Follow your heart

Today was the first day back to college for me. This semester I am taking Anatomy & Physiology 2 and our first topic of discussion is the heart, such a fascinating organ. There is a lot that goes in to protecting our hearts. Besides the obvious, the rib cage, there is also 3 layers around the heart. It seems that good things come in threes like Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner. Three opportunities to make smarter, heart healthy choices such as whole grains, beans and legumes, nuts, fatty fish and colorful fruits and vegetables all offering heart-protective phytonutrients. I spent the first few months of my weight loss journey making choices to completely overhaul my meal planning so every meal would be healthier for everyone in my family. I have tried to pay more attention in recent months to my own personal intake of fiber, and protein. 


According to the Lose It! book we should all strive to evenly distribute our calorie intake with complex carbs taking up 45-65%, fats 20-35% and protein 10-35% and with an overall intake of 20-35 grams of fiber (minimum 21g for women, 30 grams for men). I have managed to get my fiber intake to about 30 grams of fiber everyday for the last seven weeks and this year I have definitely maintained the even spread on calories. 






The most fascinating thing I learned about the heart today: in life, we have to consciously make choices about what our priorities are, but your heart is set up to automatically take care of itself first. The heart is the first part of the body that gets oxygen, kind of like on an airplane when they tell you to put the oxygen mask on yourself before you put one on your baby. One of the hardest lessons I have had to learn is to take care of myself or I wont to be in the right shape to take care of those around me and yet again I am thankful my body is set up to make some of those choices for me. 




I decided to share my food log from today, just in case you are curious about what I am eating, and YES, that is just over 35 grams of fiber today, and here is my run data from tonight, 4.48 miles. 

Today, just like everyday for the last year, my little victory is making decisions that have helped me to become healthier. 

What is your little victory today?

Guitarplayingmommy,
Heather