How strong and healthy is your heart right now?

Well according to the stats, it might not be that healthy. Heart disease is the leading cause of death for women, killing more women every year than cancer, diabetes, and dementia combined. We always think of men having heart attacks, but women are dying of heart attacks more than men. And your risk of developing heart disease goes up dramatically in midlife, so we have to have this conversation now.

February is heart health month, so we’re going to do it justice and make sure that you’re doing the simple, necessary things to create a strong and healthy heart.  **

Let me tell you a story about Lisa…

Lisa is 48, she has a busy job, and she’s also having to step up to the plate to take care of her parents more recently, and also her teenage kids. She’s got a lot going on.

Lisa had always thought she was doing okay when it came to her health. She wasn’t a gym rat, but she stayed somewhat active—running around after her kids, doing housework, and walking occasionally when the weather was nice. She wasn’t perfect with food, but she tried to eat “pretty healthy”.

Her weight was always fine, so she just wasn’t that concerned about her health - there were so many other things that mattered more.

That was until a routine doctor’s visit changed everything.

Her blood pressure was creeping up. Her cholesterol was in the “borderline high” range. Her lipid numbers didn’t look great, and when her doctor mentioned that heart disease is the #1 killer of women—she felt her stomach drop.

The warning signs were there.

“How is that possible?” she asked. “I’m only 48! I’m not that out of shape. And I eat pretty well… right?”

But the truth was, Lisa had been overlooking the small daily habits that quietly impact heart health over time.

Her heart health wasn’t failing overnight. It was the years of small, unnoticed habits adding up.

And it’s these things that lead to half a million women every year dying from cardiovascular disease far younger than they might otherwise.

That day, Lisa made a decision—not to overhaul her life, but to start making small, consistent changes.

And that’s what this episode is all about—because Lisa’s story? It could be your story, too.

Why This Matters

• Heart disease is the #1 killer of women
  • Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death among women, causing 1 in 3 deaths each year.
  • But 80% of heart disease is preventable (AHA).
• Midlife is when heart health shifts.
  • Going through menopause does not cause cardiovascular disease, but the hormonal changes that occur during this time can accelerate a woman’s cardiovascular risk factors
  • Estrogen helps to maintain the integrity of your blood vessels - their strength and elasticity - and even muscle tissue (including your cardiac muscle tissue) essentially keeping them young.
  • When you no longer have as much estrogen, you begin to rely on your habits and lifestyle to maintain a healthy heart.
  • This life stage is when these habits matters most!
• The good news? It’s never too late to improve your heart health!

What is the Cardiovascular System anyway?

• Think of your heart and blood vessels like a highway system delivering nutrients and oxygen to your entire body.
  • This highways system picks up nutrients (glucose, fats, proteins, vitamins and minerals and other chemicals that your body needs) from your digestive track and it picks up oxygen from your lungs, and transports it to all the cells throughout your body.
• Your heart is the pump, and your arteries and veins are the roads.
• Over time, if the roads get clogged (plaque buildup) or stiff or the pump gets weak, the system struggles.
• This is why daily habits either keep the roads clear and strong—or create traffic jams.

Here’s the Plan

Ok, let’s say you’re like Lisa… your blood pressure is higher than preferred, your cholesterol numbers are borderline, and you’re afraid that you may have a ticking time bomb if you don’t do something now.

What should you do?

Fitness: Your Heart’s Best Friend

• Remember that your heart is a muscle—it gets stronger with movement and weaker without it.
  • It’s pumping all day long, but you need to challenge it, train it, make it work harder than baseline to keep it healthy
• Regular physical activity - even just walking 30 minutes a day - can reduce the risk of developing heart and circulatory problems by 35%.

What are the fitness recommendations? What’s going to have the best impact on your heart?

