What? Red wine is heart healthy, remember?

Plus, the good healthy-living personality Jack LaLanne once said…

“Go on, have a glass of wine with dinner. What is wine, anyway? Pure grapes.”

How can we argue with that logic?

So, as we wrap up American Heart Month, I think we should raise our glasses to those among us, like the American Heart Association, that work tirelessly to provide quality education for us and to raise money for heart related research.

And if you don’t have a bottle of grapes on hand, consider buying a bottle of Colby Red, a wine with a lot of heart.

The mission of Colby Red wine is to raise research dollars from the sale of each bottle to support charities that promote heart health. Its beneficiaries include American Heart Association, St. Jude’s Childrens Hospital, UCSF Pediatric Heart Center, families with children who suffer from heart defects and need vital treatments and procedures who do not have health insurance.

I’ll drink to that.

Now I really must go thank the American Heart Association and the entire Blog Your Heart Out Team, make some dinner reservations, and then hail a cab!

So when I do go to the doc it becomes rather routine to recap the usual stuff like how I’m not taking any medications, how I’m not allergic to anything, and what kind of illness runs in the family. When we reached the family history part on my last visit, I reminded my doctor that my siblings have heart conditions. She made note. Excuse me, lots of notes. Then, upon listening to my heart, she looked at me funny, and told me I needed to see a cardiologist immediately.

Immediately?

Apparently, because within the hour I had an appointment with a cardiologist.

Now that’ll get a girl’s heart racing!

Long story short, I am fine. In fact, my heart is smiling. Well, sort of. After a few tests, the cardiologist concluded that my heart has a unique sound but (thank you, God!) it is healthy. She said the unique sound is as harmless as having dimples on your face. Hearing that made my day and made my heart smile.

Want to make your heart happy? Well then, here are…

5 Ways to Make Your Heart Smile

• 1. Eat your veggies. Your heart will thank you. Need proof? Just see the research results provided by Consumer Reports.
• 2. If you smoke…well, how do I put this gently? DON’T!!
• 3. Exercise. The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity each week but you don’t have to get it all at once. If time is an issue, split it up in 10 minute intervals throughout the day.
• 4. Go Shopping. That’s right, shop at Macy’s as they are proud sponsors of the AHA. And while you’re there, pick up a red dress for your bad self or someone you love with all your heart!
• 5. Tell 5 friends about GoRedForWomen.org. If you already did, tell 5 more…your heart will grow dimples. I guarantee it!

Now I really must go send a few more emails and then and go shopping..with a very, very happy heart!

If I do say myself (and I do)…I can write one line zingers that can give you a tooth ache with my eyes closed. There might be a few typo’s with my eyes closed and all but nothing a little white out can’t handle.

Anyway, as you probably know by the explosion of Hersey Kisses and Conversation Hearts in your grocery stores, we are quickly approaching one of the biggest Hallmark holidays of the year. And, if you have a Valentine, congratulations. No really, congratulations. I just read this article in the Washington Post that there are many health benefits of falling and being in love.

Doesn’t that make your heart go pitter-patter? It should.

And, do you know what makes my heart go pitter-patter? It’s BLOG YOUR HEART OUT DAY, a campaign created to spotlight the importance of heart health, sponsored by fitlosophy, inc., the makers of fitbook.

To celebrate I think we should grab a glass of red wine and all TELL 5 friends about the Go Red For Women campaign by sending them a greeting card (sort of) straight from the American Heart Association’s website. All you have to do is enter the email addresses of 5 women you love and they’ll do the rest. And if your friends want more information about heart health, they’ll send information about the warning signs related to heart disease and tips on preventative measures like exercise, healthy eating, and heart check ups .

It’s kind of like sending your friends a free e-card only this one could save lives.

Now I really must Go Red! Happy Blog Your Heart Out Day with lots of hugs and fitness!

Or Dunkin’ & Spice.

Or Sutter’s Best.

OK, I haven’t quite decided on the name yet but that’s not important right now.

What is important is that by morning my store will feature coffee and by night it will be a wine bar. And there will be chocolate by morning, noon, and night.

Why coffee, wine, and chocolate? Because these are 3 of my favorite things. That, and they are all heart healthy. I would know. I just asked Dr. Web, also known as, WebMd and here’s what he said about the potential benefits:

Coffee: “Coffee may help protect your heart by warding off type 2 diabetes. Studies show that people who drink 3-4 cups a day may cut their risk by 25% — and even decaffeinated coffee works.”

Red Wine: “If you drink alcohol, a little red wine may be a heart-healthy choice. Resveratrol and catechins, two antioxidants in red wine, may protect artery walls. Alcohol can also boost HDL, the good cholesterol.”

Chocolate: “Dark chocolate and cocoa are rich in antioxidants called flavonoids. Research suggests that eating flavonoid-rich chocolate helps to keep blood vessels healthier by improving their ability to expand. One small study showed that eating high-flavonoid dark chocolate daily helped high blood pressure patients lower their blood pressure and reduce LDL.”

I don’t make this stuff up. Besides, what isn’t healthy about grapes and beans (in moderation, of course)?

And speaking of heart health, if you have a blog, I’d love for you join me and Blog Your Heart Out tomorrow, February 11th, an event to support the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women campaign. Just visit www.getfitbook.com for all of the details.

Now I really must go have a glass of wine and work on the name of my shop….what do you think about a Cup of Jo(anna)’s?

This year, fitlosophy, inc. is sponsoring the second annual Blog Your Heart Out campaign to support the American Heart Association’s efforts to create awareness about heart disease and ways we can detect and help prevent the disease.

