While February is heart awareness month, there are heroes in our neighborhoods who go the distance for heart health throughout the year.

Autauga County

Prattville Head Start staff and teachers highlight foods that promote heart health. Foods that help clear heart arteries contain fiber, omega-3s, antioxidants, and healthy fats. Those include leafy greens; fatty fish, like tuna; whole grains; nuts; seeds; avocados; and more. These foods work to reduce cholesterol, inflammation, and plaque buildup. In a heart-healthy diet, it is also important to reduce salt, sugar, and saturated fat intake.

Elmore County

The Array of Light Home Care believes in eating smart and loving your heart. This home care center has benefited from the Urban Nutrition Education Program for years. Therefore, they are no strangers to loving their hearts.

Eating healthy starting at a young age helps protect their little hearts and sets a foundation for lifelong wellness into adulthood. Teachers play a key role by offering balanced meals and positive role models at the table during breakfast and lunchtime at school. When the Urban Nutrition Education Program staff visits local schools, children are taught that healthy food can be tasty and fun, while making heart-smart choices as they grow.

Montgomery County

Heart-healthy activities include brisk walking, dancing, gardening, bicycling, running, weightlifting, and using resistance bands. Seniors can also engage in muscle-strengthening activities and chair exercises, like Shirley Finch, a Montgomery County resident. Finch exercises to relieve stress, move freely, and to better engage in an active lifestyle.

Family members can also go on hikes or engage in activities like soccer or yoga. Youth are advised to engage in 60 minutes of activity a day, while adults are advised to work out at least 150 minutes weekly.

If you have not been active for a while, then start small by exercising for 10 to 15 minutes a day and gradually increase your time. Stretching in the morning prepares your body for daily tasks. Try neck rolls, forward bending, and shoulder circles. Before bed, stretching allows your body to relax, recover from daily tasks, and sleep better. Before turning in, do a few spinal twists, knee-to-chest stretches, and breathing exercises.

What are you doing to go the distance for heart health?

Contact Shonda Wright to learn more about the Urban Nutrition Education Program.