Eat Your Way to a Healthy Heart

We all want to live a long, happy, healthy life. We all know that heart health is important. However, so many of us still fail to reform our bad eating habits to improve our longevity.  

According to Dr. Dariush Mozaffarin, professor of epidemiology and medicine at Harvard Medical School, your risk for heart disease can be drastically reduced by incorporating certain foods into your diet. These foods are packed with essential vitamins and minerals to keep your heart strong and healthy. Likewise, by choosing a healthy diet, your body will be well equipped to fight off a wide range of diseases. 

"The heart is a complex system," says Dr. Mozaffarin. "It cannot continue to function without proper care." 

Dr. Mozaffarin recommends incorporating oatmeal, salmon, nuts, seeds and broccoli into your diet. It is important to remember that poor eating habits are a matter of choice. Thankfully, you can reverse your risk for heart disease and stroke by taking a proactive approach to your diet. Eat your way to a healthy heart by following these eight easy tips: 

1) Colorful Produce 

Adding a variety of colorful veggies and organic fruits to your diet will help you to protect your heart and replenish vital nutrients.  

Try to eat at least eight servings of colorful produce each day such as broccoli, carrots, and red cabbage. These foods have disease-fighting antioxidants, phytonutrients, fiber, minerals and key anti-inflammatory properties. 

2) Incorporate Healthy Oils 

Leave the artery-clogging margarine, processed oils and shortening behind. Instead, choose healthy alternatives such as nut oils, cold pressed sesame oil, or extra virgin olive oil. Try using these oils in stir-fry dishes or as a salad dressing. These oils contain important nutrients that help your heart to stay strong and healthy. 

3) Pump the Omega-3 

Omega-3 is a key heart-healthy nutrient known to promote healthy blood flow, reduce triglycerides, reduce stress and prevent heart rhythm abnormalities. Foods rich in Omega-3 include fresh wild caught salmon, flaxseed, seaweed, herring and sardines. 

4) Fiber, Fiber, Fiber 

We all know that we need more fiber in our diets. Fiber is a key player in the fight against heart disease thanks to its many useful benefits. According to recent studies, fiber has been shown to reduce cholesterol, blood sugar levels, and blood pressure. Likewise, a diet rich in high-fiber foods lowers the risk for obesity and diabetes. As an added bonus eating foods high in fiber makes you feel full longer, reducing your urges for unhealthy snacks between meals. Fiber-rich foods include seeds, nuts, whole grains, beans and fresh fruit. 

5) Eliminate Junk Food - Including Soda 

When it comes to the health of your heart, nothing could be worse than eating fattening, sugary junk foods. Liquid sugar, aka soda, is the worst culprit of them all when it comes to contributing to heart disease, diabetes and obesity.  

Lipid and sugar metabolism is negatively affected when the body is bombarded with diet drinks, juices, sodas, and all types of processed junk food. If you want your heart to remain strong and healthy, you must get rid of these foods and drinks as a normal part of your diet. Never look back! 

6) Balance Your Blood Sugar 

According to a recent study conducted by the Mayo Clinic, keeping a tight rein on your blood sugar could reduce your risk for heart disease by as much as 30%.  

Avoid foods that are obviously high in sugar, such as candy or soda. Choose whole grains instead of processed white flour products. Eat smaller, balanced meals more often. Incorporate lean protein with each meal to help your body avoid sudden blood sugar spikes. 

7) Lean Protein is Important 

Lean protein has been shown to help lower blood sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol. The mighty bean is a superior source of lean protein. The protein found in one-quarter cup of beans, regardless of variety, is the same as one ounce of high quality, lean meat. Beans also contain important cancer-fighting compounds such as inositol pentakisphosphate, flavonols and inositol hexaphosphate. Other good sources of lean protein include skinless chicken, vegetable protein, fish, turkey and lean lamb chops. 

8) More Potassium, Please 

Cut your risk for stroke and heart disease by more than 20% by adding potassium-rich foods to your diet. Potassium has been shown to slow atherosclerosis, prevent the thickening of artery walls and lower blood pressure.Potassium is abundant in bananas, but can also be found in other types of produce, fat-free dairy products, lean poultry, and fish. 

Is it possible to eat your way to heart health?  