So for 5 weeks, 5 bloggers (including yours truly) will be blogging our hearts out about heart disease and asking you to help us by telling 5 friends in your network about some free life saving resources that can be downloaded at www.goredforwomen.org.

So let’s get things started with…

5 Important Dates You Should Know

• February 1st: Kick off! Join the Go Red Movement by signing up to receive heart-healthy information here. And, tell 5 friends about the Go Red For Women campaign by entering their email addresses here and let the American Heart Association take it from there!
• February 4th: National Wear Red Day. Wear your heart on your sleeve, literally. Wear red on the 4th to show your support and help draw attention to the American Heart Association’s campaign to save lives.
• February 6th: Super Bowl Sunday. Random date, I know. So humor me and put something heart-healthy in your super bowl.
• February 11th: Blog Your Heart Out Day. Got a blog or know someone who does? Join me or ask someone to join me on the 14th in writing about the importance of heart health or how heart disease has impacted your friends or family.
• February 14th: Valentine’s Day. OK, this day has nothing to do with this campaign, but I thought I’d remind all of you sweethearts out there so you don’t forget this very important day.

Now I really must go mark my calendar and get ready to send my valentine a cardio-gram!

Research has shown that the benefits of walking and moderate physical activity for at least 30 minutes a day can help you:

• Reduce the risk of coronary heart disease
• Improve blood pressure and blood sugar levels
• Improve blood lipid profile
• Maintain body weight and lower the risk of obesity
• Enhance mental well being
• Reduce the risk of osteoporosis
• Reduce the risk of breast and colon cancer
• Reduce the risk of non insulin dependent (type 2) diabetes

Now I really must go…

BMI stands for Body Mass Index, a numerical value of your weight in relation to your height. BMIs are good indicators of healthy or unhealthy weights for adult men and women, regardless of body frame size.

In the BetterU program this week I learned that it is important to know your BMI number because carrying too much weight is a risk factor for heart disease and stroke. BMI values less than 18.5 are considered underweight. BMI values from 18.5 to 24.9 are healthy. A BMI between 25 and 30 is considered overweight and a BMI above 30 is considered obese. To find out your BMI, click here.

Finding out your BMI is painless. There are no needles, no dunking booths, or pinch tests. All you need to know is your height, your weight, and your activity level. I know two of the three. Of course I know how tall I am, or should I say how short I am. I also know that I fall in the “active” category. What I don’t know is my weight. I haven’t weighed myself in…um…quite awhile.

I have a love/hate relationship with the scale. So we broke up. It’s a long story. In summary, I used to let the scale control my mood…if it was down, I was up! If it was up, I was down.

So, lately I’ve been tracking my progress by…

• Using a tape measure
• Seeing how well my clothes fit
• My energy level
• How I look in the mirror

These methods work great, but I think it’s time to dial it back in so I make sure I’m at a heart-heathly weight. So, I’m going back to weighing in about once a week. But first, I think I’ll go buy my scale some flowers to make sure we get back together on a good number note.

Now I really must go calculate my BMI, if I’m in a great mood on Monday, you’ll know why!

Similarly, in her book, The Beck Diet Solution, Dr. Beck talks about the concept of:

“Strengthening your resistance muscle and weakening your giving-in muscle” when it comes to food.

What does this mean? As Dr. Beck explains, “Every time you resist the urge to eat something you really shouldn’t you strengthen your tendency to resist it again in the future. And every time you give in and eat (or overeat) food you shouldn’t, you strengthen your tendency to give-in.”

As a result of this little lesson, I am now training the little willpower I do have like my body…with focus and planning. My plan?

• More focus on goal setting with statements on why achieving my goals is important to me
• A renewed focus on food journaling and food prep. If it’s not on my plan, forgetaboutit!
• Being prepared for obstacles

Speaking of obstacles, this week the BetterU program had a tip about what to do when you have an unplanned snack attack. They suggest creating some distractions like painting your nails or going for a walk to keep your mind off mindless munching. Here are a few more helpful hints to keep from eating too many extra calories:

• Brush your teeth or put on some Crest White Strips (I’m always less likely to eat right after I brush)
• Drink more water or make a cup of hot tea (I sometimes mistake hunger for thirst, do you?)
• Go shopping, but not grocery shopping
• Read in a room other than the kitchen.
• Whatever you do, do not watch the Food Network
• Take a relaxing bath
• Knit if you know how to knit, otherwise…
• Grease the handles of your fridge with baby oil
• Have your jaw wired shut. Kidding!
• Blog, but if you don’t have a blog then read a really good blog like this one
  
• Call a long-winded friend

Now I really must go to the gym and do the other kind of resistance training and if I get hit with an unplanned snack attack I’ll call Carrie (to wish her a happy birthday, of course!)

Each Sunday Angela and I email each other our goals for the week and then we talk, Twitter, and email each other throughout the week to make sure we’re staying on track. And, it works. If you don’t have someone like this in your life, FIND ONE. I’d suggest finding someone that has a similar (or better) training style and work ethic that you do, that way you can help one another set and achieve realistic, yet challenging goals.

Week 4 of the BetterU program focuses on the importance of creating social support…the two legged or the four legged kind. In fact, in our lesson this week they reminded us that:

Research shows that dog owners who walk their dogs are more active and have a lower Body Mass Index (healthy weight for height) than people who don’t own or walk their dogs.

I have to say, I’m pretty lucky to have Ang and my dog, Bella, in my life to keep me on the fast track to a BetterMe!

Now I really must go take Bella for a walk and call Angela for a pep talk!

To learn more go to www.GoRedForWomen.org. Please.