Tips to Keep Your Heart Strong
Dump the Marlboro Man
Smoking is the #1 cause for heart disease in the United States. The nicotine in cigarettes narrows the arteries making you heart work twice as hard to get that blood pumping. And if you take birth control while smoking, your risk of a heart attack greatly increases after 35.
Get Your Groove On!
Dance, exercise, just get moving! 30 minutes of daily exercise is a very effective way of reducing the risk of heart related problems. Physical activity also helps maintain weight, and reduce the risk of other problems such as high cholesterol and diabetes. Plus the fact that it makes you happy! To quote Elle Woods: “Exercise gives you endorphins, endorphins make you happy, and happy people just don’t shoot their husbands!”
Get Your Grub On! The Good Way.
Eating well is another effective way to keep the risks low. Limiting fatty foods is a sure fire way to limit the opportunity for heart problemos.
Avoid fatty foods such as:
Red meat (Saturated)
Dairy products (Saturated)
Coconut and palm oils (Saturated)
Deep-fried fast foods (Trans)
Bakery products (Trans)
Packaged snack foods (Trans)
Margarines (Trans)
Crackers (Trans)
Step on the Scale
Odds are if you start following Steps #2 and #3 you are going to greatly see a reduction on #4. Eating well, and exercising often helps you shed the pounds. And shedding the pounds equals shedding the problems. Heart problems that is. Because weight gain is mostly fat, it can more than often lead to other problems mentioned above. Keeping weight gain in check has the benefits of a healthy heart for years to come.
Stay Friendly...
With your doctor! Regular check-ups are a key part of staying healthy. If you are running into any problems with Steps #1-4, your doctor will be able to help you get on track and see what isn’t working. Also, getting regularly screened for diabetes, cholesterol, and your blood pressure, can help you avoid any heart problems that might arise out of neglect.
(Compiled and edited from the Mayo Clinic's Guides on Heart Disease Prevention)
♥ this post. Tomorrow will be three weeks since I've quit smoking. And to make sure I don't gain 200lbs by eating like a cow I've replaced candy with carrots and joined the gym to stay busy and keep my mind off the cancer sticks.
ReplyDeleteKeep up the great work!! One of my friends just quit smoking too and she said the hardest part is that first week, so you totally got it from here!!
ReplyDeletePS -- I loveeee carrots too :)