Heart Health – How to increase physical activity to improve heart health
You want to be more physically active, but how do you find the time? And just how much activity do you have to do?
From Part 1, we’ve already identified time as the number one culprit most people are not more active. Did you implement any of the tips for getting more activity into your home and work routine? If not, you can review the tips – Boost Physical Activity with Twist on Daily Routine – Part 1.
Now, here are examples of how to boost your fitness when at traveling, caring for children, and running errands.
On the Road
Traveling doesn’t mean your fitness goals have to halt during your time on the road. There are simple activities that will increase your activity level and help decrease the discomforts that often accompany long periods on the road. When driving, schedule breaks every two to three hours to stop, stretch, and take a brisk walk around a roadside park. When behind the wheel, shift around as much as possible to assist circulation and ease stiffness. Traveling by plane or train means limited space, but you can stretch your arms and neck by reaching towards the luggage rack and completing shoulder/neck rolls in your seat. Get up every hour for a short walk to the restroom to stretch your legs. When navigating the airport choose the stairs and walk as much as possible versus using moving walkways, escalators, and elevators.
Travel does mean you leave behind your gym or treadmill, but you can pack some comfy shoes and take a walk just about anywhere. A convenient fitness tool for traveling is a resistance band. This piece of equipment takes up minimal space and provides a way to work on your flexibility and strength when your only option is your hotel room. Real Living Nutrition members will soon be able to access resistance band tips and techniques through “My Tools”. Many hotels have fitness rooms or swimming pools where you can stick with a fitness routine.
Fitness with Children
Has a new little one joined your family? Increase your activity by walking to soothe your infant or sit on the floor and rock back and forth while holding your infant instead of rocking in a rocker. Most little ones love the visual stimulation of the outdoors. Get a carrier and strap on your infant for a walk around the neighborhood. There are many options now for strollers and bike trailers that provide a variety of activity options. If finances are limited, improvise with baby overhead presses and arm curls. As you little one gains weight you will gain improved arm and shoulder strength. Turn on the tunes and dance around the living room with your baby, you may even be rewarded with some giggles.
Has your child hit the “do it myself” stage? At this point the intensity of your activity may decrease as you slow down for your child to keep pace with you. This is a good time to look into a fitness tradeoff with other moms in your neighborhood. Swap watching the kids while you each can get a much needed break and some physical activity. If you have slim pickings for another support mom, you will continue to get fitness benefits from all the bending, lifting, carrying, and putting down that a young child demands. As your child grows, they will be able to participate in more physical activities, such as fun games like “Mother May I?” and “Red Light, Green Light”. Get creative and make up a scavenger hunt that includes a walk around the neighborhood (search for a red car, a white flower, a green house, etc.). Not feeling creative, head to the park for playtime while you walk laps around the playground. Your child needs the activity just as much as you do.
Everyday Errands
There are even little ways to boost your activity level when running errands. When you go to the mall or grocery store don’t circle the lot for the closest parking space, park farther away and take advantage of those extra steps to reach your destination. Do you live near the bank or post office? Leave the car parked and take a walk or ride your bike. When driving to the school, park a few blocks from the school and walk with your children the rest of the way. By doing this you have the added bonus of avoiding the traffic jam of school buses and parents dropping off students, it might even take less time. Add extra steps at the mall by being a mall walker and complete a lap before you start your shopping. Once again, take the stairs instead of the escalator.
Like I’ve already stated, achieving your fitness goals does not require a fancy gym membership or expensive exercise machine. Be creative! For more everyday activity tips check out Fitting in Fitness: Hundreds of Simple Ways to Put More Physical Activity into Your Life by the American Heart Association. Stick with an increased fitness level and you’ll reap the rewards of more energy, weight management, heart and bone health, and an overall improved quality of life.
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The Heart of Health for regular heart health and weight loss tips from dietitian Lisa Nelson. Now get moving!
All the best,
Lisa Nelson RD
Heart Health – Do you need to supplement L-Carnitine?
This is probably a supplement you’ve never heard of, but when supplemented along with coenzyme Q10 substantial benefits have been seen in individuals with heart disease.
L-carnitine is a compound produced by the liver and kidneys from the biosynthesis of the amino acids lysine and methionine. To form L-carnitine you also need adequate levels of vitamin C, B6, niacin, and iron.
Let me explain how L-carnitine works. The powerhouse of your cells is the mitochondria and produces the energy your heart needs to function. L-carnitine is responsible for transporting fatty acids to the mitochondria for energy production. The heart typically gets 60% of its energy from fat sources. If this process is slowed due to a lack of L-carnitine heart function is affected, especially compounding problems for individuals with heart disease. Those with moderate to severe atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries due to inflammation and cholesterol deposits) and congestive heart failure are most affected by a deficiency of L-carnitine. Too make matters worse, damaged heart tissue has a hard time “holding on” to L-carnitine resulting in a deficiency.
