National Wear Red Day! (giveaway post).

by

Subtitle: This is an easy one, People.聽 Join in. Wear red. Maybe win.聽 What’s not to love?

The entire concept of Go Red For Women celebrates the energy, passion and power we have as women (& the men who love us!) to band together to wipe out heart disease and stroke.

Cardiovascular disease kills approximately 450,000 women each year.

A number which equates to approximately one woman every minute.

(I’ll give you a moment to聽 let that sink in. I write about the Go Red! movement every year and yet the number never ceases to stun me.)

Ready for a few more statistics?

路 While 1 in 30 American women die of breast cancer, about 1 in 3 die from cardiovascular disease.

路 More women die of cardiovascular disease than the next five causes of death combined, including all forms of cancer.

路 Ninety percent of women have one or more risk factors for developing heart disease.

路 Only 1 in 5 women believe that heart disease is her greatest health threat.

路 Heart disease is largely preventable. In fact, 80 percent of cardiac events in women may be prevented if women make the right choices for their hearts, involving diet, exercise and abstinence from smoking.

At first glance the statistics can be a little daunting, but there are a few simple steps you (ok, you AND I) can take starting today to help prevent cardiovascular disease.

  • Talk to yer mama. If your mother had heart disease before the age of 62 your risk of heart disease doubles.聽 This isnt cause for alarm—-merely information which might cause your doctor to decided to screen your blood pressure and cholesterol much more closely/yearly.
  • Make new friends & keep the old. A University of Chicago study recently showed that lonely people had had blood pressure levels from 10 to THIRTY points higher than those who socialized regularly (wanna be my friend?!).
  • Be *D*lightful. Women with deficiencies in vitamin D in 20s, 30s or 40s are THREE TIMES more likely to develop high blood pressure later in life (when compared to those with normal vitamin D levels).聽 A quick blood test can let you know your vitamin D levels & these levels can be raised through consuming fish, daily products, & through sunshine.
  • Interval train! Studies show 20-25 minutes of interval training can be just as effective as an HOUR of moderate intensity cardio (*cue confetti shaped like little hearts!*).聽 Less time working out with the same benefit? Im in!
  • Om. Om. Om. Adding yoga into your workout routine can help your heart as well as strengthen your inner peace. People who practice yoga regularly have steadier heart rates—which means a stronger heart—than those who do not practice yoga regularly.

And speaking of yoga…

I have FOUR red yoga mats to giveaway thanks to the American Heart Association & Go Red For Women (no, you need not be a woman to win. you simply need to KNOW a woman & encourage her to be heart healthy).

grfw-yoga-mat-and-bag

You can be entered to win for the lowlow price of a comment below.

On anything HEART HEALTH or RED related.

Have a heart healthy tip for all of us?

Have a personal heart health experience you want to share?

Have a creative & fun REDidea for your attire today?

Please to hit us all up in the comments.

USA only

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Comments

  1. Oh, so that’s why the local gay bar is having a “red everything” night tonight!

    I’d love to win. I’ve been trying to work in yoga in the mornings, but my old (second hand) (kind of stinky) yoga mat doesn’t exactly encourage me.

  2. OMG!! I need that in my life!! As a survivor this would be soooo hot 4 me to take to Bikram yoga (get it hot 2 take 2 hot yoga) ok great I failed at the joke but it would be great way for me to continue to bring awareness when I am at the gym!!!

    If I’m not a winner are they on the gored site? Lemme go see hahahaaa. Thanks!

  3. I don’t have much red in my wardrobe, I don’t like the way I look in red. Does Hot Pink work???? I have lots of that!

    I would love the yoga mat. My daughter and I have just started doing yoga in the evenings to help her relax so she can sleep.

  5. I’ll be wearing red scrubs today at work. I’ve already pulled them out of the closet. My mom had a quadruple bypass at age 77. I don’t want my last third to be miserable.

