Photo: Joao Paulo Esperanca, Flickr

Heredity is not on my side when it comes to cholesterol. So once my "bad" cholesterol hit 285, I backed off on saturated fats almost completely. (The "almost" is Phish Food.) It helped: My LDL now hovers between 225 and 235. But new research shows my exercise routines might also be helping to keep the level less high.

In the first study to find a link between fitness and dips in levels of LDL, an hour of moderate or a half hour of vigorous activity yielded a decrease of almost 4 milligrams per deciliter of LDL cholesterol in white women, and more than 10 milligrams for black women. And for those past menopause, the benefits were even greater: 5.9 milligrams for whites and 14.68 for blacks. The study was conducted over nine years and included almost 9,000 people between the ages of 45-64. The decrease wasn't found in men.

Besides working out and limiting your intake of saturated fats, you can also eat more of some foods that are known to reduce LDL levels such as walnuts, salmon, oatmeal and flax seed. You might also consider taking an omega-3 supplement once a day.

High LDL isn't the only factor associated with cardiovascular disease. Click here to learn more and find your risk score for a heart attack.

Photo: frankjuarez, Flickr

I believe we have to deal with our age-related realities head on and this is definitely one of them: Once we hit 30, our lean muscle tissue, which acts as a calorie burner, decreases by about a pound a year if we're not active. And later on, according to obesity researcher Jennifer Lovejoy, the hormonal changes that come with menopause can slow our engines down by an additional 200 calories a day. But there's still a lot we can do to counter Mother Nature. Here's how to kick your metabolism into overdrive.

• Add high intensity interval training to your workout mix. Because HIIT's work bursts are performed at full throttle, it takes longer for your metabolism to return to its normal resting rate than other forms of fitness. This means that up to an entire day after you work out, you'll still be burning up to 15 percent more calories than if you hadn't exercised.
• Slow it down. Any weight training other than those featherweight dumbbells builds muscle, a major fat burner. But you can turbocharge that muscle repair and growth by slowing the pace of your reps while increasing the intensity. According to a study conducted at Wayne State University in Detroit, this can pump up your metabolism by 8 percent for as long as 72 hours after your session. Raise and lower to a three count and choose weights heavy enough that you struggle to maintain proper form for the last few reps, says New York City trainer Mike Monroe.

So you bought a healthy gift for your boyfriend, your sister, your mom ... why stop now? Resist the temptation to buy Grandma yet another holiday sweater and give her something that will contribute to her overall fitness instead.

Why? Because when it comes to fitness, age is just a number. Just like you need to get out and move at least five days a week, so do your parents and grandparents. Staying healthy and fit is a lifelong goal, and balance and flexibility become especially important as a person ages.

So when you go shopping for Gram and Pop-Pop, keep your eye out for one of these fit gifts.

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Just walking a few short blocks can make a big difference in heart health for the elderly. A recent study found that light exercise such as walking or dancing can prevent atrial fibrillation.

Atrial fibrillation is a common heart condition where the upper chambers of the heart twitch instead of beating steadily. The condition is most common in people over age 65, though there is an elevated number of cases in younger people who exercise vigorously (e.g. marathon runners).

The researchers studied the lifestyle habits of more than 5,000 people (average age of 73) and found that those who were active had a reduced risk of the heart condition. In fact, those who walked five to 11 blocks a week had 22% less risk of developing the condition.

AOL Health has more information on healthy aging.

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Jacki recently filled us in on seven ways to add years to your life. Shape Magazine gives us some more tips -- this time from Dan Buettner's bestselling book, The Blue Zones. The author traveled around the world to areas known for the long life spans of residents. He observed the people's lifestyles and interviewed centenarians to develop his theories on living a long, full, healthy, and happy life. His tips are:

• Laugh. Laughing is an obvious sign of a good mood -- and it's widely accepted that your mood can affect your health. In addition, laughter can help relax blood vessels which may lead to a lowered risk of high blood pressure.
• Make exercise a part of your routine. The people Buettner interviewed weren't hard-core athletes. Instead, their daily lives were just filled with natural activities such as gardening and walking.
  
• Eat wisely. Enjoy your food and eat appropriate portions.
• Cultivate positive friendships. Choose friends who are supportive and are positive influences in your life.
  
• Live with intention. Find activities that make you happy and really live each moment.
  

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You recognize your family traits -- you have your mother's nose and your brother has your father's eyes -- but what about the health problems? Did you inherit any of those? According to the U.S. Surgeon General, your family health history is a powerful screening tool and now there's a new web program to make it easy for anyone to create a sophisticated family-health portrait. Users can keep updated information to share with the family doctor and the information that you provide creates a drawing of your family tree and a chart of your family health history. Both the chart and the drawing can be printed and shared with your family members or your health-care professional. Access it at familyhistory.hhs.gov/