If you remember back to the information I shared on Coenzyme Q10, Coenzyme Q10 directly affects energy production in the mitochondria. When Coenzyme Q10 levels are low, cells are unable to produce energy, meaning the heart lacks the fuel it needs to pump blood.
About 85% of individuals with heart disease respond positively to coenzyme Q10 supplementation and significant improvements to their heart health. However, ~10-15% do not see any improvements from the addition of coenzyme Q10. Researchers have learned the “missing link” for these individuals is L-carnitine. The combination of L-carnitine with Coenzyme Q10 is needed for some individuals to experience the additional energy boost and improved heart function.
Signs of improvements many individuals see from a combination of L-carnitine and Coenzyme Q10 include better color, easier breathing, and less difficulty with exertion activities.
All the best,
Lisa Nelson RD
Heart Healthy Tips
Heart Disease – Use Vitamin C to Decrease Heart Disease Risk
A new Norwegian study – Diet and Omega 3 Fatty Acid Intervention – found individuals who increased their intake of fruits and berries decreased carotid artery thickening (atherosclerosis – hardening of the arteries), which leads to increased risk of heart disease.
The study followed over 560 men with an average age of 70 years-old for three years. Throughout the three years carotid artery thickness was measured and food intake was assessed via food-frequency questionnaires. Participants who increased vitamin C rich foods, such as fruit and berries, along with a Mediterranean diet plan had reduced arterial thickening. The more vitamin C the less the thickening.
The study concluded that even the elderly can make diet changes and see positive health benefits. We’ve known that fruits are an essential part of a heart healthy diet plan and this diet re-emphasizes that point.
All the best,
Lisa Nelson RD
Be Heart Healthy and Lose Weight
Worksite Wellness Programs – Does your employer influence your choices?
Right now there are a number of federal rules that limit what employers and insurers can do to encourage and reward healthy behavior, such as being physically active, losing weight, and smoking cessation.
President Obama has outlined 8 principles for health legislation that will make it easier for employers to provide worksite wellness and prevention programs, such as tax credits and other subsidies. The goals of worksite wellness programs would be to promote heart health, decrease obesity, manage diabetes, and other chronic health conditions.
Some proposals provide periodic screenings for health problems and others include counseling focused on healthier lifestyles. By becoming healthier, employees will reduce health care costs and productivity increases. Rewards for achieving a healthier lifestyle may include financial incentives, such as gift certificates and cash rewards. Some insurers already reward employees with lower health insurance premiums.
Of course, there’s always going to be the “other side of the coin” as some criticize the plan, saying employers will be prying too much into employee’s personal lives.
What do you think? Would a good worksite wellness program influence you to take action to live a healthier life?
One option to achieve a healthy worksite is by incorporating the Worksite Wellness Programs available to you.
All the best,
Lisa Nelson RD
Weight Loss – 4 Steps to Reduce Stress Related Weight Gain
Here are four additional tips to decrease the impact of stress and elevated cortisol levels on your weight.
1. Don’t fight the cravings.
If you need something sweet it’s okay to satisfy your sweet tooth – in moderation. It’ll cut off your elevated cortisol levels response before things get out of control.
2. Limit caffeine.
The combination of caffeine and stress raises cortisol levels.
3. As always, don’t skip breakfast!
Being deficient in certain vitamins, such as B vitamins, vitamin C, calcium, and magnesium causes your body stress and boosts cortisol levels, along with food cravings. Breakfast is a great quick and easy way to add these nutrients to your diet everyday. Some yogurt with fresh strawberries provides vitamin C, calcium, and magnesium. Add whole grain toast with peanut butter and you’ve boosted you B vitamin intake. As an additional bonus the healthy fatty acids in peanut butter slow the production of stress hormones.
4. Get enough sleep.
Sleep and stress – Adequate sleep is the most effective way to cut stress. Getting an average of 6 ½ hours of sleep nightly may increase cortisol, appetite, and weight gain. Ideally shoot for 7-9 hours of sleep. It only takes a few nights of good sleep to balance yourself back out.
To learn more about the impact of stress and cortisol on your weight, I recommend reviewing the article How Stress and Cortisol Affect Weight Loss. I’d love to help you lose weight and keep it off – permanently! Check out the programs available to help you at http://www.weightlosswithlisa.com.
All the best,
Lisa Nelson RD
The Best Way to Lose Weight
Heart Attack Signs for Women – Prevent Cardiovascular Disease
Here’s another question and answer from my February interview with Dr. Cynthia Shelby-Lane regarding heart attack signs for women. Read Dr. Shelby-Lane’s answer to learn about women cardiovascular disease.
Lisa Nelson RD: For women the signs of a heart attack are more subtle. What should women watch for? If everyone responded to every arm/jaw/chest/indigestion/feeling “not quite right” symptom, they’d never leave the ER!
Dr. Shelby-Lane: The female heart often is misdiagnosed.