  6. I always loved the Go Red movement, but I seem to forget what day it is half the time. Lucky for me I wear red pretty regularly (it’s my favorite color), so even if I forgot which day it was, there’s still a good chance I would end up showing my support of the cause. 馃檪 The mats are super cute, btw. I was looking on their web site and I love the gym bag as well. I may have to get one!

    Thanks for posting this. Those statistics really are shocking. I know I’ve heard them before, but somehow I always seem to forget just how bad they really are.

  7. Luckily, I do not have a family history of heart disease! My son likes to wear red on Friday’s for different causes. I guess I will join him today. 馃檪

  9. I always seem to get to work on this day, oblivious, wearing green or something! But today, I was on top of it and have my red sweater and heart shaped necklace on. Would love to win the mat for stretching.

  10. Thank you for this post. I am always shocked at the statistic that compares heart disease to breast cancer. Interesting how much more press the latter gets.

    My dad died of heart related issues at 54. That puts me and my siblings at higher risk. I have been on cholesterol mediation for years, as are they and my mom too. I don’t worry about it – but I did add exercise several years back just because of this. Now I just need to get the eating under control for good!

  11. Thanks for the reminder Miz. I will wear my red shirt to work today.

    Even though I am a nurse, I didn’t recognize the symptoms. My dad was at my house and had terrible indigestion. He went to the doctor when he got home and was scheduled immediately for cardiac bypass surgery.

  12. Both my mother and grandmother have/had heart issues. On my Mom’s 50th birthday, she was having serious chest pains, seemingly out of nowhere. My dad took her to the emergency room, and 2 hours later she was having quadruple bypass surgery. Had she overlooked the symptoms or tired to “get through” them, she would have died that night. I am very aware of heart issues, and so glad that “Go Red For Women” is bringing them up front and center!

    What a great giveaway!

  13. Thanks for the wake up call. Both my parents had heart issues. I try to stay vigilant. But need reminding now and then that I’m in the greater riskpool…

  14. The whole family is wearing red today… We’ve all had heart issues, thankfully they’ve resolved. Both girls were born with underdeveloped hearts, and I have WPW (a neurological condition that causes arrhythmia). While I suppose that isn’t specifically heart DISEASE, we have to be very aware of the potential to harm our damaged, but still entirely functional, hearts.

  15. My tip. . .exercise with your dog! Interacting with a pet lowers blood pressure. And exercise. . . well, you know.

  16. Teaming up with yoga and my heart health….this has been my theme this year..I started yoga as one of my get-in-shape/get-moving, in 2010 goals…

    Red being a color of passion for me, it would be a good way to remind myself to continue my goals/efforts passionately. And what a great way to remind everyone at my yoga sessions to think Heart Healthy. And I don’t have my own mat yet…I could really use this giveaway…

  18. I wish I would have known about this in advance. I would have prepared all of my food to be red, too!

    Thanks for spreading the awareness, Miz.

  19. Guess I’ll dress the kiddos in red, too! I’d love a red yoga mat. That would be way coooooooooooooolll

  20. I plan on wearing red to class today! Also, Project Runway had a heart-disease/red-themed episode last night if you happen to like that show 馃檪 Loved all the red dresses!

  21. I’d love to win one of these mats! My mother-in-law has suffered 2 heart attacks and its such a balancing act for her with all the different meds and stuff. Hopefully more awareness will improve treatments. I think insurance should cover exercise classes and education healthy foods in addition to statins and blood pressure meds.

  22. My favorite color red, my favorite workout: HIIT.
    Also the expensive shoes I just brought? RED!
    Obviously I need more red in my life :P.

  25. I will have to go with an Indian outfit for RED.

    Looking for RED today, looking for extra Yoga mat so I don’t have to remember to take mine in to work on Fridays.

    Love interval training, no.. not HIIT..

    HAPPY weekend Carla!

  26. My heart healthy tip right now – watch yer sodium! It’s so easy to eat 2 to 3 times the amount of recommended sodium – and that’s on a healthy diet!
    In addition to tracking my calories, I also track my fiber and sodium levels. I think it’s important to make sure I stay below the 2,300 mg level as much as possible.

