If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude. ~ Maya Angelou

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There was a time when my concuños and I played food games. First of all, concuño is a loose Spanish translation to describe my sister-in-laws’ husbands. Since Sandra has three sisters, we are four concuños. In our 20s and well into our 30s, we had friendly eating competitions. Two such contests stand out in my mind: eating donuts and consuming outsized hamburgers.

On any given Sunday, we would be hanging out at our in-laws’ house doing nothing but hanging out. Someone would say, “let’s get donuts,” and the race was on. Knocking out three or four of the tasty mouthfuls of deep fried flour and sugar wouldn’t be unusual for me. Guzzling a tall glass of whole milk was the finishing touch. I forgot to mention that it was usually after an afternoon of eating barbecue pork ribs and drinking beer.

Then there was the time we challenged each other to eat a Monster Burger at Red Robin. This 1,220 calorie behemoth includes a ½ pound of ground beef and exceeds the daily recommendation of fat and sodium. Of course, we washed down the burger with a side of bottomless steak fries and a 24 oz. beer. My stomach was on the verge of bursting as I breathlessly waddled out of the restaurant. 

Yeah, it all sounds pretty gross to me now.

Both of my parents had heart attacks in their 50s and I had been dealing with high cholesterol  since my late 20s. In addition to bad genetics, my childhood diet was high in fat, fried foods, and salt. Fresh veggies were in short supply. So the obvious question about those silly eating contests is: “What the hell was I thinking?” Sadly, the short answer is arrogance and very little understanding of heart disease. 

I thought that exercising regularly would protect me from the fate that fell upon my parents. There were a couple of problems with that thinking. First of all, my exercise regimen wasn’t consistent. I would go through short periods of regular workouts and much longer periods of no exercise at all. More importantly, I completely dismissed the importance of diet. The irony of my 2010 heart attack symptoms starting at the gym is not lost on me. 

Since 2010, I set out to learn as much as possible about heart disease to take care of my damaged organ and encourage others to do the same. On the heels of my 2020 transplant, taking care of my new heart and inspiring people to learn about the disease have become a passion. As a volunteer for the American Heart Association (AHA) last year, I became acquainted with its Life’s Essential 8 checklist. 

According to the AHA, “Life’s Essential 8 are the key measures for improving and maintaining cardiovascular health. Better cardiovascular health helps lower the risk for heart disease, stroke and other major health problems.” As the old saying goes, “if I knew then what I know now . . .” I’m sure you know where I’m going with this. Unfortunately, I didn’t know then what I know now.

Life’s Essential 8 focuses on two major areas: health behaviors and health factors. Health behaviors are things you do that impact health. They include diet, substance use, sleep, and physical activity. Health factors include genetic conditions, education and income levels, and personal medical history. Improving health behaviors can minimize life-threatening health factors.

It turns out that my strategy to exercise my way out of an inevitable heart attack fell way short of what I needed to do to protect myself. In fact, number one on the Life’s Essential 8 checklist is to eat better. The formula is pretty simple. Fresh fruit and vegetables, whole grains, lean meat, legumes and beans, and nuts are good. Alcohol, sugar, salt, trans-fat, processed food, and fried foods aren’t so good. Learning to read nutrition leaves can help manage this.

Sounds easy enough. Hmmmpf! Yeah right. As Dad used to say, “it’s easier said than done.” I’m sure most of us have heard doctors tell us what we need to do to stay healthy. Eat right, exercise, drink plenty of water, limit alcohol, blah, blah, blah. I’ve been there and done that. But, here’s the thing. YOU GOTTA DO THAT TO STAY HEALTHY. Period. End of story. 

Of course, there are rare exceptions like everything else. We all know that one thin person who eats bad food, drinks like a fish, smokes like a train, avoids exercise like the plague, and lives a long time. For some reason, the rest of us think we can do the same and stay away from the hospital and the morgue.

Well . . . think again. I ate bad food, drank a fair amount of alcohol, never smoked, and kinda exercised. The hospital knocked on my door when I was 46 years old and the morgue kept hanging around the entire summer just in case I didn’t make it.

On April 16, 2020, God gave me another shot to do the smart thing. Thanks to the American Heart Association and Life’s Essential 8, I now have a road map to protect the gift of life that came with my new heart. It hasn’t been easy. Watching what I eat and reading nutrition labels are second nature now. I try to think through the consequences of what I put into my mouth before every meal.

Do I do it perfectly every time? Nope. I still have a burger and a few ribs from time to time. I just don’t overdo it and get right back to staying the course. Family gatherings are still hardest for me. I tend to pick at chips and dip and other unhealthy snacks during those times. And I still have an almost insatiable sweet tooth. I can get like the Cookie Monster really fast if I don’t pay attention. I’ll write more about the evils of sugar in a later post.

I’ve learned that the trick to staying on track with a healthy diet is the same as any other effort needed for success and accomplishment. It requires passion, hard work, and discipline. In other words, you really have to want to be alive and healthy. For me, it’s simple. I want to be alive and healthy to spend an active retirement with Sandra once she hangs it up and to run around with grandkids if and when that happens.

Friends tell me that they’re not sure if they could give up so many things. I get it. I like to party. I like greasy Mexican food. I like jelly donuts from legendary Peter’s Bakery on the east side. As the Zach Brown Band tells it, “I like chicken fried and a cold beer on a Friday night.” But, I love Sandra and the girls more. 

It’s natural for parents to say that they would die for their kids. I’ve turned that saying on its head and decided to live for my kids. Following the diet recommendations in Life’s Essential 8 is a daily struggle for most of us. I don’t necessarily like it. As the great poet Maya Angelou said, “If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.” I can’t change what happened to me almost 14 years ago, so I’ve changed my views about what I choose to eat.

I encourage everyone to think about giving Life’s Essential 8 diet recommendations a try.  You can do it. Start slowly, little by little. Take care of your heart and give it the best shot at taking care of you. You deserve a long and healthy life and your family deserves that too. I’m living proof that anyone can enjoy life and eat a healthy diet. Don’t wait. Start today!