Friday, February 1, 2013

Heart Healthy



Today is the kickoff for the National Heart Month. And with today being the National Wear Red Friday day, I thought it would be nice to give some simple tips on how to keep your heart healthy. Being that I am a Cardiology Nurse and I see a lot very sick people who could have prevented a lot of their diseases by taking care of themselves, I encourage you to make it a priority to keep your heart healthy. And these are easy things to do, you just have to put your mind to it!!!

1. Don't smoke. Or be around smoke. I could go into the what's and why's but no one wants to hear all that (especially if you are a smoker) just know that smoke is very harmful to your arteries and heart and bloodstream.
2. Eat about 25 grams of fiber per day. Eating a lot of fruits and veggies will help with this, but whole grains and fiber supplements are helpful too. I actually put a few spoonfulls of Benefiber in my coffee every morning.
3. Avoid Salt. See my Low Sodium Diet post for more info as to why.
4. Exercise for 30 minutes most days of the week. That's right, get off your butt and get active! Get that blood pumping and heart rate up. Make your heart strong!
5. Decrease your waist line. Men need to have less than 40 inches and women less than 35 to not be considered overweight.
6. Limit stress. Click on this link,  http://goo.gl/2c35M, for a great site for stress management. It has a ton of helpful information related to stress and anxiety.
7. Follow a heart healthy diet. Follow this link, http://goo.gl/Xo8Oo, to the American Heart Association nutrition center for ideas on a heart healthy diet.

Your heart is your most important organ, so make it a priority to keep it healthy!!

I have been doing the same Zuzka workout all week, but yesterday I needed a switch up so I did:
http://goo.gl/kZvTm: a 13 minute cardio and Abs routine from fitnessblender.com

No workout today as we are going to dinner with friends so I don't want to get all sweaty!

Have a great friday night!
Stay Active,
~Mandi

Everything is possible!

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