Today is Valentine’s Day eve, so it’s no surprise that today’s Friday Five theme is all about love. Since we are still in the middle of American Heart Month, I thought I would share five ways to love your heart.
(Each item is linked to an article on the American Heart Association website.)
1. Be active. We all know that exercise is important to heart health, but we shouldn’t forget that a moderate level of physical activity–equivalent to 30 minutes of brisk walking a day–can be enough to improve cholesterol levels, lower blood pressure, and make you feel good.
2. Enjoy heart-healthy foods. You don’t have to follow a special diet to enjoy heart-healthy foods, but there are foods on this list of ten heart-healthy foods that you can enjoy if you follow a vegan,vegetarian, low-carb, or Paleo diet. Since I’m don’t follow any particular diet, I can enjoy all the foods. 😉
3. Lower your cholesterol. Did you see the news this week that dietary cholesterol may not be the health risk we have been told it was? That’s good news for someone like me who loves to eat eggs! There is a correlation between high blood levels of “bad” cholesterol and heart disease, so lowering your cholesterol levels is still important. According to the American Heart Association, getting at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise a week, avoiding tobacco smoke and eating a heart-healthy diet can help lower your cholesterol levels.
4. Manage stress. If you are like me, you may feel like you are under a lot of stress trying to juggle the competing demands of work, family and your own personal needs. Stress is no joke. Physical symptoms of stress can include increased adrenaline production that causes your breathing and heart rate to speed up, and your blood pressure to rise. When stress is constant or chronic, these effects can impact your health and put you at risk. It is important to manage stress–and do what you can to reduce the stressors in your life!
5. Get enough sleep. Competing demands on my time can make it tempting to skimp on sleep, but poor sleep is linked with high blood pressure, raises levels of stress hormones, and weakens your immune system. Don’t feel guilty for going to bed early or taking a nap–do it for your health!
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If you’re more interested in Friday the 13th, please hop over to the Cherry Blossom blog, where we’re sharing our race day horror stories.
Do you have any plans for Valentine’s Day?
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Great post and great things to remember. I’m doing a pretty good job there, except for the sleep. I REALLY need to work on that item for a lot of reasons.
Great reminders! I know I definitely need to work on the last two, stress and sleep. It’s a never ending cycle sometimes, but something I try hard to make a priority even if I don’t always succeed.
I love this. Even though I am the big champion of WICKWICK I will admit to being consistently surprised how well it works for my physical health.
What feels like such small stuff when done each day really does add up.
xoxo
Exactly! Thanks for reminding us that we can do this!
If only I could get enough sleep. That will be the one thing that gives me a heart attack. I haven’t slept through the night in over 3 years!! Hope you have a great weekend in NYC!
ah sleep! I am hoping to get a little more of that this weekend.
Nice take on this weeks theme! I know the past two weeks was a good example of me how to / how not to manage stress.
I wish I was a better sleeper. I’m just not…family trait. I need to work on reducing stress. Great reminders.
Loved your take on the theme this week. We all need to be “Heart Smart’.
I’m good at sleep 🙂 I should work on the stress part.
You seem to be the only one!
all excellent tips — getting enough sleep is one of my biggest struggles.
Great reminders – especially about managing stress and getting enough sleep! Meditating really helps me with my stress (so does working out) but boy do I need to work on my sleep!
I feel that if I slowed down long enough to meditate, I would fall asleep!
#4 and #5 are the ones that I’m the worst at!!!
No Valentine Day plans here – I hate trying to go out that day and am perfectly content to stay home with the boys!!
Great post! I have heart disease in my family so I always try to keep these things in mind. #4 is so hard for me though!
I really have issues with stress. I hope running helps burn some of it off, but I need to learn to not get so stressed out over things!
It fascinates me how much the health mandates have evolved over the years. First fat was the villain and we were encouraged to follow a Dean Ornish-type diet. Then eggs were implicated for cholesterol. Now I’m happy to see the focus shift to bad cholesterol instead of the total number. You’re right though: it’s really all about small changes we can make and stick with. Hope you’re enoying Valentine’s Day!
It can be frustrating when the advice changes, but I really do think we are learning more and more. Moderation seems to be a safe bet!
I love this! And coincidentally (or not coincidentally, since it’s Heart Month!), I’m drafting up a post on heart health. Love your tips!
Great Post and nice article.Thanks for reminding.I will try this Next time.Thanks for sharing.