It’s Valentine’s Day at the end of this working week and whether you are a true romantic who adores grand demonstrations of love and romance or you are a cynic that thinks the Hallmark commercialism is a con and would rather have a cup of tea in front of the TV and spend the money on something practical for the house, it is an opportunity for me to remind you how to take good care of your hearts and encourage our loved one to do the same.
Make sure that you get plenty of fibre from lots veggies and some fruit, especialy berries (eg. 6-8 portions of veg and 2 of fruit – btw a portion is the size of your hand). Try to enjoy a rainbow of colours on your plate across the day and eat plenty of whole grains, beans, legumes, seeds and nuts. All of which provide fibre, minerals and essential vitamins and enzymes as follows.
Calcium-found in green leafy vegetable, fish and dairy products, soy and tofu. If you take a supplement do so in the morning.
Magnesium-oily fish, nuts seeds, tofu, avocado, legumes
Take your supplement in the evening (I take one/two every night plus regular Epsom salts baths)
Omega 3 – found in oily fish, the best of which are anchovies, small salmon and small fish/young fish as shorter the life will result in less risk of affects from pollution. Krill oil supplements are excellent. (Declan takes omega 3 daily, I’m looking for a good vegetarian alternative for me )
Vitamin D- we make it after sun exposure, so get outside in the daylight every day, even on a cloudy day for 30 mins will help. I take a spray Vit D supplement in the winter.
Folic Acid (aka B9) -from broccoli, lentils, brussel sprouts, asparagus
B12- Eggs, meat, fish, dairy
Potassium- Potatoes, bananas, oranges, cantaloupe, honeydew, apricots, grapefruit, spinach, broccoli
Co-enzyme Q10– meat, soybean, nuts
L-Arginine- Meat especially turkey, legumes, seeds and nuts
Me, Declan and Steve plus many of my clients and athletes take an L-arginine supplement daily called ProArgi 9+ – it’s based on the Nobel prize (for Medicine) winning formula by Dr Louis J Ignarro (you can read his book No More Heart Disease where he explains his science).
ProArgi-9+ is included in the Prescribers’ Digital Reference (PDR) in USA, formerly known as the Physicians’ Desk Reference. This is what Dr’s in the US use to help them choose medications, although Pro Argi 9 is a nutritional supplement not a medicine, they say.
“Pro Argi-9+ is the highest quality l-arginine supplement in the world. This proprietary formulation combines the powerful cardiovascular benefits of l-arginine with a variety of superior heart health ingredients to give your cardiovascular system optimum support.”
There are many other health benefits and most of the heart healthy nutrients listed above are also in the formulation.
Stress- without doubt, poorly managed stress and long term elevated levels of the stress hormones cortisol, adrenaline and norepinephrine is linked to heart damage. Manage stress via exercise, mediation, stretch and relax classes, Pilates, yoga and breathing exercises, talk therapies, socialising and creating positive relationships, identify the cause of your stress and take action. Stay away from the negative energy vampires and hang with those who lift your sprits.
Exercise- we are often motivated to exercise when we see that we have got a bit squidgy in places – well our heart is a muscle too and can become out of condition and surrounded by fat, maybe if we could see it we would take more care of it. The combination of daily exercise for 30 mins or 270 mins per week (such as walking, swimming dancing, running, gym work etc.) where you huff and puff and sweat plus an optimal diet low in saturated fats but with plenty of unsaturated fats such as nut oils and olive oils will help keep our heart healthy (by the way don’t use vegetable oils, even olive oil, for cooking stick with nut oils such as coconut oil).
Don’t smoke – heart failure amongst other nasty conditions is linked with smoking!
Stay within recommended body fat levels – those of us with an apple shape are more at risk of fat sitting in and around our heart and it’s blood vessels, placing more strain on the heart and circulatory system than those with a pear shape. However being too thin isn’t great for our health and heart either.
Did you know We offer a bodystat assessment, which measures body fat %, lean tissue % and hydration levels plus recommended calorie daily requirements.
Keep alcohol, simple sugars and starchy carbs to a minimum, these are linked with imbalanced gut flora, increased fat levels, increased load on the pancreas and other organs and inflammation.
Sort out your Sleep- Studies have shown that getting less than 7/8 hours sleep a night pre disposes individuals to heart disease and heart attack.
“Sleep is essential for a healthy heart. People who don’t sleep enough are at higher risk for cardiovascular disease and coronary heart disease—regardless of age, weight, smoking and exercise habits. Getting enough good quality sleep is important if you want to lower you risk of these conditions”. Sleepfoundation.org
Fun and laughter makes us light hearted and good relationships with others and ourselves makes us kind hearted – exactly what I want for you for Valentines Day and every day.
Gut Health Talk
I’m giving a gut health talk on Thursday 5 March.
At Squires Garden Centre: 9.30-11am
I would love to see as many of you there as possible, all monies raised will be donated to Phyllis Tuckwell hospice. Spread the work and book early as tickets are going fast!
To book https://bit.ly/2GJHI1T?fbclid=IwAR10ks7JakCMFugB2gyc5xvAOjmeOWrXhSLcvvn2h1D07kExw3aNLJb_gQE
Heart Healthy Stir-Fried Tofu with Pak Choi
Serves two.
Recipe from British Heart Foundation (bhf.org)
INGREDIENTS
100g (3½oz) dried rice noodles or dried medium egg noodles (standard or whole wheat)
Note from Helen: I use the zero carb noodles by Bare Naked !
1 tsp cornflour ( I skip the flour but you can try coconut flour )
6 tbsp water (or homemade or reduced-salt vegetable stock)
2 tsp reduced-salt soy sauce
2 tsp smooth hot chilli (dipping) sauce or sweet chilli sauce
2 tsp rapeseed oil
4 spring onions, thinly sliced
1 fresh red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
1cm (½in) piece of fresh root ginger, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped (optional)
1 red or orange pepper, deseeded and sliced
175g (6oz) firm (original) tofu (drained weight), drained and diced
140g (5oz) pak choi, shredded
85g (3oz) mangetout
1–2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander (optional)
- Cook (or soak) noodles according to packet instructions. Drain well (rinse, if necessary). Keep warm.
- Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix cornflour with water until smooth. Stir in soy sauce and chilli sauce; set aside.
- Heat rapeseed oil in a non-stick wok. Add spring onions, red chilli, ginger and garlic (if using); stir-fry over a medium-high heat for 1 minute. Add red or orange pepper; stir-fry for 2–3 minutes.
- Add tofu; stir-fry for 4–5 minutes or until tofu is beginning to brown in places (stir-fry gently at this stage, being careful not to break up tofu).
- Add pak choi and mangetout; stir-fry for about 2 minutes or until vegetables are lightly cooked.
- Add cornflour mixture to wok; stir-fry over a medium heat for 1–2 minutes or until mixture is thickened and bubbling.
Enjoy !
Have a happy heart week and remember
I love ya,
Helen xx
