Resting heart rate!

Ok, I admit I listen to "The Doctors" on my tv radio while I'm working each morning. This morning, they were discussing your resting heart rate. The lower your resting heart rate is, the healthier your heart is. So, guess what the best way to get your resting heart rate down is? You got it.....EXERCISE! I knew this and I do this! They want to keep mine at around 61 and it is usually there. It does flucuate a bit from time to time but for the most part, with exercise and my heart meds, mine is around 61. So.....my challenge to you is: Starting today, take your pulse while at rest. Then for the next 2 weeks, exercise at least 3x per week for at least 30 minutes......more days is better but start with 3. At the end of 2 weeks, check your resting heart rate and see if it's come down any. It should! You will feel better and your heart will thank you! LOVE YOUR HEART!

New Low Sodium food find

Ok...I was excited about this when I found it. It's a condensed soup that you add low sodium chicken stock to. You have to make sure you only add low sodium chicken stock or you defeat the purpose of it being low sodium. It's Maria's Style soup and it is delicious! Nice when you don't have time to make your own homemade soup. I found this at Dorothy Lane Market in Springboro, Ohio. There are not a lot of stores that carry it but the good news is......you can order directly from the company at www.reidfoods.com There is also a link on there that tells you what stores you can find this soup at. Enjoy!

Also, a good cookbook for low sodium very tasty recipes is 500 low sodium recipes by Dick Logue! It is excellent. I got it last week and love it, love it, love it. He has CHF too and had to go on the low sodium diet so he has put together a great cookbook. I think I just may have to try doing a cookbook myself!

Be careful out there if in the Cincinnati area. It's nasty out there with all the ice and snow. Watch out for downed powers lines and be careful with trees falling! I remember last year that little girl that was killed when she was playing in the snow and a tree fell on her. This is serious stuff! Be careful and if you have heart disease......do not shovel! I sound so like a mom!

Snowy day! Be careful if you have heart disease!

I'm looking at about 3, maybe 4 inches of fresh snow on my yard this morning and on my drive way! It is still coming down and we are supposed to have stuff all day, possibly mixed with freezing rain and sleet. Oh Joy! Those of you that know me know that I truly believe snow is a BAD 4 letter word that should never be used or seen! Now, Jocelyn on the other hand loves it and was probably praying for a snow day from school today. Well, she got her wish! I'll have a talk with her later! I didn't always hate snow.....I'm sure when I was her age, I prayed for it too! Now that I have heart disease, however, snow is just something I never want to see! First off, I'm not allowed to shovel snow so my drive will be a mess until probably Thursday or Friday since my husband is out working in this stuff. He works for a landscaping business and in the winter, they do snow removal for several businesses. Oh great, I'm listening to the news and they say we are in for 3 rounds of nasty stuff. I thought 2, but now I hear 3 so I will not see my hubby for quite some time. You would think having a husband that works for a landscape business my drive would be so clean during this stuff, you would be WRONG! He leaves before it hits because he has an hour drive to work. So, he slept at the shop last night and I pretty much didn't sleep because I just can not sleep when he's not here. He won't be here tonight either. I worry about how he has to put in 2 days or more of work without rest in between plus, I can not shovel my walk or drive due to my heart condition. So....there, I'm done venting for the day! So, the moral of this story is, those of you with heart conditions that woke up to snow this morning.......DO NOT TOUCH your drive! It is very dangerous on your heart. Those of you that are healthy and know someone that lives close to you with heart disease, do them a favor and shovel their walk and drive way. It is so important that anyone with heart disease do not get out and shovel snow. I'm praying for some kid that wants to make money to come by and shovel the first round of snow off my drive but that just doesn't seem to happen in our society today. Kids wanting to make money is like an oxymoron! Ok, take it easy out there! Please, Please, Please, if you have heart disease, especially cardiomyopathy or CHF......leave the mess and just stay inside today!

Save the Date!

If you have never attended a Go Red for Women luncheon, I encourage you to do so. If you are in the Cincinnati area, there is a luncheon on May 7th from 9 am to 1 pm at the Duke Energy Center, 525 Elm Street, Cincinnati, Ohio. For more information you can email adrienne.cronebaugh@heart.org I spoke at our first one and have attended every one since. There is so much information about how to take care of your heart and it really stresses the importance for women. You will be touched by the stories that are shared. If you are not in the Cincinnati area, you can check to see if there is a local event by going to the American Heart assoc website at www.americanheart.org and put in your zip code to find out what events are going on in your area. Many different locations are having the Go Red for Women empowerment luncheons. You will leave feeling empowered to do something for your own heart!

