Try These Five Practices To Improve Your Blood Circulation

Do your legs feel achy or tired after standing for a while? Are you often cold? You may have poor blood circulation.

It’s always important to seek help from a healthcare provider if you’re noticing symptoms. But there are things you can do in the meantime to help ease related discomfort.

To learn how to improve circulation quickly, we spoke with cardiologist Heba Wassif, MD, MPH.

Natural ways to improve circulation in your body

“Poor circulation” can refer to slowed or blocked blood flow in your arteries, veins, or both. Some circulation issues are common and easily treated, like varicose veins. Others, like peripheral artery disease (PAD), can be quite serious and require immediate medical attention.

They’re no substitute for an appointment with your provider, but Dr. Wassif says these five actions can help get your blood moving.

1. Stay active

When you have poor circulation, small steps toward a more active lifestyle can mean big progress.

Staying active can help blood flow better in your legs. It can also help manage heart disease risk factors, like high blood pressure or obesity. Over time, these conditions can harm your arteries and make it harder for oxygen-rich blood to flow through your body.

“When we make this recommendation, we’re not talking about going out and training for a marathon,” Dr. Wassif clarifies. “You can start small and still experience the benefits of movement. Choosing an activity you enjoy will help you keep it up.”

Avoid prolonged sitting or standing as much as you can. And try to get up and walk around throughout the day.

Exercise also helps. Even low-impact workouts like walking or pool therapy can improve blood flow in your legs. Your veins — particularly the ones in your leg and calf muscles — rely on muscle compression to push blood back up toward your heart.

“When your arteries sense exercise, they increase the release of nitric oxide, which relaxes blood vessels and improves blood flow,” she adds.

2. Eat a heart-healthy diet

Changes to your diet are also essential in improving your circulation, in part because, along with exercise, a heart-healthy eating plan can help you achieve or maintain a healthy weight.

“Overweight and obesity take a toll on the legs,” explains Dr. Wassif. “The veins already have to work against gravity. Additional weight adds more resistance. It also increases pressure in the veins, causing swelling.”

There aren’t specific foods that improve circulation, but there are positive changes you can make. Try to:

• Cut down on salt. Salt doesn’t affect your circulation, but getting too much causes fluid retention, which increases blood pressure and makes pre-existing swelling worse.
• Eat less red meat and full-fat dairy. Cutting back on red meat and full-fat dairy items can help treat or prevent atherosclerosis — hardening of the arteries that restricts blood flow.
• Go Mediterranean. The heart-healthy Mediterranean diet has huge benefits, including lowering the risk of heart attack or stroke. “A diet with low carbs, lean proteins, whole grains and plenty of vegetables is recommended, as is avoiding saturated fats,” Dr. Wassif says.

3. Wear compression clothing

Ask your healthcare provider if you should wear compression socks, gloves or other compression clothes. Compression gear has an elastic element that gently squeezes you, which helps prevent swelling and venous pooling.

Consulting your provider is essential for figuring out which type of sock is right for you. So is working with a specialist with experience selecting and fitting these garments.

While compression socks can help a lot, Dr. Wassif notes that they may not be the best (or safest) choice for you, depending on your health history. Unless your provider says otherwise, you shouldn’t wear them if you have:

• Heart failure
• Peripheral artery disease (PAD)
• An active case of deep vein thrombosis (DVT)

But there’s good news: If compression socks aren’t for you, there may be alternatives that are.

For example, you can buy socks made for people with diabetes, which are softer and looser. They’re a great choice if you have peripheral neuropathy, which causes a loss of sensation in your feet and legs. Their protective design and lack of seams can help you avoid skin injury.

4. Elevate your legs

When blood isn’t flowing through the veins in your leg the way it should, elevating your legs is a good way to get your blood moving. Knowing how to improve blood circulation in your legs is invaluable because that’s where blood is most likely to pool.

“If you get your legs higher than hip level, you’ll create an incline, allowing gravity to work in your favor and helping blood flow back to your heart,” Dr. Wassif explains. “Getting your legs up above your heart is ideal, but it isn’t always practical. Above hip level is a good compromise.”

5. Quit smoking

Nicotine causes tightening of blood vessels, which restricts blood flow in your arteries. It’s also connected to inflammation and long-term damage to your arterial wall.

What about vaping and other nicotine products? Dr. Wassif advises avoiding them, too.

“Even small exposures to nicotine have negative effects. We know that patients who vape still have worse outcomes on exercise tests,” she shares.

If you’re ready to quit, a healthcare provider can offer guidance and support.

Misleading claims about boosting circulation

While massages and staying hydrated can be beneficial, it would be misleading — based on the current evidence — to suggest they’re as effective as the methods we’ve discussed so far. Here’s why:

• Massages: A good massage may improve circulation in the short term, but it won’t have a significant effect beyond that. And relaxing as massages can be, they can be risky for people with certain vein issues. Talk to your provider first to make sure it’s safe for you to get one.
• Drinking more water: Hydration and heart health go hand in hand, for sure. And drinking plenty of water every day helps you maintain your blood volume, which is foundational to good circulation. But chugging a glass of H₂O doesn’t directly enhance blood flow.

Don’t wait to get professional treatment

Circulation problems aren’t the kind of thing you should wait to discuss with your provider, even if home remedies are helping.

Talk to your provider about your symptoms. And ask whether you need tests to rule out conditions like:

• Blood clots
• Peripheral artery disease (PAD)
• Chronic venous insufficiency (CVI)
• Diabetes-related neuropathy

Depending on the source of your circulation issues, your healthcare provider may prescribe medications to improve blood flow. Examples include:

• Statins to prevent plaque build-up in your arteries
• Antiplatelet medications (such as aspirin or clopidogrel) or blood thinners (such as warfarin, apixaban or rivaroxaban)
• Medication to lower your blood pressure
• Medication to manage blood sugar if you have diabetes or pre-diabetes

In some cases, your healthcare provider may also recommend surgery to open blocked arteries, remove blood clots or treat varicose veins.

Whether your circulation problems require aggressive treatment or not, future you will thank you for following these circulation hacks today.