"Balance is key," says Dr. Kelly Flesner of the Oklahoma Heart Institute. "While a good, nutritious diet will help you to keep your heart healthy and strong, it is important to remember that a balanced diet, along with exercise, is the key to overall health and longevity." 

Dr. Flesner recommends a balance of fresh fruits and vegetables, lean proteins, complex carbohydrates and healthy fats with no more than 450 calories per meal.

Philip J Reed, on behalf of Texoma Medical Center, providing cardiology in Denison, TX

Is Yoga Or A Gym The Best Way To Lose Weight? Making a case for both

 

For many in today’s culture, weight-loss goals are becoming a trendy and life-changing experience.
We plan, exercise, and diet according to the most appealing opportunities, some which work and
others don’t (particularly the ones that focus on diet or exercise with exclusion to one or the other). The question left to many is which is the best way to lose those extra pounds? Certain methods and practices promise the best results, but for each individual, a certain style may prove to be the better choice.

A case for yoga.

Yoga has grown in popularity especially for those that wish to shed a few extra pounds. This method
targets the ability to work at your own level- which is attractive to new-comers in the practice of weight
loss.

Yoga is most beneficial when the body and mind are working together, and is attained through stretches
and poses combined with a serene environment. Perhaps its most renowned characteristics are the
breathing techniques combined with static poses that help to achieve body and mind wholeness.

Though commonly thought of as relatively limited in activity, there is the new Power Yoga technique,
which maintains the importance of body and mind togetherness but also includes aerobic activities to
improve weight-loss.

Additionally, Yoga is renowned for its improvement on blood circulation. Because of the stretching,
breathing, and physical positioning, the heart and associated circulatory system gain tremendous
benefit, improving the body’s natural well-being and ensuring quality physical and mental functions due
to improved oxygen circulation within the body.

Yoga practices have been known to help shed pounds, but more importantly it helps prevent the
practitioner from gaining weight back (which is an important part to ensuring continuing health).
The environments are often serene, but it isn’t always practiced in group environments. Yoga can be
practiced easily in solitude, as group effort is not big factor.

The mind’s effect on the body is perhaps the most effective weight-loss tool, which is the main
aspect Yoga strives to put across. In many cases, it takes ongoing focus and determination to continue
to pursue weight loss goals and achieve well-being. What the mind wills, the body will do- and a good
relationship between the two is crucial.

Then there is the gym workout, which in many cases is the most popular method fitness seekers choose
to lose weight.

A case for the gym

Fitness gyms come in many formats, from traditional environments of self-achievement to those that rely on group support to help each individual find the right motivation that meets their needs. Additionally, there are also certain activities and teachings that each gym incorporates in order to deliver the best workout attainable, that make it unique to others.

Cardio techniques? Strength training activities? There are several different applications by which a gym helps an individual attain their fitness goals, and not all will be the same. Ultimately, it comes down to the environment and teachings that make a gym workout beneficial.

The best facilities will focus on teaching the importance of nutrition and healthy dieting as two parts of
a whole. Diet is an important part of weight-loss, and isn’t to be overlooked in any situation. Gyms often
offer quality training and guidance, allowing an entry-level practitioner the opportunity to learn and
benefit from others’ experience at the facility.

One of the most prominent benefits of a gym is that it provides the opportunity to regularly exercise
the body. Continuous activity is necessary to keep the body functioning properly and is a key element
to losing weight. Though dieting is important, without proper activity levels the body would not be able
to function effectively or use up the fuel (carbohydrates) you supply it. Additionally, activity is also
beneficial for improving circulation, assisting the cardiovascular system.

Basically, it is the teachings of the instructor and gym facility that ultimately decide how advantageous
it will be to an individual’s weight-loss goals. Finding the right environment is a necessary task for each
individual, and it is important to keep in mind that not all gym facilities are the same.

When it comes down to weight-loss and fitness centers, there are several different options each person
has available to them. In some cases, combining the best from each can be the best solution, so long as
the person finds it in themselves to remain focused and determined to achieve their goals and maintain
the practice of healthy living.

Julie Kennington is the owner and operator of Drenched Fitness a fun, group focused fitness center
with a ‘club like’ atmosphere in Westlake Village, California. She and the trainers at Drenched Fitness
provide practical weight loss, get fit and get active tips each week on the Drenched Fitness Blog.