  29. I LOVE the excercise piece that 20-25 min interval can be just as beneficial. I’m throwing the red heart shaped confetti right there with you.
    Thanks for the info..

  30. Love me some yoga several times a week. Would love the go red mat..it’s a real eye catcher and supports a great cause. Thanks.

  33. Argh! How did I miss this? I thought it was next Friday…. will have to wear red to the gym tonight… but I am carrying my red purse.

    I would love a red yoga mat…. mine is old and not quite so sticky/tacky anymore.

    Good luck everyone!

  34. What a great post!! I am wearing red today and blogged it too! I love this day, feeling united in health and fashion!! My tip? USE your heart, get it pumpin and racing, the more you use it the stronger it gets, even if it’s been broken or bruised. 馃槈

  35. I spend so much time thinking about my cholesterol and blood sugar levels (that are in really great shape, btw), that I forget that all the women in my family have had heart problems.

    I will wear red today (even if it is my pajama top).

    Interval training – hard but fun. Got to do some of that.

  38. Totally wore red by accident today (was running late this morning, so no blog love before I left home), so I think it is an omen! Going to ditto the previuos comments about sodium. Just started to really watch those numbers more carefully and even being conscious about it and avoiding most processed foods, 2300 mg creeps up on you pretty fast!

  39. I’m wearing a RED shirt today. I’m going to have my kids color RED hearts this afternoon.

    My three deceased grandparents died from heart disease. My dad had a heart attack in June 2008. My family is very aware of how real heart disease is.

  40. i’m always wearing a red watch, but i’m doing it consciously today 馃檪

    my entire family has heart, blood pressure, and cholesterol issues. anything we can do to raise awareness of preventative measures is a good thing!

  42. I admit… I don’t own anything red that is work-appropriate attire, so I tried my best and wore a bright pink shirt today. When I got in, my co-workers adorned me with red beaded necklaces to wear. Now I finally have my red. 馃檪

  43. Miz – I was Googling this and you came up super high in the search! What a VIP 馃檪 I am so, so happy to read this post and see you calling attention to such an important cause!

    My family has a history of blood pressure and cholesterol issues. I never met my grandfather as he died of a heart attack before I was born. This is an issue that hits close to home and my best advice is to get out there and get active…simple, yes, but most effective.

    Thanks for the opportunity, Miz!

    How’ve you been lately?

  45. Wonderful post. People need to know how much they can do to improve their quality of life and fight cardiovascular disease.
    Congestive Heart failure took my Mum a month ago. It took her Mum too. My mum was a healthy person, but she had heart problems…and always told me to looka fter my heart. You’ve only got one.

    Heart disease is a very real thing. Some issues, like my mum’s leaky heart valve can’t be fixed, but a lot of heart issues CAN be dealt with by healthy eating and exercise. There are so many more treatments now for helping people live longer and better with it, but nothing replaces healthy living. Her poor heart health is one of the reasons I strive to be healthy. I want a happy healthy heart!

    I’m wearing red undies…does that count 馃檪

  46. Somebody above mentioend salt. Yes, there is more and more evidence that salt is bad primarily because it raises blood pressure and I have been really trying to cut down the amoutn of salt I add when I am cooking. BLOOD pressure is a silent killer.

  48. Great info…sad but good to know!

    I wear red everyday…I found a bracelette while I was geo-caching and it has a trinket of a women’s dress with a heart shaped neck line. It acts as a physical reminder for me to get out and get active everyday.

    This disease can affect women and men of all shapes, sizes, and ages!

    My advice…don’t take life too seriously…everything-good or bad happens for reasons we’re to learn from.

    Have a great weekend!

  49. ooh ooh, i need a new yoga mat (i ruined mine by using sneakers on it before I knew better), and red sounds awesome! I am rocking the red today with a Washington Capitals t-shirt (go Caps!) and my red ski jacket so I can get home in this monster D.C. snowstorm!

  50. I’d love a new yoga mat! A heart healthy tip? Cut down on the sodium! Something we don’t often think about, but there’s a LOT of salt in processed foods, including canned soups and lunch meats.