Go Red for Women Casting Call

I'm trying out for the 2009 Go Red for Women Casting call on Friday, February 13th. I tried out last year but was not chosen but I'll give it another shot! Last year instead of choosing one person, they chose a group of women to resppresent the cause. Check out their stories at www.goredforwomen.org. 3 of the women have the same heart condition that I do with one already having a transplant. All of them were young when they were diagnosed with 2 of them having the same pacemaker that I have. Very inspiring! It helps to read stories about others that know what you are going thru because they have been there themselves. If you have heart disease I urge you to go check out the stories of all the women with heart disease. My story is on there too! Go read the stories and post your own. You never know who it will help. So, on February 13th I'll go record my story and I would love to represent the heart of Go Red!

National Go Red for Women Day

Ok...National Go Red for Women day is coming up. It's Friday, February 6th. This is the day we are to wear red to help bring awareness that heart disease is the number 1 killer of women. If you don't have a red dress pin, pop me a note and I'll get you one. If you are in the Cincinnati area, watch wkrc channel 12 early in the morning. Bob Herzog and John Gumm have agreed to wear a neck tie that I'm sending them! I'm psyched! John Lomax may also wear one. They are red with the red dress symbol on them. I'm also sending a special red dress pin to Anna Townsend and Liz Bonis to wear on that day. Bob is a friend of ours from the church we used to attend. I am so excited that he agreed to do this! This will help get the message out there that we need to take care of our hearts. I think women tend to ask more questions when they see the red dress symbol on a man too so this should get the conversation going! Be sure and watch early on Friday, February 6th if in the WKRC viewing area!

New Recipe/Chicken Enchiladas

I know it has been quite some time since I posted a low sodium recipe.....sorry for that! Just a little update on me and how I am doing. So far, so good. I feel fine and I am able to do everything I need to do in a day without getting worn out. That means so much! I'm being watched closely in order to catch any changes in my heart function so we can be very proactive. Right now, I am to go see the doctor from OSU in March and he will check to see if the increase in my medications have helped boost my heart function. I sure would appreciate prayer for this.....I believe it changes things! In March, I'm sure he will order an echo and if there is improvement I will just keep doing what I'm doing. If not, they will refer me to the study for the heart net. I have mixed emotions about this. On one hand, it's exciting to think I could be involved in something that could help others in the future and even possibly help my own heart function. On the other....it's surgery and who ever just wants to have surgery? For now, I'm not going to worry about that. We will wait and see what my echo says and take it from there.

Oh...I have to tell you what my husband did this morning. We had a light dusting of snow. Just enough to make the roads slick and cover the ground and cars with snow. He drew a heart in the snow on my wind shield and wrote I love you.....He's so romantic! His love really keeps me going...and Jocelyn's of course! There is nothing like the healing power of love!


Ok....now for the recipe.

Ingredients:
Vegetable oil spray

Sauce:

1 cup fat-free milk
1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth (many groceries now carry this with as little as 70mg per cup)
2 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup reduced-fat monterey jack cheese
1 teaspoon fresh lime juice

8 6-inch corn tortillas. (you just have to check the sodium on the package. There are some out there that are very low sodium and some are very high so be sure and look at the labels)

2 cups cubed cooked skinless chicken breasts, cooked without salt (fresh purdue brand does not add salt solution to their chicken and if you can find Amish chicken breasts, they also do not add salt solution. It needs to say minimally processed. Be sure and check)
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions
1 medium garlic clove, minced
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon chili powder (look for no salt added chili powder)
1/2 cup reduced-fat Monterey jack cheese
2 to 3 tablespoons chopped mild green chiles, rinsed and drained

Preheat the oven to 350. Lightly spray a 13x9x2 inch baking dish with the vegetable oil spray. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan, whisk together the milk, broth, flour, and pepper. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 to 6 minutes, or until the mixture thickens slightly, whisking occasionally.

Whisk in the 1/2 cup cheese and lime juice. Remove from heat and set aside.

To soften the tortillas, wrap in aluminum foil and warm in the oven for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, stir together the chicken, green onions, garlic, cumin and chili powder.

To assemble, place the tortillas on a flat surface. Spread 1/4 cup chicken mixture and 1 tablespoons Monterey Jack in the center of each. Roll up jelly-roll style and place with the seam side down in the baking dish. Pour the sauce over the enchiladas. Sprinkle with the chiles.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the filling is warmed through. Enjoy!