Given your current state (such as eating habits and behaviors) what would your heart say to you?

I think that most people, if not everyone, has a love-hate relationship with their heart. Our heart is happy when treated with care, such as 30-minute cardio or multi grain roasted vegetable sandwiches with avocado. It gets irritated after eating that Grand Mac. And at times, the heart is at war against the brain in decision-making: My heart tells me to keep exploring the world, but my brain tells me that my student loans must come first. I wonder at times what my heart would tell me.

I enjoy reading nonfiction, healthy eating, and workouts. At times I pick up a book on Frederick Douglass or Dale Carnegie for some inspiration, good food for my heart and soul. I eat ol’ fashion oats with some fruit for breakfast, garden salad for lunch, and a tuna salad or salmon and rice for dinner, which my heart thanks me for. I do a stepaerobics class twice a week, when my heart and me get pumped…And my heart gets pumping too! Yep, me and hearty have shared great moments during my lifetime.

But like everyone else, I still have flaws that would make my heart frown. First, I am an insomniac, sleeping for at least 5 hours or so at times. I either wake up during the middle of the night or cant fall asleep. And believe me, I tried everything between hot milk, reading an hour before bed, sleep pills, and chamomille tea. I´m going to see my doctor about it soon, which is my next and hopefully the last avenue. If there´s any other ideas about how to sleep better I would love to know!

Another flaw I try to improve are eating habits. You might think ¨how is that so? You seem to have healthy eating habits!¨ Well besides some oats and greens, I have been consuming an excess of carbs and salt. I eat two or more soft pretzels a day,sneak in some Oreos and Keebler chocalate chips, and sometimes Cheez its and Lays. My family even calls me the pretzel queen, since I eat pretzels the most. I eat these things an average of a few days a week.

A third flaw I have is a lack of exercise. I feel that my work environment is a major contributor to this. Part of my work is the generic office job in a cubicle. I document things on a computer or tablet, attend meetings and phone conferences, and make phone calls. It was nice for awhile actually, because the building I was in had steps and my office was on the 5th floor. I took the steps perhaps 1-3 times a day, sweating everytime. I even managed to make my own standing desk with what I had. But since then, I moved to a one-story office building. My coworkers and I share a long table in a tiny hot-as-an oven room. I have the option to take the shuttle or walk (me doing the latter), but it´s not nearly as much exercise I did before. I do have the option to work at home too which is nice. Yet, we have meetings frequently at the office. Unfortunately I don´t have much control in this environment.

I think my heart overall would say that I am doing well: I’m almost eating very heart healthy, exercising, and other hobbies. I would just need to cut the carbs, get more sleep, and move around more at work. I don’t get to see my heart through an angiogram everyday, but I can only feel and imagine what this muscled organ goes through daily.

This all reminds me how important it is to look out for the heart. Take the time to think what your heart might say, one beat at a time. If you take care of your heart, then your heart takes care of you.

Speaking of which, here’s an article on the CDC about caring for loved ones during American Health month and beyond:

https://www.cdc.gov/features/american-heart-health/index.html

#daily-living, #diet, #exercise, #february, #heart, #love, #sleep