point where your muscles feel tired but not fatigued. You should lift weights that give resistance when you lift but that don't cause you to overstrain. According to Dr. M. Doug McGuff, doing so dilates your arteries, decreasing the resistance your heart must pump against. The easier it is for the heart to pump out blood, the more it can put out, thus increasing cardiac output.

    • 3

      Eat foods high in omega-3 fatty acids because these have been found to increase stroke volume and cardiac output by stimulating the nervous system's "relaxation" component, Cycling Science says. Some food options include fish oil, flax oil, wild salmon and flax powder.