Improving your heart’s workings isn’t all a matter of grafts, angioplasties, ablations and clot-dissolving drugs. In fact, you can slash the chance you’ll ever need any of those menacing-sounding medical procedures by making a few simple (and even fun) changes in your daily life.

1. Decree your home a smoke-free zone.

Everyone already knows the catastrophic damage smoking inflicts on lungs and blood vessels. But even secondhand smoke can raise your risk of heart attack and stroke.

Whether the smokers you know are friends or family, tell them they have to go outside if they can’t delay their drags, advises Gerald Fletcher, M.D., a spokesperson for the American Heart Association. For added insurance, only patronize no-smoking restaurants.

2. Dance!

An Italian study of chronic heart failure patients published last year showed that dancing improved heart function and strength as much as or more than slogging along on a treadmill or biking.

And dancing improved quality of life more than traditional exercise. Researchers suspect that the “social” aspect of partner dancing — in this particular case, waltzing — paid substantial dividends in improved mood, sleep and general pleasure because participants enjoyed it more.

3. Go green! (And red, and yellow, and purple…)

How do plants and vegetables help our hearts? Let us count the ways: They contain soluble fiber, which helps to lower “bad” cholesterol. They are packed with insoluble fiber, which helps you feel full — so you eat less. They are brimming with antioxidants, which are thought to inhibit arterial inflammation, a condition that can lead to plaque buildup.

And the sterols and stanols that plant foods contain inhibit the absorption of cholesterol by your gut. For maximum benefits, eat at least two and a half cups of vegetables a day and two cups of fruit, advises Bethany Thayer, a dietitian for the American Dietetic Association. “Mix ’em up! Get in all the different colors!” Thayer exhorts.

4. One fish, two fish, you need to eat more fish.

Deepwater fish such as salmon, herring, mackerel, sardines and anchovies contain omega-3 fatty acids — one of the fats that is actually good for you. “Omega-3 fatty acids thin the blood,” notes Thayer, making it easier for the blood to pass through blood vessels. This prevents platelets from sticking to the artery walls, which means lessened plaque buildup.

5. Count to 10.

“There is good observational data that high-strung, type A individuals are more prone to heart attacks and heart disease,” says Dr. Fletcher. It doesn’t so much matter how you get your stress under control, just do it.

Exercise vigorously, practice deep-breathing exercises whenever you feel tetchy or anxious, or visualize yourself on a beautiful beach whenever you feel like you’re going to blow a gasket. Even that corny practice of slowly counting to 10 whenever you feel like screaming can be helpful in getting your calm on.