• It’s all about volume and intensity - how much you do and how hard you do it.
• AHA recommends at least 2.5 hours of moderate exercise per week (30 minutes a day, 5 days a week) or 1 hr 15 minutes of vigorous exercise per week.
• Even short bursts of movement (taking the stairs, dancing, stretching) add up!
  • (next week we’re going to go way more in depth into cardiovascular exercise - so make sure to come back!)
• Simple fitness habit shift: Do Exercise Snacks - short bursts of movement all day long

Nutrition: The Fuel for a Healthy Heart

• What you eat matters.
• The best heart-friendly foods:
  • A lot of colorful veggies/fruits
  • Omega-3s (salmon, walnuts)
  • Fiber-rich foods (oats, beans)
  • Healthy fats (olive oil, avocados, nuts, seeds)
  • Example meal:
    • A big leafy green salad (with kale, spinach & romaine) that has salmon & blueberries on it, with walnuts & pumpkin seeds and vinaigrette dressing
• The biggest heart-breakers:
  • Ultra-processed foods - foods that aren’t fresh, but rather come out of a box, a package or a wrapper
  • Too much added sugar/salt
  • Trans fats & excess alcohol
  • Example meal:
    • Frozen pre-packaged lasagna with garlic bread, a bottle of wine and dessert
• Simple nutrition habit shift: Add one more fruit or vegetable to your meals today.

Stress & Sleep: The Hidden Heart Health Factors

While it seems more obvious that exercise and nutrition are going to impact your heart health, your sleep and stress levels - while it might not be quite as obvious - impact your heart just as much.

• Women who sleep less than 6 hours per night have a 20% higher risk of heart disease (NIH).
• Women who deal with chronic stress that’s left unmanaged are going to experience chronically elevated cortisol levels, which also places a huge strain on your cardiovascular system.
• So taking care of your heart means that you need to take care of your stress and sleep.
• Simple Micro-habits that can help:
  • Deep breathing - we learned back on episode 404 that deep, rhythmic breathing can lower your blood pressure and reduce your stress response significantly. 3 or 4 times a day, just pause, close your eyes, and take about 5 long slow deep breaths.
  • Just go to bed 15 minutes earlier. And then try to create a consistent bedtime routine, being very aware of your habits (what you do, what you’re consuming) in the 2-3 hours leading up to bedtime.

Bringing It All Together: The Heart Habits that add up

I want you to know that these little habits really do add up.

Karen is someone I’ve been coaching for a coming up on a year now, and I remember at the beginning of her journey, she had just had a doctor’s appointment and her results looked a lot like Lisa’s from the beginning of this episode…and she was pretty worried.

But she committed to not doing a huge overhaul, which she knew she probably wouldn’t be able to sustain, but rather just focusing on being really consistent with some simple little things.

• Started eating more vegetables and cut back on her alcohol consumption.
• Started exercising for 10-15 minutes everyday.
• Finally took her stress seriously and started doing some deep breathing everyday.
• And changed her bedtime from 11:00 to 10:00.

Not only did she feel better, but she just got her labs done again and her doctor was super impressed. Every number had improved. She still has a little bit more work to do, but we’re definitely out of the danger zone.

Call to Action – Simple Steps to Start Today

My greatest desire is for you to not be a statistic. I don’t you to be a one of the thousands of victims of heart disease.

Simple fitness habit shift: Do Exercise Snacks - short bursts of movement all day long

Simple nutrition habit shift: Add one more fruit or vegetable to your meals today.

Simple stress habit shift: Take 5 slow deep breaths.

Simple sleep habit shift: Go to bed 15 minutes earlier.

More Resources & Links

FREE Weekly Jumpstart Newsletter! Master your midlife health in just 3 minutes a week with this easy-to-read newsletter

https://www.goredforwomen.org/en/about-heart-disease-in-women/facts

https://www.heart.org/en/news/2024/02/09/the-slowly-evolving-truth-about-heart-disease-and-women

Episode 404. Can Specific Exercises Lower Blood Pressure?

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