  51. Love that you’re doing this. It’s so true and important. My wake-up call to fitness that actually stuck was when it really came down to my health, mainly my heart. It was hard for me to make healthy choices when it was mainly about my waistline, but when it concerned my mortality, I woke up and took notice. So now I’m all about the heart health. My poor mother has seen 2 stents and double bypass surgery in her 50’s and it runs heavy in our family (when we do)…and not to mention I started life off with a little mitral valve prolapse myself, so I’ve gotta keep the ticker kickin’. Thanks for sharing the awareness and the love.

  53. I’d love to win a new yoga mat to help me continuemy heart-healthy pilates practice (all exercise helps my heart, right?).

  54. I’m wearing my red fleece hoodie today! My love wore red to work this morning as well. I’d love to win the yoga mat. Have been doing yoga on and off for a couple of years but always just on the livign room carpet.

  55. We all need to make heart health a priority, and I will wear my red pullover sweater to work and tell everyone why.

  56. Does my red nose count? My poor schnoz is raw from all the sneezing and blowing.

    Unfortunately, I didn’t see this post until I got home from work and I didn’t wear red today. I am encouraging my hubby (who has high blood pressure) to start working out more to try to prevent the heart attack that is lurking around the corner if he isn’t careful.

  57. My mom had a heart attack and a quad by-pass years later. I vowed to do all I could not to end up like that. My lifestyle is very different with exercise, healthy eating and a positive attitude.

    I’m wearing a red sweater in support of women’s heart health!!! Let’s beat the statistics~

  58. I would love to stop doing yoga and situps at home on a slip sliding beach towel! Between the dog and my two daughters who join in on sliding towels it is quite the scene! Hmmm. Perhaps I should video it for youtube, and pay for a yoga mat AND college!

  59. my husband and i (in our lower 30’s) are very active (both running in the illinois marathon in may, him the full, me the 1/2) because both sides of our families have had issues with heart health. his grandfather had a heart transplant 15 years ago (we were both 15/16), both my grandmother &grandfather have had multiple bypass surgeries (my grandfather had a heartattack at my birthday party when i was 25 and my grandmother had her surgery when i was about 10). they are all so very lucky to be alive and we want to keep our bodies and hearts in the best possible health we can!

    wearing a red thermal shirt today!

    here’s to improving heart health!

  60. I’m wearing my red – my red dress pin, red earrings, red bracelet. I have heart disease on both side sof my family, which is one reason I’ve never smoked. But this particular disease is always on my mind, if not in the forefront. It is the main reason I make the effort to eat better and exercise.

  61. i’m wearing a RED zip-up sweatshirt with a big embroided peace sign on it … and a tie-dyed shirt underneath. i love tie dye soooo much. i’m a fake hippie.

    with regards to hearts, i’m going to touch those of my friends tonight. i will tell each friend i see at least one thing that i love about them. it’s not that i don’t do that anyway, but we should all do it more. i will look right in their eyes and sincerely tell them what i love about them. my heart’s getting warm just thinking about it 馃檪

    also, a fun fact, i held a beating pig heart a couple of months ago.

  62. Two years ago, I watched my father undergo 5 bypass surgery to repair all the damage that he had done to his heart. Even though, I was a relatively healthy 25 year old, that day was a wake up call to me. I started focusing on eating healthier (more fiber, more veg, less sugar) and working out more.

    In honor of Go Red Day, I am rocking a red, sparkly maternity sweater and cute boot cut jeans. I am a proud Mama-to-be with a healthy heart….and that’s reason to celebrate.

  63. My husband works in a cardiology clinic and I made him wear red to work today. He gave in and wore a red t-shirt under a dress shirt but his nurses were all decked out!

    Have a great weekend Miz!

  64. My grandmother died of a heart attack that she just thought was anxiety and indigestion.

    I know that her health wasn’t the greatest and I need to keep mine in check and get tested for problems early since I have a family history.

    I miss her all the time and I wish she would have listened to us tell her to get to the doctor. But at least her death encouraged my mom to get healthy.