True or false: Every year, more women die of heart disease than men.
The answer is true, but if you didn’t know it, you’re not the only one. In a survey of 500 physicians led by preventative cardiologist Lori Mosca, M.D, Ph.D., less than 20 percent knew the answer.
When it comes to women and heart disease, ignorance can be deadly. The misconception that heart disease is a “man’s disease” is the main reason women are misdiagnosed, or receive delayed treatment, when experiencing symptoms of heart disease and even a heart attack.
Consider these findings:
In a recent study at Weill Medical College of Cornell University/New York-Presbyterian Hospital, 230 physicians were given hypothetical cases of men and women with identical symptoms of heart disease. Half of the case studies included reports that the patient recently had a stressful experience or felt anxious. When this detail was included, doctors diagnosed heart disease in 56 percent of men compared with just 18 percent of women.
They referred men to cardiologists twice as often as women, and prescribed cardiac medications to almost half of the men, versus a paltry 13 percent of the women. Researchers concluded that in the presence of stress or anxiety, symptoms such as chest pain and shortness of breath were more likely to be attributed to anxiety in women but seen as potential signs of heart disease in men.
Another study at Tufts Medical Center in Boston found that among people who called 911 complaining of cardiac symptoms, women were 52 percent more likely than men to experience delays during emergency medical service care, a potentially critical difference because treatments for a heart attack are typically most effective when given within 1 to 2 hours of the start of the attack.
“We often hear women patients say that their complaints were dismissed or that they were ‘blown off’ by their doctors when they presented with heart disease symptoms,” says Lori Mosca, M.D., Ph.D., director of preventive cardiology at New York-Presbyterian Hospital and professor of medicine at Columbia University Medical Center. “Studies show that there is a gender bias out there that women need to be aware of. Our own research has shown that physicians are likely to label a woman at lower risk for heart disease than a man who has the exact same calculated level of heart disease risk.”
So how can you protect yourself? Dr. Mosca offers these suggestions:
Know your risks for heart disease, such as your waist size, smoking and exercise habits, blood pressure, and cholesterol levels. If you smoke, quit. Talk to your doctor about diet and exercise changes you can make to lower your risks, and, if appropriate, medications that might help you. Try this quick test at home: Wrap a tape measure around your waist right at the level of your belly button (don’t suck in your stomach). If your waistline measures 35 inches or more, you are more likely to have high cholesterol, high blood pressure, pre-diabetes and an increased risk of dying of heart disease than a woman with a normal waist size.
Knowing your family’s history of heart disease is important because if you have a close relative with heart disease or diabetes, you are at higher risk for these conditions, too.
Even if you don’t have symptoms of heart disease, having a strong family history – particularly if a parent died at a young age of a heart attack – may be enough reason to be checked early to catch problems that may not yet be causing symptoms. In 40 percent of people that develop heart disease, sudden death is the first symptom.
Learn the unique symptoms of women cardiovascular disease.
Chest pain is the most common symptom of heart problems in both men and women, but women are much more likely to also experience subtle symptoms such as headaches, nausea and upset stomach, jaw or neck pain, shortness of breath and generalized fatigue.
Get help immediately. “Research shows that women tend to call for help later than men do, possibly because they don’t recognize these atypical symptoms as signaling heart troubles, or possibly because their tolerance for pain is greater,” says Dr. Mosca. If you have symptoms and think you might be having a heart attack or stroke, don’t delay; call 911.
Have a checkup annually. Report any suspicious symptoms and don’t let your doctor dismiss your concerns. If you have two or more risk factors and you are over the age of 50, a stress test can give more clues to your heart health. If the stress test shows signs of potential heart problems, further tests can be ordered.
Get a second opinion. If you feel your doctor is not taking your concerns seriously don’t hesitate to find a new doctor.
Lisa Nelson RD: Okay, this was a fantastic answer and I appreciate the detail, but I want to clarify. Are you saying if a woman experiences chest pain and an additional symptom, such as headache, nausea, or shortness of breath they should contact their MD immediately; but if it’s just shortness of breath by itself or just neck pain, not such a concern, monitor and watch for any changes. Is that correct?
Dr. Shelby-Lane: If a woman experiences chest pain along with symptoms such as on-going headaches, nausea, fatigue, and shortness of breath, they should contact their doctor immediately and/or go to the emergency room, especially if these symptoms are of sudden onset. Symptoms such as shortness of breath, fatigue and neck pain may also be subtle indicators of heart disease and most women may dismiss these symptoms and never mention them to their doctor, thereby, missing the opportunity to diagnose an underlying heart problem.
February is American Heart Month. In recognition of American Heart Month you can access Heart Health Made Easy at a 25% savings. Learn more about this take action guide to lower cholesterol and blood pressure at http://www.hearthealthmadeeasy.com.
All the best,
Lisa Nelson RD
Reduce Heart Attack Signs for Women
