A holistic approach to heart health requires you to nourish the emotional heart as well as the physical heart. Mental and emotional stress can disrupt the emotional heart. Practising restorative yoga, breathing exercises and meditation has been shown to help lower blood pressure, reverse arterial blockage and enhance resistance to stress.
Practise self-care: By now, if you’ve been reading my articles, you’ll know that I’m a self-care maven. It’s something that still isn’t encouraged in society or the workforce. If you spend time or energy on yourself, you are perceived as a narcissist or lazy. That couldn’t be further from the truth. We need to take the time to care for ourselves, for our body, mind and spirit. Take the time to cook your favourite meals. Take the time to go out for a walk in nature, or to just enjoy quiet space.
Practice positivity: The thing is, every one of us has a story that is heartbreaking. Past or current abuse, loved ones passing on leaving us to deal with life, fighting an illness or watching someone fight an illness, living without any financial support. Life is heartbreaking. But we all have the ability to rise up and choose better. The journey might be tough, but we need to commit to ourselves to at least start. Playing the victim helps no one. Choose to think with positivity and a grateful heart. Take your situation as a lesson and then move on. We don’t know how many days we have left, so we need to take life by the horns and fulfill that purpose that we were sent here to achieve. Sometimes that means letting go of the ego and the expectations that will never be met, and whatever perfect picture you are striving for. None of that matters. Live for happiness. That might also mean recognizing negative behaviours in others, and choosing to not associate with these people anymore. This is growth and will help you feel happier and healthier!
Exercise: When we think to exercise the heart, we think of the dreaded “cardio” – ugh, me too. As a yoga practitioner who uses yoga as therapy with clients, I spend a lot of my time using yoga as rehabilitation from sports and activities that are cardio focused. People with injuries in the joints like the knees and hips will not benefit from running on a treadmill five times a week. Some people love it, and that is wonderful! For others it’s swimming or doing high-intensity interval training. I love hatha yoga. Hatha yoga uses static yoga postures that build cardiovascular endurance without the need of aerobic or anaerobic movement. So it is safe for anyone that wants to improve their heart health. It’s safe, efficient, won’t add to your injury, is a solid health maintenance plan, and doesn’t cost anything!
Eat heart healthy: Choose fresh foods over processed foods or leftovers, light foods over rich and/or deep fried foods and foods that are warming over cold, heavy foods. Talk to your doctor about your cholesterol particle size and number, and know the difference between LDL and MDL cholesterol types. Consume saturated fat from good quality sources. High-carbohydrate, low-fat diets contribute to increased amounts of small LDL particles. Inflammation is the culprit for most diseases, including heart disease. As always, this should be discussed with your healthcare team for individual and accurate assessment.
Take care of your heart because, “With a healthy heart, the beat goes on!” - unknown
As always, check with your doctor or health practitioner for any medical-related questions. This information is to be used as a guide and not to replace medical advice.
Kylie Matechuk is a certified, experienced yoga teacher, registered in gold status with the Canadian Yoga Alliance, and director of teacher training at Mo Tus Nua Wellness, the yoga studio she owns and manages in Northern Manitoba. She is also a registered holistic nutritionist with a passion for pediatric and digestive health.
