Eating healthy

Most of the time, I try to add a little humor to this blog.  Some things, though, we should be serious about, and this is that thing. 
It's been almost 6 months since I had my heart attack.  I would love to report that life is better than it was, however, I am still struggling with the smoking and losing weight.  Confession time: I got off my diet and gained 5 pounds.
Part of that, I believe, is due to the fact that my treadmill is buried behind a pile of sheet rock.  Not to say I haven't been active.  I have been out in my yard working, planting my flowers and a few veggies, pulling weeds and all that fun stuff. 
In life, we are going to have set backs.   We are going to have bad days, weeks even.  We are going to have things go wrong, break down and just quit on us. It's called living.  It's what life is all about.  We must look at it as it is; Life.  We can choose to cry or we can choose to laugh.  I think I like laughing better.
I decided to share my journey of better living with you for a couple of reasons.  1. It keeps me held accountable, and 2. Something I may say, may help YOU live a better life.  Some people feel I should keep this journey to myself.  I feel that I should share it with you.  If what I say helps just one person, then I feel my job is done.

Now on with the show.  Heart disease can be prevented.  Heart disease begins the moment we are born.  Everything we eat, drink, breath in affects our heart, veins and arteries.  How active we are, how we manage stress and our weight all affect our hearts.  I am going to focus on what we eat.  Fast food, sweet treats, and drinks, fats/oils, will determine how our hearts work.

Let's do a little anatomy background.  Your heart sits in the center of your chest.  Your heart beats, allowing the blood to be pumped throughout your body and circulates up to the heart, through the heart and out into the body again.  Your blood is full of oxygen.  Without it, your heart suffers, you kidneys will suffer, your brain will suffer, in short, your entire system will suffer. 
So, how does the food we eat affect our hearts?  It's very simple.  If you eat unhealthy foods; fat, sugar, dyes, processed foods, red meats and dairy products which all contain "Cholesterol", you end up with too much cholesterol in the arteries.  Our bodies produce all the cholesterol we need.  Eating these foods causes our bodies to have an over abundance of cholesterol, which in turns, clogs up our arteries, and in general, makes us all feel sluggish, causes us to be bloated, unable to sleep, and just makes us miserable.  When you have too much cholesterol, it begins to build up within the arteries.  When it fills up the artery, blood is unable to flow properly, and you have a shortage of oxygen to the entire body, and you have what is known as a heart attack.

What can we do to help prevent heart disease? 
1. Control your portion size.  We eat way more than what is recommended.  I remember when I was working in daycare as the cook, the recommended amount of fries for a 2 year old was 1 oz.  That's about 5 fries, 3 green beans, 1 1/2 of a chicken nugget. Compare that to what is usually consumed and you can see we eat way too much.  One box of mac and cheese can feed a family of four.  Most of us, will eat, on average, 2-3 boxes at one meal.  For pasta, the serving size is 1/2 cups, for an adult.  I think it is fair to assume, most eat more than 1/2 cups of pasta.
2. Eat your fruits and veggies.  These are the best source of vitamins and minerals, fiber and they are lower in calories.  However, you still must watch how much you eat of them. 
3. Choose whole grains.  Anything 'white' should never touch your lips.  White rice, white bread, white potatoes.  The better choice is wheat bread, brown rice and sweet potatoes.  These foods are high in fiber, which can help improve the hearts ability to pump.
4. Limit unhealthy fats and cholesterol.  Limit the amount of saturated and trans fat you consume.  These foods raises your cholesterol, which we already have enough of, so limit these foods, if not, just cut them out altogether.
5. Read the label.  Foods with "reduced fat" on the box or package, may not be reduced if it contains 'bad' fats. 

We can all have a healthier heart and live a long life.  We have one heart, we should be taking care of it.  With just a few life style changes, eating a healthier diet and getting exercise everyday, we can live a life full of energy and happiness.

Time To Move

We're moving!  Not the blog.  Not US.  I'm talking about getting off the sofa and move a little...or a lot.

http://www.bhrec.org/rec/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=165&Itemid=106

According to uwhealth.org, "After a heart attack, the damaged heart muscle needs time to heal.  This involves allowing scar tissue to form.  The scar from a heart attack needs about 6 weeks to become strong enough to handle moderate to heavy work."  This also depends on how sever the heart attack was.  Obviously, the more sever the heart attack, the longer it will take.

WHY should I do any exercise?  There are many reasons you need to move after a heart attack.  It decreases the heart's need for oxygen.  It reduces your triglycerides and bad cholesterol and INcreases the good cholesterol.  It lowers blood pressure.  It helps your body create tiny new blood vessels which bypass clogged vessels.  It reduces the amount the blood clots and plaque build-up. It helps you lose or manage your weight.  It also reduces stress and helps improve your emotional state of mind.

But what about those of us who despise exercise?  Okay, maybe 'despise' is a strong word.  Exercise doesn't mean yoga, or aerobics.  It can be a nice walk after dinner.  It can be cleaning your house.  It can be raking the leaves.  Mowing the grass.  Throwing a ball with the kids outside.   It can be swimming, rafting, anything that gets you and your heart rate up

You want to start out slow, though, and work your way up.  You don't want to over do it.  And, if you have pain in your chest, by all means, sit down and take a breath.  Drink a LOT of water, too.  When you become dehydrated, it makes the heart work harder than it should.

http://animationsa2z.com/gym-physical-health-club3.php

After my heart attack, it was hard for me to get up and exercise.  It still is.  I hate walking.  It makes my back hurt and now, with a torn ligament in my foot, at times, almost impossible.  It's boring.  So, I have found other things to get this heart rate of mine up....cleaning my house, for example.  I turn up the music and get after it!  I move my hips when I am dusting.  I dance when mopping the floors (the mop IS my partner).  I reach high to clean the trim and squat low to clean the base boards.  I work in my yard.  I move blocks. I rake leaves.  I plant flowers.  I trim the edging, fence line and ditches.  I take the dogs outside and play with them.  And, when I get tired, I rest.

Things take a little longer than they used to before my heart attack.  I get tired more easy now.  This has taken me a little longer to accept and I get aggravated about it more.  However, I know I have to do it.

SO, let's get up and move a little today.