  65. My mother has a pig valve in her heart that needs replacing pretty soon, after a miraculous 20 years. This reminds me I need to needle her to make a date for surgery.

  66. One of the reasons I keep my workouts 1/2 cardio is to keep the heart and lungs healthy. Just like I lift the weights for the health of my bones. 馃檪 I’s trying to be all healthy up this ways.

  67. Keeping the heart strong and healthy through cardio and strength training is a great goal for all of us! I’m wearing red pj’s right now and eating pink and red m&m’s. Does that count? : )

  68. My doctor recently told me I had a less than 1% change of a heart related incident in the next 10 years. He’s probably thinking I’ll die of cancer first so he’ safe to say that.

    I wore teal but I have red veins. 馃槈

  69. Such an important message Miz!!!! It still amazes me that women do not know how deadly this disease is to them!

    Heart healthy tip.. LAUGH!!! Gets rid of the stress!!!!! OR, change the focus (post coming up this Sunday) to positive things.

    As for the attire, I best keep that secret.. TMI for here! 馃檪

  70. oh, oops, i didn’t know about ‘wear red’ day until just now. well, let’s see … not smoking greatly reduces the risk for developing atherosclerosis. also reducing meat consumption is suppose to lower cholesterol levels. i suppose that’s close enough for a heart healthy tip…

  72. Thank you, thank you, thank you for posting this!

    I have always known that heart disease is the big killer among women–and I’m glad that the word is getting out!

    I’m fighting it right now–bad lipid panel, after losing 65 pounds. Research, changing, fighting hard here.

    My mom had both breast cancer and heart disase. She survived the cancer, had two heart attacks, multiple surgeries (bypass, several angioplasties, finally lapsing into a coma and passing away. She was 59. 59 years young.

    I’ll wear red. I will continue to fight with my heart and soul so I don’t die at 59, and more, so I don’t have the poor quality of life that she had for 15 years prior to her death.

    Thank you for sharing the message.

  73. My heart healthy tip is this: if changing your whole lifestyle seems overwhelming, focus on ONE thing you can do to dramatically improve your heart health. A couple ideas:

    Commit to eating 7 servings of fruits and veggies per day, regardless of whatever else you might eat.

    Commit to walking 30 minutes/day, 5 days/week, rain or shine.

    I’d love to win the yoga mat, BTW!

  74. I don’t know if this is what you mean or not but for me to lower my blood pressure and keep my heart healthy I like to walk or run with my puppy

  75. I wore my red today and was amazed and overjoyed to see so many people doing the same, from the people at the mall to our local newscasters. For some reason people don’t take the time to realize how serious heart disease is for women. I am sure that we all have been or will be affected by someone who has the disease. We need to take care of ourselves! And the yoga mat is a nice touch! Love it, love it!

  76. One of these days I’ve been told I will have to have a valve replacement done, to correct a leaky one. My best advice would be to stop smoking, be as active as you can, eat healthy and think positive thoughts.

  77. I love to wear my red sweater with my blue jeans 馃檪

    I would love to win the mat because I just started my yoga class again and I don’t have a mat of my own..

  78. I actually did wear red today, but it was an accident. I’m counting it anyway.

    My advice: get your cholesterol checked! Do it now. I was shocked to find mine was higher than it should be and there are no symptoms. Then do what it takes to raise your HDL and lower your LDL including medication if needed.

  79. Those are soooo cool – I really need a yoga mat!

    Heart-healthy tip?? Exercise. Yes, I know it’s the point of your entire blog, Miz, but it’s totally true. It keeps your endorphins going, it gets your blood pumping, and it totally pushes you forward into making your heart nice and healthy. 馃檪

  80. Stay active! Watch you saturated fat intake and avoid trans fats and processed foods. Eat veggies or fruit at every meal and get plenty of REST and relaxation to keep your stress levels manageable!

  82. On the creative and fun front: I have a red skirt that looks like it might have come from a gypsy costume, but as it’s the only red thing I own that is what I wore to work yesterday!

