Heavy legs: 5 easy ways to improve your daily blood circulation
Do you often feel heavy, swollen or tired at the end of the day? Alteration of venous return is perhaps the main cause of these discomforts. However, there are simple solutions you can put in place to help your blood circulation. Here are 5 habits to adopt to improve your blood circulation.
1. Being on the move : the secret of the "muscle pump"
Physical activity is beneficial2 for venous return, for the veins, walking works very well3 !
This is because physical exercise, targeting lower limb muscle strength and ankle mobility, can improve overall mobility, promote weight loss, strengthen the calf muscle pump, and increase ankle range of motion, which facilitates venous return.
Walk regularly1,2 : Walking is recommended as a basic exercise for the management of venous insufficiency. With each step, you crush the blood vessels under the foot, which propels the blood to the calf4. The contraction of the calf muscles then acts as a true peripheral heart to send the blood upwards1.
It is therefore widely recommended to move and practice physical activity, however the practice of certain sports can aggravate venous insufficiency (sports that involve jumps, shocks for example).
2. Adopt the right postures on a daily basis
A sedentary lifestyle is the number one enemy of your veins.
Avoid standing still for too long: Prolonged standing increases venous hyperpressure and promotes stasis, which worsens chronic venous insufficiency2,3.
Elevate your legs: If you feel uncomfortable or feel heavy legs, elevating your legs will lower venous pressure and relieve you2.
Travelling: During flights of more than four hours, immobility increases the risk of venous involvement3. It is strongly recommended to stand up regularly and move your feet and legs from your seat.
3. Avoid heat and tight clothing
Your wardrobe and lifestyle play a key role in your vascular health.
Beware of the heat: Avoid prolonged exposure to the sun, hot baths, saunas and hammams4. Heat causes vasodilation (dilation of the vessels) which makes venous return even more difficult3.
Free up your waist: Tight clothing (belts, pants, and skirts that are tight at the waist) or narrow shoes form a tourniquet effect that blocks circulation and contributes to the appearance of varicose veins4.
4. Monitor your lifestyle
Good circulation also requires a healthy lifestyle.
Managing your weight: Weight reduction in obese people is a medical recommendation2. Being overweight is not only a risk factor, it is an accelerator of venous disease3, in particular because it increases the pressure on the veins and in the abdomen, which slows down venous return, but also because it is often associated with less physical activity and an increased sedentary lifestyle, the calf muscle pump then works less well.
Quitting smoking1 : Quitting smoking is one of the lifestyle changes you need to incorporate to protect your veins.
5. Compression stockings
If lifestyle measures are not enough, medical compression is the basic treatment.
How does it work? Compression socks, stockings or tights exert permanent pressure on the leg to counteract venous hypertension and stimulate blood return1.
A daily ally: There are different classes depending on your needs (for long trips, pregnancy, or chronic venous insufficiency). Ask your pharmacist or doctor for advice on prescribing the device and the appropriate level of compression.
Want to go further? Discover our complete pathology page dedicated to venous insufficiency, as well as our article to understand the venous system.
Youn, Y. J., & Lee, J. (2018). Chronic venous insufficiency and varicose veins of the lower extremities. The Korean Journal Of Internal Medicine, 34(2), 269283. https://doi.org/10.3904/kjim.2018.230
De Maeseneer MG, Kakkos SK, Aherne T,et.al. Editor's Choice - European Society for Vascular Surgery (ESVS) 2022 Clinical Practice Guidelines on the Management of Chronic Venous Disease of the Lower Limbs. Eur J Vasc Endovasc Surg. 2022 Feb;63(2):184-267. doi: 10.1016/j.ejvs.2021.12.024. Epub 2022 Jan 11. Erratum in: Eur J Vasc Endovasc Surg. 2022 Aug-Sep;64(2-3):284-285. doi: 10.1016/j.ejvs.2022.05.044. PMID: 35027279.
Allaert, F. (2015). Éduquer le patient pour accroître l’efficacité de la compression veineuse. Actualités Pharmaceutiques, 54(547), 1‑7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actpha.2015.03.020
Lebreton-Legarçon, C., & KoÇak, F. (2020). L’insuffisance veineuse, une maladie chronique et évolutive. Actualités Pharmaceutiques, 59(594), 8‑12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actpha.2019.12.023
Compression stockings have become a daily ally to relieve heavy legs, improve circulation and prevent certain venous disorders. But are you wondering if keeping your compression stockings on overnight is a good idea?