  83. Yesterday I had a big heart scare. I was feeling tightness and pressure in my chest and upper back. I went to the ER and so far everything is okay, but I need more tests still. This was a huge wake up call for me. I have a lot of work to do, but I want to live. I have to start now. I have never done yoga, but I’m ready to start something.

  85. A lot of workplaces have launched initiatives to encourage their employees to lead a healthier lifestyle. My work has installed a blood pressure monitoring machine and awards prizes to those who use it, will pay me a small amount if I exercise 2X per week, and rewards me for completing a basic physical. Check out the perks offered by your company! Aside from the personal health benefits, the rewards are good motivation.

  87. We used to sing a song. Damn Yankees, i think, “Ya’ gotta’ have heart, all ya really need is heart.”. So much more meaningful as you get older. And a good song!

  88. I did a blog tour this week for a book about a cardiologist and the blog tour donated 10% to AHA. It’s amazing how many people out there are killing themselves without even knowing it.

  89. Hopefully, it’s not too late! I would love a red matt for my yoga that I just started to do…..thank you!

  90. My father had 7 bypasses after a massive heart attack in 1985. He lived 10 years after that, so much of my fitness effort is dedicated to him and to my children. Eat more almonds, practice more yoga, and walk, walk, walk!! LOVE the red yoga mat. I would love it for my practice.

  92. I know first hand how important it is for women to know about heart disease. In 2005, I had 2 heart attacks. The first one, I didn’t know it was an heart attack and went all day with that indigestion feeling. I always thought to have an attack the pain had to go up your neck and down your arm. It didn’t happen that way for me. The 2nd was the “elephant sitting on my chest” pain. So I knew that I had to get to the hospital. After the attacks, I learned that women had different symptoms than men.

  93. I am a two time silent heart attach survivor. On Nov 9, 2006, I went to the emergency room because I had a severe reaction to a medication, while in the emergency room and on an EKG I had a heart attack. The only symptom was a slight cramp in my RIGHT arm. The doctors in the ER did not think I had a heart attack, but kept me overnight for observation because of family history. At 4:30 am I was told my enzyme test indicated I had a heart attack. Long story short I ended up having a 6 graph by-pass at the age of 53. After surgery my doctor told me I had previous a heart before. The underlying reason for my heart condition was in part my thyroid, namely hypothyroidism. My cholesterol (total) level was well within the normal range but my cholesterol ratio was always off, and this was the probably the main cause of my blockages.
    My advice to all women is to have annual blood work done, and include a thyroid test. But most of all become educated, for years my thyroid symptoms were dismissed by doctors, telling me it was ‘a little off’ and to diet and take off a few pounds. Be your own advocate!!!

  94. I have red glitter eyeliner that I love to wear when my kids (2 and 3 years old) do yoga – dancing and yoga are part of our nightly routine. Seriously, I love to rock the red- red running skirts with red glitter liner make putting in those miles (I run half marathons) even more fun.

    My heart story- simple- not dramatic. I was fat- over 225 – and had some bad lipids and an elevated BP. I was also super stressed out- basically creating the foundation for heart disease.

    That was about four years ago- now I am fit, fit, fit – totally heart healthy- a mom of two little girls- and I run 20-40 miles a week, cook fantastic heart healthy meals, mom it up, and work full time. The key- deciding that even one minute of exercise is better than none. I squeeze in yoga, core work, and runs into every nook and cranny of my calendar…. I would love happy red yoga mat to OM out on and to share with my kids

  95. Last year, when I got a regular, runny-nose cold I got a fever and then passed out (lost consciousness) five times in 20 minutes. I had to get an ECG done and was diagnosed with bradycardia and an Sino-atrial node arrhythmia. They say the slow heart rate is caused by being “athletic” and for a girl who used to be 100 lbs overweight, that’s a nice thing to hear.

  97. I few weeks ago I had a heart scare. My Dr had done a test that measures inflammation around your heart (strong family history). At 29 my heart is inflamed putting me at higher risk for a cardiac event. Talk about a wake-up call!

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